The Saints have quietly accumulated a lot of young talent the last couple of years, and it is now time for some of those seeds to bear fruit. Over the next week or so I’m going to go through a list of players who need to prove that they are more than just a roster spot for the Saints. There is no order or ranking here, but these are 5 guys who I believe will help determine if the team succeeds or fails this season. These are the guys who have quietly put in the work, and whether its year 2,3, or 4 now is the time for us to watch them and see what they can become. The final player on the list is Second year player and the Saints first pick in last year’s draft…Andrus Peat.
Concerns:
Peat showed up to camp last year woefully out of shape, and struggled throughout his rookie season. Peat had limited playing time filling in at both tackle and guard at times, but he never established himself at either position. The offensive line is a tough position to play, and the nuance and level of precision required by the NFL game is tough for any rookie, however it was the feeling of many Saints fans that when you take a player in the top 15 picks in the draft they had BETTER produce. Peat didn’t. He showed flashes certainly, and there were moments where the athleticism that got him taken as the 13th overall pick showed itself. However, what was troubling is that Peat couldn’t beat out the corpse of Jahri Evans, or Tim Lelito at guard, and while Strief certainly was serviceable most of the year you would expect him to beat him out by year’s end.
That is the expectation of most fans and many writers as well, and for the most part I don’t think they are wrong. However, I think two very important factors contributed to Peat spending so much more time on the wood than on the field last year. First of all Strief is a veteran, and I mean that not only from the stand point of tenure, but of experience. Zach might be limited, however he’s also very dependable and Drew pretty much knows exactly what to expect from him. With a veteran QB that is a huge part of it. The trust of his QB, his coach, and his fellow linemates had to be earned, and clearly that wasn’t the case in 2015. The other factor is condition meaning both senses of the word. Peat didn’t show up in the right condition right from the start which put him behind where they would have liked/needed him to be, and possibly because of that his physical condition deteriorated throughout the year. Peat was carrying more weight on his already massive frame that would be preferred while also having to contend with a much higher level of competition while being forced to rapidly develop. Simply put he couldn’t keep up physically with the demands that were put on him and he was nicked up repeatedly throughout his rookie year.
The biggest concern I have with Andrus Peat is that he will either continue to be an injury plagued player, always nicked up and never at full capacity, or that he will never fully blossom into his potential. Either scenario is a horrible blow to the Saints because they quietly bet a lot on him. Peat has incredible upside and potential, and with Armstead on the other side of the line he could help them secure a dominating offensive force for years to come…but only if he lives up to it.
Reasons to be optimistic:
For starters every report I have seen says all the same things about Peat, he looks different this year. Gone is the baby fat, the extra few pounds, and in its place stands a Giant of a man with extraordinary balance and gait for someone his size. Andrus Peat the prospect, the idea, is a staggering mound of possibility. He has clearly taken his first year in the league to heart and has begun putting in the effort it will take to transform him from seldom played first round pick, to up and coming star. Peat has all the physical tools in the world with his massive 6’7″ 315 pound frame Peat is a literal giant. He has soft feet though and a natural bent and grace that is unusual for a man his size. Peat could very well be the key to the Saints unlocking the best run game they have had since 2011, and that more than anything else will help them return to contention.
The presence of a run game that is not only potent, but consistent is the key to dictating terms to the defense and protecting Brees. The best case scenario for the Saints is that Strief has one last year in him and Peat can fill in at guard for one season while he waits to become the starter next year. His athleticism and strength in the run game can become a huge asset for the team, and I believe his experience as a tackle might in some ways better prepare him for some of the monsters the Saints will play on the interior (not to mention what they can do when they pull him). The other option is to have him take over at right tackle and pray that Tim and Senio don’t get Drew killed (possible, but not likely both are ok). This is obviously before even training camp, much less preseason, starts so a lot can happen between now and then, but make no mistake Andrus Peat is in many ways the most important young player on this roster. If he can shore up the offensive line and bring back legit balance to the offense it’s a total gamechanger regardless from which position he does it, but if he can’t it could mean the end of the Payton and Brees era. You can’t get stakes any bigger than that.
Way too early prediction:
I think Payton knows what he is looking for in a lineman and when they took Peat they knew they found something special. My way too early prediction for Peat is that he will start at guard for about the first ten games or so, but will play at right tackle at some point when Strief gets benched and will never go back. I think he will be a huge key in Mark Ingram becoming the first back since 2006 to run for 1k plus yards in a Saints uniform.
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