Saints' offseason report card...so far
 

Officially the 2009 season ended for the New Orleans Saints late into the evening on February 7 after defeating the Indianapolis Colts in Super Bowl XLIV.

The brand new season though didn't actually begin until March 5 when free agency began.

Very few moves have been made by the Saints since winning the championship, but that isn't necessarily their fault. New rules in place this year put great restrictions on the teams that made it the deepest into the playoffs. The biggest of those restrictions is that the Saints could not sign a free agent until losing one of their own.

Hence they were kind of stuck between a rock and a hard place, but still some movement has happened and....

Saints' offseason report card...so far

Re: Saints' offseason report card...so far
 

I really wish we could have kept Fuji. But after the 8 million dollar deal the Browns laid on the table, I don't blame the guy for bailing. Would have been nice to see him back. He was my wife's favorite player.

Re: Saints' offseason report card...so far
 

I miss Fujita already, but I think it was pure business and about money.

I agree with Danny's article on the offseason strategy so far.

Re: Saints' offseason report card...so far
 

grade has to be an incomplete at this time, but the lack of FA visits is concerning

no one wanted to lose Fujita, but the reality is there was no way we could drop that kind of cash on a 2 down LB

Re: Saints' offseason report card...so far
 

PacMan!! I guess he could be Ok if he stayed out of the strip clubs (cause there are none of those in NO!! - HAH!!)

Re: Saints' offseason report card...so far
 

Overall grade IS incomplete so far, but I was just going off of what has happened so far. I know it's hard to have a grade considering the restrictions due to making it so far into the playoffs...but once we lost a player, I expected a little more action then what I've seen so far.

Re: Saints' offseason report card...so far
 

Good job overall though Danny.

I disagree about Fujita, I thought he was mediocre at best. His benefit to Cleveland will be an upgrade to a team that appeared to lack proper discipline and motivation.

We no longer need that influence, but Cleveland sure does.

Re: Saints' offseason report card...so far
 

Its all about the money, and feeding your family.

Re: Saints' offseason report card...so far
 

great article

as for my own personal grade of the offseason so far.....F+

cut our starting DE....cut our only depth at guard....cut our former starting MLB and lost our starting OLB to free agency so not only did we lose a starter.....we kicked out one of the backups that could've filled in for him

lost one of our biggest pieces of our offense last season.....in mike bell

ticked off darren sharper after an amazing year

and the players we've brought in to look at are leonard little and jake delhomme?

wtf......i know our options are limited but the best part of the offseason was taggin jahri evans.....and we havent been able to reach any deal with him yet which leads me to believe that should someone make that offer to him, we would entertain the idea of letting him go

Re: Saints' offseason report card...so far
 

I have to say the team is doing ok so far. It's trying to keep the restricted FA's they have. Letting Grant go was ok. He was getting old and he's been injured the last 3 years. Let's not forget that he's looking at a 4 game suspension this year too. His production has declined. Letting Fujita go was just business. Yes, he was an inspirational player. But more talent will by far outweigh that inspiration. Fujita's production has dropped off for the last 3 years. A good young player in the draft would help tremendously. There is some good young talent on the roster too. Arnaux could still be considered a rookie. And Vaughn could be the replacement for Sharper if Jenkins isn't moved there. And let's not forget Osama Young. The fact is, Sharper pretty much went downhill after the 7th game. Age is catching up with him. As far as Bell goes, the Saints have plenty of talent at RB. And the draft is a few weeks away. Don't forget there are still players out there in FA that are capable of being a 4th running back. Because that's about what Bell ended up being. He had a few good games early in the year. And don't forget his best game was against the Lions. Please, my daughter could probably have a good game against them.
So, like I said, I believe the Saints are doing ok. There is still a lot of time left. And don't forget the June cuts coming up too. There will be plenty of opportunities to sign quality players. The team just needs to concentrate on the draft now.