The NFL trade deadline is almost here, and the Saints are in a spot that demands restraint more than ambition. Sitting tied for first in the NFC South at 3-5 alongside the Carolina Panthers heading into Week 10, New Orleans should resist the urge to chase help and instead lean into the reality of where this roster is.
If the Saints do anything at all, the smarter play is to sell. They’ve already moved Davon Godchaux, and that probably shouldn’t be the end of it. With the team still in the middle of a rebuild, shipping out draft capital to add pieces would be the wrong kind of gamble.
That doesn’t mean New Orleans should be eager to deal away anyone who draws interest. The Saints need to be careful about how they handle calls, especially with a locker room that could be affected by movement at the deadline. But they also have enough talent on the roster to make other teams pay up, and that leverage matters.
Alvin Kamara, Cam Jordan, Chase Young, Carl Granderson and Devaughn Vele are the kinds of names that can get attention from contenders. Kamara and Jordan are eventual Hall of Famers, while Young and Granderson have been among the league’s most productive edge rushers. Vele, meanwhile, has emerged as a proven WR2 and the Saints’ second leading receiver.
Still, New Orleans can’t give anyone away. The asking price should start at a fifth-round pick for any of their assets, and for players like Young and Granderson, the return should be even better.
Young has eight sacks and Granderson has 7.5, so anything less than a day two pick would be too light to justify. For Vele, the floor should also be a fifth-rounder, especially with his role likely to shrink now that Jordyn Tyson is back.
The bigger point is simple: the Saints need picks, not fewer of them. A team that has missed in the draft recently should be hoarding capital, not spending it.
If New Orleans makes a move before Tuesday’s 3:00 p.m. CT deadline, it should not involve giving away draft picks.
By the time the clock runs out, the Saints should still have at least six selections, if not more.
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