FA Grades for the Saints

By: Jake Rajala

The New Orleans Saints were unsurprisingly cap-strapped heading into free agency. Well, they still managed to make moves. With that said, I’m going to untwine grades for the Saints FA signings.

Chase Young

Grade: C+

Chase Young didn’t ball out last season (5.5 sacks and 18 TFLs). Yet, he was awarded a plethora of money. The bright side of this signing is that Young is only 25 years old. The Saints veteran edge rusher Cameron Jordan will likely only play for one more season.

Justin Reid

Grade: B

I love that the Saints brought in a versatile safety for Brandon Staley’s scheme. Reid is also a few years younger than Tyrann Mathieu. Reid has chemistry with Mathieu, too. He reminds me of Kenny Vaccaro with his run stop ability, but he is a bit wiser than Vaccaro.

Juwan Johnson

Grade: B

The TE market in FA wasn’t hot, so I’m glad they brought back the athletic freak, Juwan Johnson. Fellow TE Taysom Hill is also 34 years old and will be 35 in August. Kellen Moore will be able to bring Johnson to new heights.

Jack Stoll

Grade: A

The Saints didn’t have to break the bank for Jack Stoll. He can be a superb run blocker and he has chemistry with Moore – as he was with Moore in Philly last season. I wouldn’t have minded if NO brought in another quality pass-catching TE, but this will do.

Dante Pettis

Grade: C+

I would have preferred to see the Saints bring back MVS rather than Dante Pettis. Pettis has special teams ability, but he’s not a quality deep threat like MVS.

Isaac Yiadom

Grade: A

The Saints had to ink a modest CB after trading away Marshon Lattimore and letting Paulson Adebo leave in FA. They brought back Isaac Yiadom, who can play outside and inside. He has chemistry with the other defensive backs, too.

The Saints have likely made their biggest moves already. Their next focus has to be on having a successful draft. I wouldn’t be surprised if they target a defensive back or pass rusher early in the draft.