The 2016 is now over as the Saints disappointingly ended with a 7-9 record for the third year in a row. Instead of wasting my time watching teams who I hate (meaning everyone NOT the Saints) I’ll be looking at each position group for the Saints and grading them player by player based on my own notes throughout the season, and also rewatching the games… because the pain just wasn’t enough the first time.
Next up is the defensive line:
Unit Grade: A-
Nick Fairley: Sometimes I told you so feels oh so very sweet. I was one of a small minority that was clamoring for the Saints to sign the former 1st round pick out of Aurburn, and Fairley delivered in a big way. Not only was Fairley extremely impressive statistically with 6 and ½ sacks and 43 (big numbers for a 3-tech defensive tackle), but he was also mostly consistent and was second on the team in pressures. Fairley was a value on and off the field and his work ethic and production should help him with shedding his label as a player who is at times lazy and uncommitted.
Nick was a fantastic addition to a team that desperately needed an increase in production and impact along the interior defensive line. There were of course moments where in hindsight you would wish he handled things differently, a particular boneheaded penalty against Kansas City being the largest, But, even that play is difficult to hold against him when you consider that Fairley was going through a personal tragedy at the time.
The bottom line is that Nick Fairley was an enormous asset for the Saints in 2016, and considering his success here, the support of his teammates, and its proximity to his hometown of Mobile Alabama it’s not a stretch to expect him to be a similarly productive player going forward. We all know he’s got the physical tools to be a monster, but if there is one thing we learned about Nick through his first year in New Orleans…it’s that he seems happy and comfortable here and that can make all the difference.
Player Grade: A
Tyeler Davison: In his second year after being selected in the 5th round by the Saints in 2015 Tyeler Davison showed solid growth in his second season as he took over as the starting nose tackle for the Saints. Davison is a player who will likely never be a star, but his absolute floor is as a high-quality backup, and a decent starter. Considering what an embarrassment the Saint’s interior defensive line has been in recent years that alone gives him great value.
Davison is strong, like Mammoth strong, and it shows up on tape. The Saints had a significant improvement against the run this past season, and Davison was a big part of that. While not dominant he showed the ability to take on multiple blockers and hold his ground which gave him the ability to free up his teammates to make plays and stop the ball carrier. Davison didn’t, and likely never will, have the statistical impact of a ‘plus’ player, but he was definitely a bright spot for a defense desperate for good players.
Player Grade: B
Sheldon Rankins: Rankins was a mixed bag as a rookie as there were flashes of his potential to be an outright dominant interior pass rusher, but also long stretches where he failed to make much of an impact. Some of that is certainly due to him not being in the kind of rhythm or condition that is required to excel on the professional level after breaking his leg in the preseason. Rankins showed an ability to get up the field and beat offensive linemen with power, with quickness, and with savvy. He consistently displayed the traits that caused the Saints to make him their 1st round pick, but he also showed plenty of room for improvement.
At times Rankins struggled to get off blocks and failed to make a positive impact on plays. This was less a matter of not having the required functional strength, and more of an issue with him simply lacking the experience needed to elevate his game to the level of the league’s best interior rushers. Along with Fairley and Cam Jordan (featured below) Rankins has shown he has all the tools he will need to become a force for the Saints, but the question will be if he can become a consistent one. There is a danger in projecting his production over 9 games out to a 16-game sample size, especially when it came in spurts. I’m confident in his ability to develop, but he’s not a confirmed ‘star’ just yet.
Player Grade: B
David Onyemata: David Onyemata is a massive, hulking, soft-spoken ball of incredible potential. Onyemata can be described in a single word: SKRONG. There were moments, flashes, throughout the season where his untapped ability showed itself and he absolutely destroyed everything in front of him. Onyemata is a Canadian convert who was drafted by the Saints in the 4th round based on his incredible physical tools as well as his temperament.
Onyemata came to the Saints as a tremendously raw football player who had only been playing the game period for a couple of years, and was now being asked to adjust not only to the professional game (a challenge in and of itself), but also to American style football. In Canada players play off the line and the difference in proximity can affect a player’s timing, technique, and even their ‘mentality’. In American football, we often refer to the line as ‘the trenches’, and while the overabundance of war related terminology in sports can be a little silly at times, when it comes to the lines it is perfectly fitting. The place where the offensive and defensive linemen clash is a chaotic mesh of superhuman strength, brutal blows, and is a true Battle for position and to establish dominance. Whether it fits his personality or not Onyemata has the game of a ‘gentle giant’ who has yet to fully grow accustomed to the controlled rage necessary to unleash his dominant potential.
Still the flashes he showed when combined with the fact that he had relatively few bad plays, gives a lot of hope for his future. His ceiling is incredible, but thankfully his floor appears to be high enough that the Saints can be confident he is at least an NFL level defensive tackle in a rotation.
If that is the worst they can expect from him then Onyemata can be considered a great pickup. However, if by some chance he can tap into his potential and turn those ‘flashes’ into consistent production then the sky will truly be the limit for him. He isn’t great now (although still serviceable), but the day could come where he will be.
Player Grade: C+
Daryll Tapp: Tapp was exactly what the Saints expected him to be, and needed him to be, a quality veteran. He was in a lot of ways a jumbo-sized version of Sterling Moore. By that I mean that while he isn’t starter level by any means, he brought value and production to the roster. Tapp was never spectacular, and didn’t record a ton of ‘stats’, but he had GREAT effort, was consistent, and I’m sure was also an asset to the Saints younger defensive linemen in the areas we as fans don’t get to see (such as preparation).
Player Grade: B-
Kasim Edebali: Kasim Edebali is kind of like the game The Division….tons of hype in the offseason, he’s got all this untapped potential, but the final payoff was just lackluster. Edebali wasn’t really bad per se, he just wasn’t good either. He didn’t deliver as a pass rusher, and his inability to be an asset in the run game made him pretty much unplayable a lot of the time. He’s a decent depth guy, and I can see some scenarios where he could be a decent football player, but I don’t think he is a fit for Dennis Allen’s defense and I don’t see much value in the Saints retaining him other than Special Teams and/or depth.
Player Grade: D+
Paul Kruger: Before we get into the best player on the Saints defense in 2016, we have to talk about arguably their worst. It’s amazing the difference a few short years can make. A few years ago Kruger was a major part of a Super Bowl team and one of the hottest free agents to hit the market. Oh what a difference a couple of years can make. You took the Kruger off the Browns, but we couldn’t get the Browns off of Kruger. He was for lack of a better term an absolute total waste of space.
The defensive end position opposite Cam Jordan was a black hole for essentially the entire season, and Kruger was added to help fix that issue. However, he failed to have any kind of positive impact at any point for the Saints and left offenses to focus the bulk of their attention on Jordan. Kruger not only failed to deliver on the Saint’s expectation for him, but caused the opposite effect. The purpose of this review isn’t to trash him, but he quite simply wasn’t of any positive value to the Saints (at least on the field which is the only thing I can observe).
Player Grade: F—
Cameron Jordan: There are a number of superlatives that I could use to describe Cam Jordan, and most of them would be completely true, but honestly the word that best describes him is consistent. Jordan is consistent in every way along the defensive line and its why he’s not only the defenses leader, but also their best player. Jordan is a jack of all trades type of defensive end who doesn’t really have any areas where he is weak, but his run defense is elite. Quietly Jordan has also developed into one of the league’s elite pressure players as well. While I am the last person anyone would expect to speak out in favor of PFF or to use their stats, there is an element of truth behind them ranking Jordan near the top of the list in EDGE players this year. His sack numbers were below the double digit numbers we had come to expect the last few years, but he was still one of the league leaders in pressures and was an impact player on a defense that lacked a lot of impact.
Jordan isn’t a top level pass rusher, he lacks the fluidity and acceleration to be elite in that regard, but he’s consistent and skilled enough to constantly put pressure on his opponents and his dominance against the run can’t be underestimated. Jordan managed to be a highly effective and productive player in 2016 while also being the sole focus of the oppositions pass protection on practically every play. The Saints lined up the likes of Kasim Edebali and Paul Kruger opposite Jordan for the majority of the season, and it was no benefit to Cam or the team. The lack of even a competent counterpart on the other side of the line had a significant impact on Jordan’s ability to produce sacks as quarterbacks had plenty of escape routes. The lack of coverage in the flats as well as down the field also caused him to be just a half a second too late on a number of plays (part of why fans say Jordan is the king of the almost sack). This isn’t to make excuses for Jordan, he isn’t an elite pass rusher and his lack of initial quickness and elite balance has caused him to miss out on potential sacks in the past. However, the reality is that Jordan had essentially the weight of the entire defense on his back for most of the year this year, and the vast majority of the time Cam came through and delivered everything that could be expected of him. Jordan is one of the very best defensive ends in the league because while he DOES bring great value as a pass rusher, he is borderline dominant in all other aspects of the game as well which gives him tremendous upside and value for the team. Jordan is a true building block for the defense, and the prayer of Saints fans everywhere is for the team to get him some help on the other side.
Player Grade: A+
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