- Also ranked as a first-round prospect, Arkansas’ Treylon Burks is meeting with a few teams this week. The Cowboys hosted the 225-pound playmaker Monday, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets, adding that the Buccaneers will meet with Burks later this week. The Saints are also hosted the 6-foot-2 target last week, Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.football tweets. It would surprise if the Bucs (No. 27) went wideout in Round 1, given their Mike Evans–Chris Godwin–Russell Gage setup, but the team could use a cheap building block due to employing three eight-figure-per-year wideouts. The Saints (Nos. 16, 19) are rather desperate for receiving help, with Michael Thomas having run into significant injury trouble over the past two years. New Orleans now has two first-round picks, putting wideout squarely in play.
With the top two spots on the quarterback depth chart accounted for, the Saints will be moving on from Blake Bortles. Adam Schefter of ESPN reports (on Twitter) that the veteran has asked for his release, and that the team will accommodate him. 
The 29-year-old signed with the Saints in December when New Orleans desperately needed help at the position. With Jameis Winston injured and both Taysom Hill and Trevor Siemian unavailable due to COVID-19, he provided the team with an experienced backup behind Ian Book. He didn’t see any game action in New Orleans, however, which continued an ongoing trend in that regard.
Bortles has bounced around to the Rams, Broncos, Packers and – most recently – Saints over the course of the last three years. He’s only been on the field for 11 snaps during that span, though. His last meaningful playing time came during his five years with the Jaguars. That span included a trip to the AFC title game in 2017, but was otherwise underwhelming, especially considering his draft status.
New Orleans re-signed Winston to be their starter once again, but also added veteran Andy Dalton to be the backup. With those two on the roster (along with Hill, though the team doesn’t view him as a QB moving forward), the former third overall pick will now look to catch on with another new team.
One of the top free agents left on the market is making his first visit. Safety Tyrann Mathieu will meet with the Saints, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport (Twitter link). 
[RELATED: Saints Sign DE Charlton, S Evans]
The fact that Mathieu is sitting down with the Saints comes as little surprise. He is a native of New Orleans, and played for LSU in college. The team also finds itself undergoing change at the safety position, with Marcus Williams signing in Baltimore and Malcolm Jenkins retiring. In response, the Saints have added Marcus Maye, but they still have a need on the back end.
Mathieu, 29, maintained his high level of play during his three years in Kansas City. He made 213 tackles with the Chiefs, adding 13 interceptions. His time there also saw him win his lone Super Bowl title, and add to his Pro Bowl and All-Pro totals in each campaign. His pedigree in terms of statistical achievements, not to mention his positional versatility and leadership qualities, would make him a sizeable addition to New Orleans or any other interested team.
Rapoport adds that there is “nothing imminent” at this point with respect to any contract offers from the Saints. New Orleans is in an unusually flexible position from a salary cap perspective, though, so they should be able to afford Mathieu on a short- or medium-term deal. His addition, if it were to take place, would represent not only a homecoming and a significant need being filled by the Saints, but it would also remove one of the biggest names from the list of those still available.
Three weeks away from the draft, the Eagles and Saints made a deal that will shake up the middle of this year’s first round while arming Philadelphia with an additional Round 1 choice in 2023.
The Eagles dealt into their first-round surplus Monday, sending the Saints their Nos. 16 and 19 overall picks in a deal that will provide them with New Orleans’ 2023 first-rounder. Philly, which entered the draft with three first-rounders from No. 15 to No. 19, now holds two first-rounders. The Saints do as well. This gives the Eagles two first-round picks in the next two drafts.
With the dust settled, here is how the full trade looks:
Eagles receive:
- No. 18 in 2022
- No. 101
- No. 237
- The Saints’ 2023 first-round pick
- The Saints’ 2024 second-round pick
Saints receive:
- No. 16 in 2022 (from Colts via Eagles)
- No. 19
- No. 194
New Orleans now has additional ammo in this year’s draft, while Philly can potentially plan for a move in a 2023 draft that is expected to feature a better crop of quarterbacks. This year’s group has not generated much buzz, at least compared to most years, and it points to the Eagles giving Jalen Hurts another audition year. The Eagles pursued Deshaun Watson and Russell Wilson but did not get far in either derby. Howie Roseman‘s team, which acquired 2022 first-rounders from the Colts and Dolphins last year, can take a more methodical approach over the next two drafts rather than being the rare team to make three first-round picks in one draft.
Next year’s draft could feature Heisman winner Bryce Young, Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud, Florida’s Anthony Richardson. Hurts fared decently in his first full-season audition, driving the Eagles’ No. 1-ranked rushing attack and accounting for 26 touchdowns (16 passing) and nearly 4,000 yards. This move will allow the Eagles to keep their options open, while it equips the Saints with a second first-rounder this year. Eight teams have multiple first-rounders in this month’s draft.
With the Eagles now picking at Nos. 15 and 18 in Round 1, the Saints slid up two spots from their No. 18 position. The Saints re-signed Jameis Winston on a two-year deal, but they do not exactly have their quarterback position checked off long-term. That makes this swap more interesting on New Orleans’ end. Obtaining a second first-rounder could provide a bridge to the Saints trading up again for one of this year’s top two passers, a la the Bills’ Josh Allen climb in 2018, but no member of this year’s QB class has generated considerable interest just yet.
Monday’s move does allow the opportunity for the Saints to acquire a cost-controlled starter. Their previous draft with two first-rounders — 2017, when Marshon Lattimore and Ryan Ramczyk went to New Orleans — had a significant effect on the team’s trajectory.
While Malik Willis and Kenny Pickett have garnered most of the attention in terms of top quarterback prospects, North Carolina’s Sam Howell remains a highly-touted option as well. Two of the teams who sent large delegations to see him at his recent pro day were the Commanders and Saints, per Tony Pauline of Pro Football Network (Twitter link). 
[RELATED: Steelers Heavily Scouting QB Prospects]
Pauline notes that the “big turnout” from Washington included executive VP Marty Hurney and several other staffers. The Commanders already have their starting signal-caller in Carson Wentz, whom they traded for days before the start of free agency. The price they paid – both in terms of the draft capital sent to Indianapolis and the fact that they picked up his full salary – signalled a strong commitment to the former No. 2 pick, who is under contract for three more years.
The Saints, meanwhile, had college scouting director Jeff Ireland on hand to see the former Tar Heel in person. After being in the competition for Deshaun Watson, New Orleans re-signed Jameis Winston on a two-year deal. Not long after, they also added a veteran backup in Andy Dalton.
Howell, a true junior, burst onto the scene with 38 touchdown passes in his freshman year. He improved in terms of completion percentage (68.1%) and yards per attempt (11.1) in the following campaign, but took a step back in production in 2021. Following the departure of receivers Dyami Brown and Dazz Newsome, along with the team’s dynamic RB duo of Javonte Williams and Michael Carter, Howell had a down year statistically.
As a result, many have dropped the six-foot-one, 220-pounder down a tier or so in this year’s QB rankings. Howell is generally rated closer to the likes of Matt Corral and Desmond Ridder than the aforementioned Willis and Pickett. Still, it wouldn’t come as a surprise for him to be selected at some point in the first round. That could leave the Commanders and Saints (who hold the 11th and 18th picks, respectively) in play for Howell, depending on what they saw of him last week.
Jaleel Johnson is headed to New Orleans (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport). On Saturday, the former Texans and Vikings defensive tackle agreed to a one-year deal with the Saints, adding serious bulk to the rebuilding club. 
[RELATED: Saints Re-Sign PJ Williams]
Johnson, 28 in July, spend the first four years of his career in Minnesota, where he appeared in 53 games for 20 starts. He hooked on with the Texans last year, seeing time in 12 games as a reserve.
While he’s not a household name, Johnson has carved out a role as a serviceable run-stuffer. Listed at 6’3″, 316 pounds, he’s also managed to get to the quarterback on occasion. In 2019, for example, he notched 3.5 sacks from the interior of the Vikings’ line.
The Saints front office is putting in work this weekend, having also re-upped safety P.J. Williams on a one-year deal.
P.J. Williams is back. On Saturday, the Saints agreed to a brand-new one-year deal with their veteran defensive back (Twitter link via Adam Schefter of ESPN.com). 
[RELATED: Saints To Sign Jaleel Johnson]
Williams has never been a Pro Football Focus darling, but the Saints are fans of his work. This marks his third straight one-year re-up and yet another chance for him to improve his leverage. Last time around, Williams scored a fully guaranteed one-year, $2.3MM deal, up from his $2MM pact in 2020.
The Saints drafted him in the third-round back in 2015, and he’s been with the team ever since. A torn hamstring cost him his entire rookie season, and a serious head injury limited him to only two games in 2016. Fortunately, he’s been able to play in at least 14 games in each of the past five seasons. He’s not a world beater, but he is versatile with extensive experience at both safety and cornerback.
As Williams returns, the Saints will also welcome a new defender in ex-Texans defensive tackle Jaleel Johnson.
The Saints will give Forrest Lamp another opportunity. Although the former second-round pick played just one game with the team last season, he committed to another New Orleans deal Thursday, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com tweets.
A Chargers draft choice in 2017, Lamp has seen injuries largely define his career. He missed all of his would-be rookie season in 2017, suffering a torn ACL during training camp, and went down with a season-ending malady midway through the 2019 season. The Bills placed Lamp on IR during the preseason slate last year, leading him to the Saints.
New Orleans returns its starting interior offensive line — Andrus Peat, Cesar Ruiz, Erik McCoy — and has swingman James Hurst still rostered. Lamp figures to compete for a depth role with the Saints, who allowed longtime left tackle Terron Armstead to join the Dolphins, creating a key question for what has been one of the league’s most stable O-lines.
Lamp, 28, established some momentum by starting all 16 games for the 2020 Chargers, but it did not lead to a key 2021 role. The Western Kentucky alum will nevertheless have another chance to contribute.
The performance of the Saints’ pass-catching corps was a large reason why the team missed the playoffs in 2021. It’s not surprising, then, that general manager Mickey Loomis confirmed New Orleans is looking for additions at the position (Twitter link via Katherine Terrell of the Athletic). 
[RELATED: Saints To Re-Sign WR Smith]
“I think we have some work to do yet, so we’re looking”, Loomis said when asked about the WR group. The team recently agreed to terms with Tre’Quan Smith on a two-year deal. His retention means most of the complementary pieces of the WR room – along with the likes of Deonte Harty and Marquez Callaway – will remain in place from the previous season, which saw the team post a league-worst 202 passing yards per game.
The most important news at the position for New Orleans, of course, is the expected return of Michael Thomas. The team made it clear they were not looking to trade the 29-year-old after he missed all of the 2021 campaign. The two-time All-Pro led the league in receptions during each of his two most recent full seasons (2018 and 2019) and is under contract for three more years.
New head coach Dennis Allen echoed Loomis’ views. “We feel good about the position, but yet it’s still a position we want to add to”, he said, as noted by Luke Johnson of NOLA.com. The uncertainty surrounding Thomas’ health, coupled with the lack of production throughout the remainder of the depth chart, has many pointing to the draft as a likely means of bringing in new talent to supplement the current pieces.
New Orleans could turn to the free agent or trade market as well, but few options remain on those fronts. In any event, the team is likely to have at least one significant addition at the position by the time the 2022 season begins.