The New Orleans Saints have gone through major changes in their roster this offseason as the team found themselves in a tight salary cap situation. It caused them to trade top offensive target Jimmy Graham and release players like Curtis Lofton. Now there is growing speculation that Drew Brees could be the next to go as his contract remains a heavy weight on the cap hit. Is Marcus Mariota the intended replacement or will the Saints draft offensive weapons to reload in 2015?
The Brees trade rumors picked up once again over the weekend as the New York Daily News reported the New York Jets were keeping the quarterback in the mix for a draft deal. There is no viable evidence that the Saints are shopping Brees in a trade. However, the overhaul of the roster makes many believe that an aging quarterback with an $18.75 million pay day ahead of him is not the ideal thing to keep on.
According to NOLA.com, the Saints are possibly interested in trading up in the NFL Draft come April. With two first round picks, the Saints could easily combine them to grab Mariota and have him be the potential replacement for Brees. However, if the Saints are not dealing Brees this offseason, is the better move to acquire offensive players to replace Graham and Kenny Stills? That would certainly make the quarterback happy and potentially improve the offense.
NFL Media Analyst Daniel Jeremiah reports that Saints might trade up in the draft, but not for a quarterback. He believes that either Kevin White or Amari Cooper might be the intended targets in the draft considering Brees is left with Brandin Cooks to throw to. Jeremiah does write that if Mariota begins to fall in the draft which some believe he might, the Saints could then make a call. The quarterback move would cost less at that point. There are several teams gunning to get Mariota. The Saints would be a frontrunner given their extra draft picks, but the team must decide what is really the bigger need.
The idea that Brees gets traded this offseason seems extremely unlikely. The quarterback's contract is not ideal to take on at this point given most teams have loaded up in free agency. Brees will play for the Saints in 2015, but will not be success if no longer has anyone to throw to. The wise move for New Orleans could be to grab Cooper or White instead of a quarterback.
