Saints Stay Put For NFL Trade Deadline

The NFL trade deadline came and went with a quickness, and the Saints were among the many teams to not make a deal.

The Saints didn't make any trades ahead of the NFL's trade deadline, which honestly isn't that shocking. That also doesn't mean they didn't try. Some of the big rumors out there were simply made up is what I can tell you. We highlighted the possibilities earlier this morning and the obstacles that stood in their way, but New Orleans chose to stand with their hand. Here's the thing though - it has to work. 

Report: Jameis Winston Won't Be Traded to Vikings, Team Acquires Dobbs

There's a lot of confidence in this group with the talent they have, but their issues are pretty obvious. We highlighted the pass rush and offensive line as being the areas where the team could improve, and with the Saints not making a move, their players have to deliver. Payton Turner might be the only extra boost the team gets, but that's not set to happen until the final several games, assuming that he does return to action. 

The almost sacks and pressures have to lead to sacks, throwaways and takeaways. The good and elite teams make it happen. Carl Granderson leads the way for the Saints defense with 5.5 on the year. The team's 15 sacks is tied with five other teams with the Bears bringing up the rear of the league at 10. The gap between New Orleans and the teams at 10th currently (Vikings/Chargers) is 6 at 23 sacks. For some further context, the Saints are among the worst in the league at 29th with a 5.49% sacks per pass attempt rate. Only the Jaguars, Patriots, and Bears are worse than they are.

The offensive line has to be better too, and although there are some signs of them playing better, they have one of the league's worst pass block win rates at 45.2%. Overall, the Saints rank 16th in the league offensively with a 6.91% on sacks per pass attempt. James Hurst is the only player set to return soon from his ankle injury, and we're going to have wait to see how Trevor Penning responds to his benching. 

When Hurst returns to the lineup, we're interested to see if he goes to left tackle again or left guard. Andrus Peat, who has filled in protecting Derek Carr's blindside for the past two games, had the second-highest PFF pass blocking grade against the Colts at 76.4, only behind Jamaal Williams (80.2). The week before against the Jaguars, Peat put out a pass block grade of 18.2. So, that's pretty marked improvement to say the least. Max Garcia could stay at left guard if Hurst kicks back out to left tackle, but that remains to be seen.

The biggest issue with the Saints this season has been consistency and execution, and they've been their own worst enemy this year. The truth of it all is that no matter who lines up where, that's what they need to deliver on with the remaining nine games left on the schedule. We'll see really quickly if Sunday's breakout game against the Colts on offense was real or not against the Bears.