New Orleans finished 4th in the NFC South for the first time since 2008
The New Orleans Saints lost their final game of the season to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers dropping them to 5-12 on the season and 4th in the NFC South. The 2024 season has been filled with lows, and it has been hard for the team to fight through the storm, but there have been bright spots and promising play from young players.
Up: Draft position
After starting 3-1 under interim head coach Darren Rizzi, the Saints looked as if they would go on another late season winning streak that we’ve all seen before. A win streak that wouldn’t be good enough to send the Saints to the playoffs but also accumulate enough wins to move New Orleans out of the top half of the first round in the draft. However, with the Saints losing their last four games of the season and wins from other teams, they will be picking 9th overall in the 2025 NFL Draft. This will mark the first time since 2008 that New Orleans has had a top 10 pick.
The Saints are set to pick in the top 10 of the draft for the first time since 2008
— Kyle Besson (@KyleBesson504) January 5, 2025
Up: Juwan Johnson
Tight end Juwan Johnson has been under fire recently as the wide receiver-turned-tight end has struggled to catch passes. With a depleted wide receiver room and a rookie quarterback looking for a reliable target, Johnson was expected to take the step up and be a safety net for Spencer Rattler. The veteran tight end struggled immensely during the team’s losing streak and often dropped passes.
Johnson would finally have a promising game on Sunday against the Buccaneers when he brought in six passes for 80 yards. While the numbers aren’t electrifying, Johnson was sure-handed and would do more after the catch. The Saints are exiting the 2024 season still with questions on a mid-field target. Chris Olave has continued to get hurt while catching passes over the middle of the field and Rashid Shaheed has proven to be a deep threat. New Orleans needs a big-body receiver that can catch passes over the middle of the field and Johnson is finishing the final year of his deal. A late-season push could have earned the pass-catching tight end another contract.
Down: Darren Rizzi
The head coaching carousel has started around the league with names such as Mike Vrabel slated to begin interviewing with teams for their open job. For the Saints, interim head coach Darren Rizzi was promising but a four-game losing streak to end the season and a 3-5 overall record has hurt the former special teams coordinator’s chances at being the answer long term. There are too many intriguing options for New Orleans at head coach for Rizzi to be the favorite including Detroit Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn seemingly creeping up as the top candidate for the Saints. New Orleans will certainly do their due diligence before picking their guy and Rizzi will get a chance to interview for the job, but Rizzi’s chances have dwindled since starting 3-1.
Darren Rizzi fought back tears in his final postgame presser as the #Saints interim head coach.
Rizzi had immense support from the locker room and showed up to work everyday defining what it means to be a New Orleans Saint: pic.twitter.com/Y5udWOe8HT
— Matt DeGregorio (@Matt_DeGregorio) January 6, 2025
Make sure you follow Canal Street Chronicles on Twitter at @SaintsCSC, “Like” us on Facebook at Canal Street Chronicles, and make sure you’re subscribed to our new YouTube channel