New Orleans Saints Defensive End Group Is Full, But Will It Stop Them From Drafting?

The Saints have seven defensive ends on their roster right now, and while some are question marks at this point, would New Orleans add to it in the draft?

Nov 26, 2023; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Falcons quarterback Desmond Ridder (9) takes a hit from / Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

The NFL Draft just puts us one step closer to football returning, as the three-day event will be here before we know it. The aftermath of the undrafted pool of rookie free agents then ensues, with an anticipated rookie minicamp from May 10-12 for the Saints. In less than two weeks, we're going to know where New Orleans stands when it comes to addressing some of their key positions of need. Some spots seems a lot more straightforward than others.

We've been putting each position on the team under a microscope, and now we're now onto the Saints defense. We're assessing each spot to see the possibilities of drafting or not. Today's focus is on the edge, which could be an interesting area to keep an eye on.

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Current Depth Chart: Carl Granderson, Cam Jordan, Chase Young, Tanoh Kpassagnon, Payton Turner, Isaiah Foskey, Niko Lalos

Saints Draft Prospect Outlook - Edge Rusher

• Day 1 Options: Dallas Turner (Alabama), Jared Verse (Florida State), Chop Robinson (Penn State), Laiatu Latu (UCLA), Darius Robinson (Mizzou)
• Day 2 Options: Marshawn Kneeland (Michigan State), Edgerrin Cooper (TAMU), Bralen Trice (Washington), Adisa Isaac (Penn State), Austin Booker (Kansas), Mohamed Kamara (Colorado State), Cedric Johnson (Ole Miss), Jonah Elliss (Utah)
• Day 3 Options: Chris Braswell (Alabama), Jalyx Hunt (Houston Christian), Myles Cole (Texas Tech), Gabriel Murphy (UCLA), Jaylen Harrell (Michigan), Sundiata Anderson (Grambling State), Xavier Thomas (Clemson), Braiden McGregor (Michigan), Grayson Murphy (UCLA), Javon Solomon (Troy), Nelson Caesar (Houston), Trajan Jeffcoat (Arkansas)
• UDFAs: Eyabi Okie-Anoma (Charlotte), AJ Simon (UAlbany), Noah Washington (Morgan State), Zareon Hayes (Alabama A&M), Justin Blazek (UW-Platteville), Deshawn McCarthy (East Stroudsburg)

THE CASE FOR DRAFTING

There's several big questions to answer here for the Saints when it comes to looking at their edge situation.

1. Can Payton Turner stay healthy and make an impact in his contract year?
2. Will Isaiah Foskey be able to turn a corner and contribute this season?
3. When will Chase Young be on the field for New Orleans?
4. Will they stick to prototypes or try to get someone similar to Zack Baun?
5. How much of Cam Jordan is in the equation?

The answers to those questions certainly stir up a little uncertainty at what appears to be a strength on paper. Turner has to stay healthy and be available, and that's the bottom line. May 2 is the deadline for New Orleans to pick up a fifth-year option on him, but that doesn't seem likely at the current price tag and track history. For Isaiah Foskey, injuries played a part in his rookie season, as well as some other things Dennis Allen revealed at the Annual League Meetings.

Allen said, "I think No. 1 he needs to cut it loose. I think last year was a big learning year for him. My hope is that he has a great offseason, he understands what we're doing defensively and so he's less concerned about learning the defense and he's able to just go cut it loose and go play. That's what I'm looking to see. Now, it's going to be a while before we can actually see that happen. You're not going to be seeing it really as you go through OTAs and minicamp, but I just think that's part of the process. But I really want to see him cut it loose."

Fresh off a big contract extension, Carl Granderson led the team with 8.5 sacks. The rest of the group combined for 6 sacks, with Tanoh Kpassagnon (3.5), Cam Jordan (2.0) and Isaiah Foskey (0.5) being the other contributors to the total. This is a pretty good class of edge guys in this draft, and maybe another injection at the spot could help push some others. In theory, some could even be pushed inside like we've seen in some pass-rushing situations.

Drafting someone also means there's going to be an odd man out or two, but again, does the reward outweigh a risk like that? New Orleans needs better production off the edge, and if they do look at drafting someone after signing Chase Young, then it might be very telling on how they feel about the spot.

THE CASE FOR NOT DRAFTING

Again, on paper this is a pretty good group. Chase Young can be a heck of a player, and that's what New Orleans is hoping to get this season. It does sound like the Saints will be a lot more mindful with the usage for Cam Jordan, but he did play hurt last season and had offseason surgery to address it. Tanoh Kpassagnon is often overlooked, but brings versatility and is often in the sub-rush packages coming from the interior. Carl Granderson saw the bulk of the snaps on the defensive line last season at 874 (79%). These four alone make up a good rotation, assuming their healthy.

Todd Grantham enters his second season as defensive line coach, and some of the learnings from last season could also help the Saints. Dennis Allen has talked plenty about the need to win more one-on-one battles here, and ultimately they have to finish too. The offseason program will be big for players like Foskey and Turner, but like Allen said at the League Meetings, it's going to be hard to judge where someone like Foskey is until later.

The defensive end group is one that just brings uncertainty. New Orleans could just keep what they have and hope for the best, which sounds pretty realistic. The best-case scenario for the Saints would be to get a smaller and quicker player similar to Zack Baun to boost the rush. This proved to be very effective last season, throwing him into sub-rush packages that led to more pressures and putting the clamps down on the opposition. We saw what a lead does for the team, and they were able to have an even better pass-rush attack when that happened. The group just has to be better, play better, stay healthy and deliver.