Posted by Jean-Paul Bergeaux on July 24th, 2010 in
2010 NFL Draft,
News,
Opinion
Matt Tennant may be a late round draft pick, but he’s probably a gleam in the eye of Sean Payton. The Center position is being held down by a grizzled veteran in Jonathan Goodwin. Leckey has had a shot at a starting job in two places (STL and ARI) and wasn’t able to hold on to it at either team. It’s likely that Leckey is gone, unless either Goodwin or Tennant have a really bad camp. Goodwin will start with Tenant backing him up unless Tenant blows the doors off and starts. Check mark for Tennant.
Sean Canfield is destined for either the practice squad or the streets. Sean Payton has shown little aptitude to put a rookie or inexperienced QB behind Drew Brees. He seems to like older veterans as the number 2 and usually does not carry a 3rd (Lance Moore is the emergency QB). The Saints currently do not have a veteran QB on the roster, but it’s widely expected that when the CBA rules expire in a few days that Patrick Ramsey will be signed to compete with Sean Canfield and Chase Daniel. This is not a good sign for Canfield. Daniel was on the roster to start the 2009 season, but that was only because the Saints had to sign him to the active roster to claim him on waivers from the Redskins. He ended up on the practice squad later in the season. Unless Canfield is spectacular, his best bet is the practice squad, and he’ll have to beat Daniel even for that. X mark for Canfield.
Tanner and Billings are in a tough spot to make the 2010 Saints (as well as second year man Matt Simon). The Saints have so many wide receivers that other teams would die for; it’s going to be really hard for either to make the team. Colston is the #1, Meachem, Moore and Henderson are expected to fight it out for the #2 spot, with the losing pair being the slot and 4th WR. Behind them are some fan favorites in Courtney Roby, Rod Harper and Adrian Arrington.
Roby secured a roster spot through his kick return ability and is likely to try to do that again this year. The problem for Roby is that no one seems to see him as anything other than a KR specialist. That takes away a roster spot that a more versatile player could fill. If any of the other WRs (or any other positions) shows great flashes at KR, Roby may lose his spot. If Arrington can stay healthy for a full training camp (and season), he has shown some talent at WR. Harper showed some promise in the2009 preseason, but was inactive for the first 4 games and ended his season with a stress fracture in October. If Harper stays healthy and continues to progress, he is likely to make the team again.
So, if you count Colston, Meachem, Moore, and Henderson, that leaves Harper as a favorite for the 5th spot and probably a 6th spot up for grabs between KR specialist Roby, Arrington, Billings, Tanner and Simon. Good luck rookies, you better be spectacular (X for both).
Brandon Carter has a lot of work to do, but making this team is not impossible for him. The Saints are set at starter at Guard. Nicks and Evans are pro-bowl caliber guards and are considered one of the best tandems in the NFL. However, behind them are a lot of question marks. The only experienced guy is Terrance Metcalf and he comes to the Saints after a lackluster career with the Chicago Bears. Because of the experience, he may make the team, but there is going to be an open competition for the two backup guard spots. If we assume Metcalf takes one, Tim Duckworth is the only player that has any experience and that has all been as a practice squad journeyman. Na’Shan Goddard is also a journeyman that is on his 4th team. That leaves Brandon Carter with a golden opportunity to secure a spot with the NFL champions and play some snaps if a starter needs to come out of the game. More than likely he will end up on the practice squad, but he has a shot. Question mark for Carter.