The New Orleans Saints enter the 2023 season as a refreshed team following the acquisition of franchise quarterback Derek Carr from the Las Vegas Raiders. With a number of offensive playmakers, including Alvin Kamara, Jamaal Williams, and Chris Olave, and a strengthened defensive front New Orleans will be playoff contenders in a weak NFC South.
With preseason and training camp in full swing, the focus now is on which players can crack the starting lineup and who will make the final 53-man roster. It is also the period in the summer when franchises are looking to make last-minute trades. Teams are releasing players and also beginning to realize where their weaknesses might lay.
For the Saints, the team’s biggest needs are on the defensive front and at the wide receiver position. The defensive line lost two starters in free agency, while the receiving corps looks especially weak outside of Chris Olave. With the regular season kickoff just a few weeks away, here is one trade the Saints must make to solidify their roster.
Acquire a veteran wide receiver like Hunter Renfrow
Simply put, the New Orleans Saints offer very little at the wide receiver position. Chris Olave is coming off a 1,000-yard rookie season, but he was the only wideout to surpass 500 receiving yards last year. Meanwhile, number two receiver Michael Thomas has played just 10 of 50 possible games since his record-breaking campaign in 2019. Most worryingly of all, New Orleans did little to add to this thin group, only taking A.T. Perry in the sixth round and signing former Atlanta Falcon Bryan Edwards to a veteran minimum deal (the team waived Edwards on August 22) .
The team does have a deep tight end group which includes Juwan Johnson, Taysom Hill, and Foster Moreau (a former Raider), but none offer the explosiveness as a pass-catcher that this team desperately needs now that Derek Carr is leading an offense that will rely much more on its aerial attack in 2023.
The perfect addition for the Saints would be Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Hunter Renfrow. Renfrow was a 1,000-yard receiver in 2021 (and had nine touchdowns), establishing himself as Derek Carr’s top target, but injuries caused him to miss seven contests in 2022 and he only finished with 330 yards. The word out of Vegas all summer has been that Renfrow is on the trading block as the Raiders look to rebuild. Nothing concrete has popped up as yet, but the Saints would be smart to acquire a former go-to target of Derek Carr.
Renfrow would immediately be a valuable slot presence alongside the deep threats of Rashid Shaheed, and Tre’Quan Smith. Plus, he would give the Saints a dependable target alongside number-one wideout Chris Olave. The Saints already brought in former Raiders tight end Foster Moreau — who has four seasons of experience playing alongside Carr — so acquiring another former Raider pass-catcher would not be a surprise.
Another option here is New England Patriots wide receiver Kendrick Bourne. Bourne has yet to thrive in New England’s inconsistent passing game, but he has the ability to be a solid number three wideout in the Saints offense.
The New Orleans Saints lack a secondary playmaker in the passing game. Acquiring Hunter Renfrow would solve that and finally give the Saints a formidable offense that can punish teams both in the air and on the ground.