This mail is a mix of a couple of subjects. It is the off-season and we followed our great leader Andrew Juge here. A bit of column A, a bit of column B. Column A is his twitter question which he sent us, column B is a mailbag format, a post Andrew did recently, basically when he has not much inspiration. I know; have been reading the Blog for 5 years now.
Andrew sent us a question via twitter on the future of the players that joined the Saints in the magical year 2006.
@SaintsNationBlg @Monedula_ @SaintBrian9 topic: do any of Jahri, Strief to Colston stay?
— Andrew Juge (@AndrewJuge) February 5, 2016
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Brian Bauer (@SaintBrian9)
Since Andrew posted this, part of the message has been answered, Evans was let go. There are 2 players left, Colston and Strief. First up Colston; what do you see happening for him in the future?
Marijn Pessers (@Monedula_)
He will be back and I am 90% sure of that. First and foremost he is done. He can not play at his level anymore. WRs have a certain point where they stop being the players they were. Roddy White for instance is done, while someone like Larry Fitzgerald keeps on being productive having played an even longer time. Why will he be back? The main reason for that is Payton and his history in keeping players who are done. Meachem is a prime example. Perfect blocker, but worthless in the passing game in his last year. There is definitely some value in Colston left and that is why he will hang around.
There are 2 hurdles left to step over that determine if he will be back or not. One is a money. Will he take a pay cut, or like Evans, try his luck somewhere else? Unlike Evans, Colston has nothing left in the tank and will not get much on the open market anyway. He is also a guy who is happy to retire a Saint. He does not want to go anywhere else. The other hurdle is retirement. Does he want to show his rubber hands to the fans for one more season and drag this out longer then needed? Megatron has said to retire before he is a shell of his former self. Will Colston do the same?
BB
My heart wants the same conclusion but my head tells me this is the end. I agree that he’s not going to be a commodity on the free agent market but I think that faced with a paycut (and I’m not convinced that’s in the cards either by the way. I think the Saints have to be questioning his value at this stage and using a valuable spot on what’s essentially a mascot isn’t their style, especially with talent at the position – see Pierre Thomas) he’ll actually retire. Unlike the aforementioned Thomas I don’t see Colston as the type to bounce from team to team and he’s got a rock solid second career waiting in the wings. The Colston era ends – the leading wide receiver in Saints history retires… Without ever appearing in a pro bowl. Let that sink in.
MP
Before we move on, one more thing about Colston. I don’t think Payton will let him retire. Meachem should have retired one year before he did too then. He will talk to him and convince him. He still sees more value in his veteran presence and blocking skills then a Seantavius Jones.
BB
The guy we have not talked about is Strief. Your thoughts?
MP
I think he will be there until he can not go anymore. Payton quoted him in his “I am staying”-speech; saying that he will stay with the Saints as long as they will have him. The guy has been an excellent mentor to Peat, is ready to move aside and do whatever he can to help his team. He is a great locker room guy. Something that weighs heavily in Paytons mind. Also keeping him means you have not to address that position for at least a year.
BB
I have a not a popular opinion. I’m kinda done here. The fact is while I appreciate his service, his expiration, at least to me, is a long time coming and the truth is I’ve never considered him truly elite. Saints need to move on but unlike what I think happens with Colston, I think they’d welcome Strief as depth. Sure can use it.
On to our last topic. What’s the biggest key to fixing the Saints defense?
MP
The key to fixing the Saints defense is depth. Secondary depth is good if a few guys return and stay healthy, but when your front 7 has so many rookies starting, there is 0 depth. The growth last year was enormous. A guy like Anthony starting every game as the QB of the defense meant he got a shitload on information he can now process in the off-season and become a lot better next year. So what they need is to get last years rookies on the field again and add some talent and maybe a veteran or 2. If you are talking about position I would say we need a DT. Someone to dominate the interior and give opportunities to our pass rushers. Also you need a guy to replace Kevin Williams if he is not staying, and if he is saying you at least have huge depth at that position.
BB
To me, it begins with everyone staying healthy and ends with a couple of key acquisitions at linebacker. Regarding the former, I think the Saints have a lot of the talent they need, they just need to catch some breaks health wise. The never ending conga line of injuries in the secondary destroyed any kind of continuity they had and it showed as the season went on. We’ve rarely – if ever – seen the top personnel at once as was intended and when you look at the names on paper – Byrd, Lewis, Vaccaro, Breaux, Bush… I mean my goodness that’s the stuff of greatness. They’re just never together at once sadly. It’ll be a huge swing for the defense in 2016 if they can be.
As for linebacker… It was glaring most of the season. Stephone Anthony was clearly the best of the unit, which says great things about the player but terrible things about the group as a whole. The team looked a tick better when Ellerbe was healthy but it’s hard to assume he’s a go all year. Definitely need to address this position in the draft and probably more than once.
Next weeks topic is already set, but you can always ask your questions and we will be more then happy to answer them!
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