Saints Mailbag: Wild Cards, UDFA Outlook, Receiver Room, The Trenches

Our latest round of Saints questions deals with wild cards, undrafted rookie outlook, the receiver room, and if the team is set in the trenches.

Another batch of Saints questions will help us pass some of the time until training camp gets here. As always, thanks for your submissions. We'll have one more round based off what you sent in from this week. Let's dive right into things. 

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Who's a wild card to make the final roster?

What player that you believe could potentially make the team that has shown something notable in mini-camp. Wildcard pick.

— Monkey Heart (@Tracy10093680) June 21, 2023

How players perform at minicamp feels absolutely irrelevant to the final roster. It's a good step in the right direction, but last year Bryce Thompson was someone who looked really good in that department, but then didn't do much in training camp and got hurt. He eventually got released.

However, there are some players I believe have a better shot of making this roster this year. On offense, they include Kirk Merritt and Lucas Krull. Eno Benjamin has been out of action, which is giving Merritt more opportunities. I do believe Benjamin still has a good outlook, but he's going to have to show up in camp quickly. As far as Krull, it really depends if the final roster has four tight ends there essentially with Taysom Hill in the mix.

On the defensive side, a player to monitor would be defensive tackle Jack Heflin. There may be more to emerge come training camp, but without contact, there's not much to say defensively with some other than positioning and how they act on the field.

Who's an undrafted free agent who can make the roster and an impact?

Something I touched on in a recent mailbag pointed out that it would be harder for undrafted guys to crack this year's roster. That doesn't mean it's impossible. While many were shocked to see Malik Flowers get cut, we did notice that he was having some difficultly fielding punts. It's a quick learning curve for some of these players, and they've got to make an impression fast.

From the original group of 13 players they signed after the draft, 9 remain and one of them is hurt (Anthony Johnson). Based on the positional needs and battles going into training camp, the offensive linemen (Mark Evans, Alex Pihlstrom) have some of the best odds along with the linebackers (Anfernee Orji, Nick Anderson). Defensive tackle Jerron Cage is another one to keep tabs on.

Shaq Davis, Blake Grupe, and Lou Hedley will make things interesting, but I honestly could see none of the undrafted players making the roster. However, most of the players might end up being priorities for the practice squad. It wouldn't surprise me to see Grupe be on a different roster in Week 1 as their kicker, if all goes well.

Who stands out in the receiver room?

In the best receiver room we’ve had in the past couple of years who stands out? Olave with an amazing second year? Rasheed Shaheed with an explosion type year. Or MT bounces back

— Brandon (@BigDepressey) June 20, 2023

On paper, it certainly feels that this is the best receiver room the Saints have had in quite some time. Success will hinge on Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed, but if you're asking who stands out the most of the group, it has to be Olave. He's looked great in both OTAs and minicamp, and he's put in a ton of work in the offseason to improve his skillsets while also bulking up some. He had a strong rookie campaign, and I'm looking for him to finish out as a Top 15 wide receiver in catches, yards, and touchdowns.

We all hope Michael Thomas returns to form, and he absolutely needs it. This was a player who was having a Hall of Fame type of trajectory before the injuries, and this feels like his one of his final shots to prove himself after turning 30 in March. Look at where receivers are at in that 31-and-over group, and you can see many are on their second or third teams and are not the players they were before. Thomas has a lot of fight in him, and he's going to do everything he can to be out there. Hopefully, it means we'll get him for the majority of the 2023 season.

Have the Saints done enough to solidify the trenches?

With improvements at the skill positions, do you think the Saints have done enough to solidify both the offensive and defensive lines? This teams success or lack of will possibly come down to both groups!

— Coach Mason (@MrMason_81) June 20, 2023

This is a legitimate concern to have. I'm a little more concerned about the offensive line this season. The thing is that it's not a matter of if, but when players go down. Andrus Peat has yet to go a full season since being drafted. They were able to manage things with Ryan Ramczyk last season, and there's no reason to expect their approach to be any different this season. Trevor Penning's presence and what we saw from him at minicamp was encouraging, while Cesar Ruiz wasn't out on the field, but present at the facility.

Erik McCoy should be fine, but a backup solution will need to be in place. That's where someone like Nick Saldivieri could shine, and we'll keep a close eye on him getting into training camp. James Hurst could go at left tackle or left guard for the offensive line, and that seems like something that will depend on where Penning is at in his development. Essentially, the backup plan to the starters is what's important here for the Saints.

On the defensive side of things, I just want to see pressure and then see improvements in the run department. That will be the big litmus test for me. The moves made in free agency and the draft have me a lot more confident in their ability, but I still believe that's an area that could see an addition for the rotation.