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3 personnel moves the Saints should make during their bye week
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- 3 personnel moves the Saints should make during their bye week
A 2-5 New Orleans Saints team staggers into a Week 8 bye. The Saints have underachieved in nearly every way after entering the year with heightened expectations. Head coach Kellen Moore, defensive coordinator Brandon Staley, and others could be on the hot seat. And with good reason. The Saints have been abysmal on defense and unable to run the ball with an offense that's excruciatingly vanilla and predictable.
Much to the chagrin of many fans, New Orleans did not make any coaching moves after their listless loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers in Paris. If the team were to make a coaching move during the season, the bye week after such an ugly loss would have been the time to do it. If Kellen Moore and Brandon Staley have any hopes of potentially saving their jobs now, a great many things need to change quickly. Here are some personnel moves that the Saints should make during their bye week.
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Trade or cut linebacker Pete Werner
When is Brandon Staley going to see enough? The Saints are one of the worst in the NFL at stopping the run. While Werner isn't solely responsible for those failings on the field, he is one of the primary culprits. Werner has already been a major liability in coverage throughout his career. Defenders of him would counter that by saying that he's a physical player and solid against the run. Not this season.
Werner is consistently out of position due to poor reads and play diagnosis. He's shown an alarming inability to sift through traffic to the ball. As a result, he's become a defensive liability in every situation on a unit that can't afford such weakness. Staley would be wise to turn to second-year linebacker Danny Stutsman on early downs and hand out more playing time to Isaiah Stalbird, their most athletic linebacker. It's unlikely the Saints would get much in return by trading Werner and would take a cap hit if they released or moved him. It is very much worth it to do so.
Start Jeremiah Wright over Cesar Ruiz at right guard
New Orleans has one of the worst offensive lines in the league. This was the case well before right guard Ruiz went down with a knee injury in a victory over the Giants. Rookie fourth-round pick Wright stepped in for Ruiz in the second half of that game and the Saints ran the ball more effectively than at any other point this year.
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Wright struggled a bit during his first NFL start against the Steelers in Paris. It's still time for the Saints to see what they have in the mauling rookie. New Orleans shouldn't necessarily move on from Ruiz before this offseason, unless they get a good trade offer. It should also be clear that Ruiz isn't a long-term answer at the position. Therefore, it is important for Wright to get valuable experience.
Shop safety Justin Reid for a trade
A pass defense that ranked 4th in 2025 has plummeted to 25th this season. Reid isn't the only one responsible for the drop, but is part of a secondary that's disappointed. The Saints are alright at corner with Kool-Aid McKinstry, Martin Emerson Jr., and Quincy Riley, though Staley's passive scheme doesn't take advantage of their skill set. Reid, the veteran of the group, has not played well. However, he could bring valuable experience and production to a potential contender.
New Orleans is highly unlikely to be a seller at the upcoming NFL trade deadline. This is also not to suggest that the Saints should have a fire sale and dump their young future building blocks. However, veterans like Justin Reid, Cesar Ruiz, or Pete Werner may be viewed as a valuable commodity to a contender. None of these three should be in the future New Orleans plans. The Saints have players behind them in need of experience, or at least to find out if they can be part of their rebuild. It's time for the team to give more time to those players, because the current have not been solutions.
This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: 3 personnel moves the Saints should make during their bye week
