Expectations have changed when it comes to 1st round draft picks. Gone are the times where they could slowly be brought along in an attempt to maximize their skills before they see the field. These days people expect their 1st round picks to contribute immediately. And every NFL player is different so that position is sometimes unfair. I’ve seen many players take a year or two to develop before reaching the point where they are contributing players. Sometimes those players are rushed to the field too soon, struggle, and it wrecks the player’s self confidence as well as the collective NFL’s confidence in their ability to play the game well. At this point, though, it may be a risk worth taking.
When Andrus Peat was drafted I felt a little disappointed because a starting tackle wasn’t an immediate need with veterans Terron Armstead and Zach Strief holding down starting positions. I’ve always been a big fan of Strief who I thought was massively underrated by the fan base. The depth at tackle, on the other hand, was bad enough that I certainly understood the Saints’ need to protect themselves from a possible injury. There was no way the Saints could afford to have Bryce Harris as their primary replacement anymore should something happen to Armstead or Strief. From that standpoint the Peat pick made sense, but the idea that he wouldn’t start immediately as the Saints’ 1st pick was a little bit of a downer. The plus side is the Saints were in a rare position to bring a tackle along and not force the issue for him to see the field immediately. And, if disaster were to strike the Saints at least had more potential than Harris in a backup. Based on Peat’s physical condition at training camp when I saw him at the Greenbrier, this was a good thing. He wasn’t ready.
Fast forward to now, Strief’s performance through 3 games is at an all time low. He always struggled with speed rushers and you could see that becoming more of a problem with age, but there’s no excuse for pre-snap penalties which have been an issue as well. His play has been poor, so much so that he became “that guy” that got Drew Brees injured. No offensive lineman since 2006 had done that and unfortunately Strief now owns that distinction. I’m not ready to write off Strief as “finished” but I’m starting to see the writing on the wall and so the need for a right tackle came more immediately than I expected. Strief doesn’t look like the same player through three games. Turns out, drafting Peat was even more critical than I expected.
The Saints are in a full re-build, make no mistake about it. At 0-3 the goals for this season have to be about setting up their young players for a successful 2016. If the Saints were 3-0 and Strief was struggling, I might feel differently. And if the Saints veteran right tackle isn’t playing well under these conditions, then it’s time for their first round pick to start learning on the job. He might struggle but that’s exactly what the Saints are getting out of Strief right now. Peat is part of the Saints’ future and he’s clearly penciled in as an opening day starter in 2016. It’s important to start finding out now what the Saints have in him. The best case scenario is the Saints will benefit from improved play at right tackle immediately which might keep their quarterback healthy.
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