Canal Street Chronicles
New Orleans needs a difference maker on defense, and could find it in the disgruntled Steelers superstar.
Pro Football Focus just recently released a list ranking all 32 defensive lines in the NFL and bringing up the rear were the New Orleans Saints ranked dead last at 32nd. The Saints leading sacker last year was Bryan Bresee with 7.5 from the defensive tackle position, and other than him, no one on the team got more than 6 sacks, as Chase Young and Carl Granderson both finished with 5.5. The Saints ranked 20th in the NFL in sacks with just 39, which was part of the reason the Saints defense ranked 30th in the NFL in 2024.
TJ Watt has been one of the best pass rushers in the NFL since he entered the league in 2017, has been an All-Pro six times and was the Defensive Player of the Year in 2021. He is currently holding out for a new contract with the Pittsburgh Steelers, and negotiations are not seeming to be progressing quickly. The Steelers may be inclined to trade their superstar OLB for the right price if they are unable to sign him, and I believe the Saints should seriously consider going after Watt before the season.
The Saints now have a lot of cap space after the retirements of Derek Carr and Ryan Ramczyk and would be able to afford a large contract for Watt, if they were to trade for him. The Saints also do not need to save any significant money for anyone down the road. Almost all of their top earners are aging players who likely will not be brought back after their contracts run out, such as Taysom Hill and Cameron Jordan, and there are not many young players currently on rookie deals who will be needing big extensions soon. Among their last five first round picks, Chris Olave is the only one that would receive a large extension at this point, and even his next contract likely won’t be on the same level as the ones signed by other WRs taken a year before him like Jaylen Waddle or DeVonta Smith. The Saints can afford to be big spenders for someone who is one of the best defenders in the league, even if he is 30 years old.
Despite his age, Watt ranked 8th in the NFL in sacks last year with 11.5 and was just a half sack out of the top 5. Not all pass rushers slow down with age, as three of the seven players with more sacks than Watt last year were older or the same age as him. The Saints defensive line has some solid players, but no true elite pass rusher. Adding a player that demands as much attention as Watt would more than free up players like Young and Granderson which would undoubtedly lead to an increase in their production and the overall success of the defense. Just look at what adding Khalil Mack did...
