The Saints offense has consistently provided a steady source of fantasy production in recent years, and last season it was near its best as they led the league it total yards and finished only behind the Falcons in offensive touchdowns.
They did shake some things up this offseason, trading wide receiver Brandin Cooks to the Patriots and signing running back Adrian Peterson in free agency, but most of their attention was put on trying to improve on one of the league’s most lackluster defenses.
Everything offensively will still center around quarterback Drew Brees. Over the last three years nearly 63 percent of the team’s plays have been passes and that is unlikely to change much in the season ahead.
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Team Offensive Stats |
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| NO | Rank | Lg Avg | |
| Snaps/Gm | 69.3 | 1 | 65.3 |
| Pace (Sec/Sn) | 23.96 | 12 | 24.28 |
| Run % | 36.4% | 27 | 39.8% |
| Pass % | 63.6% | 6 | 60.2% |
| % Leading | 27.3% | 26 | 36.0% |
Quarterback
Brees broke 5,000 passing yards for the fifth time in his career last season. It has only happened four other times in NFL history, and no other player has accomplished that feat more than once.
Now 38, Brees may be showing some signs of wear and tear and some declining arm strength, but the numbers have yet to reflect it. He’s put up top-five numbers in fantasy for 11 years in a row and has averaged over 300 yards passing per contest in six straight seasons.
The loss of Cooks, the team’s best big-play threat, could put a damper on Brees’ production, but he still should be viewed a top-three option at fantasy quarterback for 2017.
Chase Daniel is next line if Brees goes down. He’s not anything special, but in this system he would be likely to post decent numbers if given the chance.
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Vacated Touches |
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| 2016 Touches | % Vacated | |
| Carries | 382 | 36.1% |
| Targets | 626 | 21.9% |
| Total | 1008 | 27.3% |
Running back
As the preseason comes to an end, the Saints’ backfield remains one of fantasy football’s biggest head scratchers. The names are new, but having Sean Payton use multiple running backs is something fantasy owners have come to expect. The good news is that New Orleans tends to throw to their running backs as much as any team in the league and they’ve gotten at least 16 touchdowns out of the position in each of the last three seasons.
Incumbent Mark Ingram has posted some nice numbers in this environment (over 1,110 total yards and 8.3 scores per year three years in a row), but it has becoming abundantly clear through their offseason actions that the team is not all in on Ingram.
The first indicator was the signing of free agent Adrian Peterson, Now 32, Peterson is far from his prime, but journeyman Tim Hightower had stretches of relevance in this role over the past two years. Peterson could prove to be useful in fantasy, but his fifth-round price for much of the summer made him extremely overvalued.
The real value on the team at the position comes with rookie Alvin Kamara. The Saints traded up to land him in the draft even after signing Peterson. With Travaris Cadet being cut, the passing-down role is all left for Kamara. He displayed some great athleticism on some highlight reel plays during the preseason and caught 40 balls last year at Tennessee. If Ingram or Peterson struggle, Kamara could see even more work on early downs.
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Rushing Stats |
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| NO | Rank | Lg Avg | |
| YPC | 4.33 | 13 | 4.18 |
| YCo/Att | 2.56 | 9 | 2.43 |
| YBCo/Att | 1.76 | 15 | 1.76 |
| Inside Zone | 21.3% | 22 | 26.0% |
| Outside Zone | 24.8% | 18 | 27.7% |
| Power | 31.0% | 2 | 9.5% |
| Man | 5.2% | 23 | 15.0% |
Wide receivers
With Cooks being dealt to New England, second-year wide receiver Michael Thomas becomes the team’s No. 1 wide receiver. Thomas shined as rookie, catching 92 passes. He was especially efficient inside the 10-yard line where he caught seven passes and six touchdowns on 11 targets. He projects to be a top 10 fantasy wideout in any format.
Willie Snead is poised to see an increase in his targets this season, but the news of a three-game suspension has put a damper on his fantasy value. Snead has the ability to be a consistent performer, but he’ll need to show a higher tendency to score to offer anything more than WR3 potential. He’s only scored seven times over 30 games.
The team is hopeful Ted Ginn Jr. can help make up for some of the speed that Cooks offered. While he definitely will be a down-field threat, Ginn has one of the highest drop-rates in the league over the past few years. Ginn will likely be more involved early now that Snead is suspended.
Brandon Coleman is still the mix and could get on the fantasy radar early when Snead is out. The team also claimed preseason sensation Austin Carr off waivers from the Patriots. He’s a name to watch.
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Wide Receiver Sets |
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| % | Rank | Lg Avg | Throw% | Rk | Lg Avg | |
| 2-Wide | 27.3% | 12 | 24.5% | 51.7% | 7 | 45.0% |
| 3-Wide | 55.4% | 16 | 55.5% | 69.7% | 8 | 66.1% |
| 4-Wide | 2.3% | 9 | 2.9% | 88.5% | 14 | 81.6% |
Tight end
Coby Fleener definitely didn’t live up to the hype in New Orleans last year after the team ponied up a big contract. Of tight ends who played 60 percent or more of their team’s snaps last season, only Garrett Celek had a worst catch percentage than Fleener’s 63 percent.
The veteran could see a spike early on as well from the loss of Snead. He’s gone undrafted in some leagues and could be an early-season waiver wire candidate if he gets off to a hot start, but Fleener is far from fantasy TE1 material.
Josh Hill is still Fleener’s backup. The buzz wore out quickly on Hill a couple seasons ago and barring an injury to Fleener he isn’t likely yo warrant enough targets to generate any fantasy interest this season.
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Personnel Groupings |
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| % | Rank | Lg Avg | Throw% | Rk | Lg Avg | |
| 11 | 51.8% | 19 | 53.5% | 70.4% | 9 | 33.5% |
| 12 | 9.7% | 27 | 15.6% | 60.7% | 6 | 50.2% |
| 21 | 9.6% | 9 | 6.9% | 63.2% | 6 | 62.5% |
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