Do y'all know the main difference between the great offensive lines of the dominant Saints offenses of a decade or so ago and what we have today? Two years of unprecedented injuries and development retarded by a pandemic. Those earlier lines played virtually every snap of every game as a unit. Their supposed depth never saw the field beyond coming in as an extra eligible lineman. All five of our projected starters are 1st round selections. If they can stay on the field together there's no reason why they can't be one of the most elite lines in the league.

Continuity is essential on the O-line. We keep forgetting that Covid hampered us...well, that and running from hurricanes.

During the season we have traditionally kept eight offensive lineman on the 53 man roster over the years. Our potential depth this year is not really inferior to that of most any other year. Sure, we had Strief, but we also had Matt Tennant and Pat McQuistan the rest of the depth. I would argue that James Hurst, Billy Price, and the rookie Saldiveri are just as good as what we had back then.

The trouble is we go into 2023 with basically the same oline but a year older. We added some mid round pick and a journeyman 1st round bust but we did not proritize the position. Kamara still depends on Peat, and unfortunately for him the Saints are not a hot dog eating contest team.

Penning knows the playbook and system now. When his foot is healed he should seamlessly be able to step into LT allowing Hurst to slide over to LG. That leaves Landon Young, Calvin Throckmorton, Andrus Peat, Lewis Kidd, Nick Saldiveri, Storm Norton, and Billy Price battling for the three or four back up spots.


If the players are a year older and they are healthy then I can live with that. Our mid round draft pick was the first player chosen when the run on O-linemen started. The fourth round has produced some really good O-linemen in the past.

I can't see Hurst beating out a healthy Peat. Peat came in his rookie year out of shape. That tag has stayed with him his whole career so far even when he's come into camp in great shape ever since. His issue hasn't been quality of play overall, it has been the same as several others the past couple of years ... staying healthy. Some people just like making stupid jokes about him. Others buy into that stupidity, I think. I don't believe the team does.

I do think that Peat will be the starting LG to begin the season but if you remember, most of the Saints fan base was shocked upon learning about his his huge contract in 2020. Not only was he known for missing multiple games each season he was also known as being a below average Guard.

Yes. I do realize that a number of fans were shocked about Peat's re-signing. What that tells us is that the Saints have much more confidence in him as a long term solution than do those fans. Given a choice to trust in the judgement of those two entities I believe I would go with the group that has far more insight into the decision. After spending 30 years in data management I learned to always trust those with inside experience over those looking in from the outside.

Perhaps Saldiveri will end up being that long term solution instead. We'll find out what they decide at some point.