2009 NFL draft one year later: New Orleans Saints
We can look at the 2009 draft of the saints in a lot of different ways. Since two of their four picks went down to injury there is a strong feeling to give them an incomplete grade, since they won the Super Bowl we can easily give them a pass, but we can also point out that 2009 was not a great draft for this team. Does it really mater? Not so much now, but this team could regret not going in a different direction in the 2009 draft day down the road. One year ago I gave them high marks, understanding the logic behind the moves, they didn’t work out (at least in the short term), but the Super Bowl Champions get a lot of leeway.
A quick look at the 2009 Saints draft class:
- Round One (14)- Malcolm Jennings CB
- Round Four (116)- Chip Vaughn DB
- Round Four (118)- Stanley Arnoux LB
- Round Five (164)- Thomas Morestead
So Vaughn and Arnoux never played a regular season game due to injuries. They may return, they may eventually help, but we cannot analyze what may happen. The Saints scored with Jenkins. He racked up 55 tackles, two forced fumbles, and an interception. That is a solid result form a top 15 pick. Morestead won the pre-season kicking competition and performed well. He placed 18 of his kicks inside the 20 yard line.
I am leaning towards giving this team an incomplete grade at the moment. They clearly scored on half of their picks, and in today’s NFL that is nothing to sneeze at. I gave them an overall solid A one year ago, and I am inclined to keep that on the record till we see what the two injured rookies produce in production or trade in the future.
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