Position Battles to Watch Ahead of the New Orleans Saints OTAs

Among the Saints' position battles, cornerback is one of the most in question. After trading away All-Pro Marshon Lattimore, New Orleans' cornerback room is full of a lack of experience. 

Kool-Aid McKinstry saw early action during his rookie season, but his lack of pro experience was noticeable. Alontae Taylor had a lot of success from the slot, but injuries pushed him to the outside where he would struggle. The Saints tried addressing their lack of a veteran presence early in the offseason when they targeted former San Francisco 49ers cornerback Charvarius Ward but had to settle for Isaac Yiadom—who they signed to a three-year $9 million contract. 

The Saints weren't done adding to their cornerback with Yiadom, however. New Orleans spent the fifth-round pick they received in the Lattimore trade to draft Quincy Riley out of Louisville and shortly after brought in Asante Samuel Jr. for a visit. 

It's clear the Saints aren't comfortable with where their cornerback room is at and are hoping for someone to take the job comfortably during their offseason workouts. 

Guard/Tackle

The offensive line is at a promising spot for the Saints. The trenches are full of talent. Among the unit, four players were drafted in the first round and two others were drafted in the second round. Despite the high-level talent and promise among these players, New Orleans has had one of the most struggling offensive lines in the NFL and continuously has to make efforts to address it. 

When the Saints drafted Kelvin Banks Jr. with the ninth overall pick, it was clear how much value would be put into the offensive line. Banks was tested in various positions during rookie minicamp and his versatility is expected to cause multiple position battles—most notably at left guard and right tackle. 

Right tackle Trevor Penning has struggled throughout his career but showed promising improvements in 2024 which kept him as a starter for all 17 games. Despite his improvements, the Saints declined Penning's fifth-year option and drafted Banks shortly after. 

Banks will likely be battling for the starting right tackle job with Penning and left guard spot in replace of newly signed Dillon Radunz. 

Wide receiver

Saints General Manager Mickey Loomis was open about the team's interest in a wideout throughout the draft. New Orleans would ultimately pass on the available receivers claiming they didn't think the value was there. 

Despite not adding a receiver through the draft, the Saints would swiftly sign veteran Donovan Peoples-Jones during rookie minicamp opening the battle for WR3. 

The wide receiver room in New Orleans is set with Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed proving to be viable options, but the Saints need a middle-of-the-field and red zone threat. Olave has a history of injuries and Shaheed has cemented himself as a deep threat. Newly signed Brandin Cooks has proven he could be a threat between the hashes, but he follows the same molds as Olave and Shaheed.

Second-year wide receiver Bub Means is considered a sleeper for this spot. Means had an impressive game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers being Spencer Rattler's outlet. However, Means would suffer a season-ending injury later in the year and miss the rest of 2024. 

Peoples-Jones had a promising season in 2022 but was never able to recreate the same production. After spending the 2024 season away from football due to personal reasons, the veteran wideout is making a return to football on a team-friendly deal with New Orleans. 

The Saints' wide receiver room also consists of Mason Tipton, Cedric Wilson, Kevin Austin Jr, and Dante Pettis. The WR3 spot is a current open competition and New Orleans could even look to add more through free agency.