By Ross Jackson
As the NFL trade deadline fast approaches, the New Orleans Saints are keenly in focus as potential sellers after moving on from former head coach Dennis Allen on Monday. Many believe the Saints will now begin to sell off pieces in order to build draft capital and provide what small relief they can garner on their salary cap situation.
While New Orleans is unlikely to start shipping out pieces left and right, there are some trade pieces they could consider moving ahead of Tuesday’s 4 p.m. ET deadline. That is, if the returns are convincing enough.
CB Marshon Lattimore
Teams, including the Kansas City Chiefs, have reportedly already been calling to check in on the star cornerback’s availability. The Saints should be answering the phone, but each call should be screened first for trade value. New Orleans could only make this move if the price is right.
With several teams likely to be interested, the Saints could try to drive the price up via a bidding war. Making this move and not getting a strong return back would be wasteful.
A trade would save New Orleans about $400,000 against the cap in 2024 and evacuate a non-guaranteed $16 million base salary and a $2 million roster bonus for 2025. That would all amount in about $200,000 worth of savings in 2025 after future acceleration drive up the dead cap and 2024’s savings were rolled over.
For a team more than $60 million over the cap next year, anything helps. But certainly not enough to make the move without getting substantial draft capital in the process. If not, keep Lattimore in the building, restructure or rework the deal this offseason, and then part ways in 2026.
Potential interested teams: Kansas City Chiefs, Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers
DE Chase Young
This would be a simple deal to get done for some Day 3 draft capital. Young was brought in on a one-year, $13-million, incentive-heavy deal without many bells and whistles. A trade would save a nominal amount of the Saints in 2024 but has no impact on 2025 due to the financials of his void years.
The real question here again is the capital received in the trade. Is it better to accept a fourth or fifth-round selection in 2024? Or hope that Young finishes strong enough this year to hit the market in free agency and sign a deal elsewhere that nets you a third-round compensatory pick in 2026?
The latter has a lot of risk. Injury, lack of production and lack of market are all factors. The Saints may be more intrigued by something that’s benign offered to them right away. However, if those deals don’t materialize, the Saints may not leave the Chase Young investment without some kind of return.
Potentially interested teams: Cincinnati Bengals, Green Bay Packers, Baltimore Ravens
Lagniappe
The Saints could also look to trade off other pieces for a quick Day 3 return. Players like running back Jamaal Williams, linebacker Willie Gay Jr. and defensive ends Payton Turner and Isaiah Foskey have not been getting a lot of playing time and opportunity.
Unless interim head coach Darren Rizzi plans to change that, which is possible, the Saints could get a return on sending them somewhere they may get more chances to be on the field.
