Next up in our series of position previews is the New Orleans Saints’ last line of defense, the secondary. Last year was a frustrating year for the Saints in many ways. Still, the secondary was one of the bright spots, with the team ranking in the top 10 for passing yards allowed and joint 3rd in interceptions, as the unit often battled to keep Dennis Allen’s men in games.
This did, however, mark a backward step for the team, who were in the top 7 for defensive yards given up between 2020 and 2023 before dropping to just 13th last season. Whether the Saints DB unit will return to form in 2024 remains to be seen, and this unit (arguably the team’s best) will be vital to any chance of success the team has this year.
To begin with, we’ll look at the options that the team has at cornerback, starting with 7-year veteran and four-time Pro Bowler Marshon Lattimore. Lattimore has been one of the league’s top corners since being drafted in 2017, having won Defensive Rookie of the Year in that campaign.
Since then, he’s been a vital part of this Saints’ defense and has constantly made sure that his side of the defense is locked down, with PFF ranking him as the 7th-best corner in football last year when healthy. However, that has been one of Lattimore’s biggest issues in recent years, with him missing 17 of the 34 games over the last two years with injury, leaving a big hole in the secondary needing to be filled.
The rest of the Saints CBs have done a good job filling that, as this is a unit with substantial depth, which was improved again in April’s draft with the second-round addition of Kool-Aid McKinstry out of Alabama.
McKinstry was a First-Team All-American in 2023 and declared for the draft a year early after a string of exceptional performances in college. He possesses all the attributes you’d look for in an NFL cornerback: athleticism, poise, and a high football IQ. He can read quarterbacks and receivers and stay with plays until the end.
However, it’s unclear if McKinstry will be an immediate starter on this team, and we expect him to have to battle for his place on the starting lineup alongside Alontae Taylor and Paulson Adebo.
Taylor has become an important part of this defense in the last year, ranking third in defensive snaps played in the previous year, behind only Tyrann Mathieu and Demario Davis. And while some argued that Taylor regressed slightly from his impressive 2022 showing, there’s more to his 2023 campaign than meets the eye.
In 2023, Taylor was the most targeted cornerback in the league and, as a result, gave up the most total receptions, with 75. However, this is partly explained by the team utilizing him as a slot corner at various points of the season, a position that Taylor didn’t fully seem comfortable with.
Taylor improved in the slot as the year progressed, and in both weeks 17 and 18, he recorded interceptions, his first two in the NFL, as the Saints won both contests against the Buccaneers and Falcons.
This raises a good question for Dennis Allen and his defensive coordinator, Joe Woods. Will they be tempted to use McKinstry as a slot corner throughout the year, allowing Taylor to move back to his spot on the outside, where the team might get the best out of him?
As for Paulson Adebo, this could also be a big year for him in his NFL career. Adebo is entering his fourth season as a New Orleans Saint, meaning his rookie deal ends after the 2024 campaign.
Adebo remains somewhat underrated on the national stage, but Saints fans know just how good he can be, with his four interceptions and 76 tackles leading the team’s secondary in 2023. Adebo himself will know that another stellar year will leave him well-placed to pick up a big money deal this time next year, which at this rate might not be in New Orleans, thanks to the SainSaints’rnal cap struggles. For this reason, Saints fans will hope McKinstry’s hype is real, as he will likely be forced into the starting spot to replace Adebo or Lattimore in 2025.
As for safety, there are fears about the age of Tyrann Mathieu, who still looked good last year despite his advancing years in the free safety role. Mathieu recorded four picks last year, and while he is not quite the First-Team All-Pro he was five years ago, he’s still a vital part of this team, not only on the field but also as a leader in the locker room.
Hopefully, this will be a big year for safety for Jordan Howden, who is entering his second year in the league. Howden was drafted in the 5th round in 2023 and made a minor impact during his debut season, with 43 tackles across his 16 appearances. He played just over half of the team’s defensive snaps.
Beyond Howden, the team isn’t overflowing with talent at safety, and Mickey Loomis could be tempted by a move for ex-Bronco Justin Simmons, who has been a free agent since being waived by Denver in March. Simmons would add huge experience to the team, and a tandem of him and Mathieu would be a dream combination for any young safety to learn from, including Howden himself.
However, Simmons could be difficult to secure, as he’s likely to attract attention from across the league, including from teams that are better placed to make a run at a title this year. His salary demands could also be fairly high, and again, the Saints aren’t particularly well-placed to make a splash in free agency with the current cap situation in New Orleans.
Overall, this selection of defensive backs promises to be one of the strongest assets for this team in 2024, and with Kool-Aid McKinstry entering the picture and the likes of Alontae Taylor and Jordan Howden continuing to develop, there’s every chance that this unit could do even better than they did in 2023.
New Orleans has the right playmakers to force turnovers – as they repeatedly did last year – and with the ageless Demario Davis sitting in front of this secondary, alongside the likes of Pete Werner and new addition Willie Gay, expect this Saints defense to be a tough unit to crack in 2024. They will certainly need to be if they plan on regaining the NFC South title for the first time in four years.
