Saints Stockpiling Passrushers?

In 2018 led by a 39 year old Drew Brees the New Orleans Saints traded up in the first round going from #27 overall to #14 overall by shipping Green Bay their 2019 first round pick, and 2018 5th round pick, in addition to the swap of picks in the first round. The type of trade that would typically signal that a team is about to select a quarterback. 

With the 14th overall pick the New Orleans select Marcus Davenport DE. Wait what? The Saints gave up a first round pick, and a fifth round pick to draft a defensive end that up to that point had not been highly rumored to be a top 20 pick. This move paired Davenport with Cameron Jordan their pro bowl defensive end. Providing the Saints with a solid pass rush, even if the cost was way higher than most would have paid. Since then Davenport hasn't exactly lived up to the hype costing 3 draft picks will bring, he has produced just 12 sacks, 4 tipped passes, and 4 forced fumbles through 37 games. 

Fast forward to the 2021 draft. This time Drew Brees has retired, Taysom Hill and Jameis Winston have both been resigned to short term deals, and neither player is a lock to be the face of the offense as of yet. Due to another playoff season the Saints select 28th overall, but they have 9 picks on the books for 2021 including 2 third round picks and 2 seventh round picks. Making for another situation in which the Saints could have targeted a quarterback with a trade up. Except this time they stood pat, and watched as the five quarterbacks regarded as first round worthy were selected by 15 overall. Would they do the unthinkable and reach for Kyle Trask, Kellen Mond, or Davis Mills? No they would of course select Payton Turner. A defensive end that as of yesterday I had never even heard mentioned as a second round pick. 

Turner is a 6'6 269 lb defensive end from Houston. As a Freshman in 2017 he appeared in 8 games but produced just 14 tackles, 2 for a loss, 1 sack, and 1 int as a rotational pass rusher. As a sophomore he played in 11 games racking up 42 tackles, 3.5 for a loss, 0 sacks, rebounding as a junior with 33 tackles, 7.5 for a loss, and 3.5 sacks. His best production came in 2020 in an injury and covid shortened season he played in 5 games, logging 25 tackles, 10.5 for a loss, and 5 sacks. He displayed power, agility, and explosion at his proday with 23 reps on the bench, a 4.25 short shuttle, and 35.5 inch vertical. He is regarded as positional versatile in a way most teams only dream of. He says himself he is most comfortable as an OLB in a 3-4, but has also lined up as a hand in the dirt defensive end, and even inside as a defensive tackle. The Saints however already have a Jordan who is very similar in that ability. 

So why would the Saints spend a third first round pick on defensive end in just 4 years? Quite simply I believe they intend to shift Cameron Jordan inside more often. There are several reasons for this belief on my part. First let's start with the most obvious reason, they traded away Malcolm Brown, and allowed Sheldon Rankins walk in free agency. By drafting Turner they now have Davenport, Turner, Carl Granderson (5 sacks in 2020), Noah Spence, and Tanoh Kpassagnon at defensive end to rotate to allow Jordan a 6'6 286 lb defensive end to now play primarily at tackle as he gets older, and loses some quickness. Moving Jordan inside more often next to David Onyemeta who had 6 sacks on the interior last season should provide more pressure inside only further allowing Turner and Davenport to wreak havoc from the outside.