candidates from the Saints
By: Jake Rajala
The New Orleans Saints have a few rising players at different positions and sides of the ball. With that said, I’m going to untwine three breakout candidates from the Saints.
Rashid Shaheed
PFF nicely dubbed Shaheed as a breakout candidate last season. Well, he was on his way to be a star. Sadly, he suffered a torn meniscus. Shaheed recorded 349 yards and a few TDs in six games. This comes after he was an All-Pro return specialist in 2023. Shaheed didn’t have enough snaps for a PFF grade.
Bryan Bresee
Bryan Bresee was one of the best pass-rushing DTs on the Saints since Nick Fairly. Bresee unleashed 7.5 sacks, which led the team in sacks. Yes, it’s hard to believe it. Bryan opens up room for the likes of Chase Young and Cameron Jordan to get home. It is worth noting that Bryan needs to work on his run stopping ability. All in all, Bryan needs to step up and be a Pro Bowler next season.
Trevor Penning
It’s been widely reported that 1. Trevor Penning loves playing guard and 2. Trevor is playing well at the guard spot. Trevor is a flat out mauler, so it shouldn’t be a big jump for him. He gets to play next to the Saints rookie LT Kelvin Banks Jr. and C Erik McCoy, who is a Top-3 Center. McCoy should be able to help Penning make the adjustment.
]The Saints need a few surprise players to step up, if they want to reach the playoffs next season. They can’t rely on a few starters, especially with the age of some starters, like Cameron Jordan, Demario Davis, and Tyrann Mathieu. Hopefully, the injury bug doesn’t hit the same roster, as it has plenty of times. They will also roll with a rookie QB or a sophomore QB, so they need to help out their signal-caller, too. I’d love to see Shaheed making big plays from the arm strength of one of those QBs. I’d love to finally see Chase Young shine with help from Bryan. Last but not least, I want to see Penning help the OL slowly mow down foes, control the clock, and finish strong in the red zone.
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