Saints trades with Eagles may prove to be smart moves

Did the Philadelphia Eagles fleece the New Orleans Saints for CJ Gardner-Johnson, or did the Saints get the best deal possible for a player they knew would not be part of their team in 2023?

Well, both may be actually true.

It is a debate that will be revisited often this week since the Saints play the Eagles in Philadelphia this Sunday.

According to the website spotrac.com, the Saints are more than $57 million over the salary cap going into the 2023 season. They couldn’t afford Gardner-Johnson, who would have commanded big money on the open market. So, they took 5th and 6th round draft picks for a player they surely would have lost in free agency.
When Gardner-Johnson didn’t practice during training camp as he tried to force the Saints to cut him a new deal, New Orleans moved on without him quickly.

It was likely their intention all along.

Go back to the second day of the 2022 draft. When the Saints drafted cornerback Alontae Taylor in the second round, head coach Dennis Allen said the following.

“You can never have enough good defensive backs.”

That is surely correct but my guess is the selection of Taylor was done with the following realizations. One, the Saints were high on Taylor, and two, they thought he could play the spot in which Gardner-Johnson has thrived for the Black and Gold.

Like CJGJ, Taylor is a player who can cover but also be a difference maker against the run at the line of scrimmage.

So, here’s a prediction, based on what one reporter has seen of Taylor. I think he will be an outstanding NFL player for a long time. In 10 NFL games, he already has 11 passes defensed. The Tennessee product has been oh-so-close to his first NFL interception on multiple occasions and should have had one that was wiped out by penalty against the 49ers.

Taylor always seems to be around the football, a trait that surprisingly few NFL cornerbacks have.

Many are tall with the skills to cover but fewer have the size, ball skills and extra football savvy that Taylor seems to possess. He has played outside mostly, due to injuries to veterans. Taylor has played well wherever and whenever he’s been asked this season.

Is this too much praise for Taylor to soon? Maybe so. But, as former Saints GM Jim Finks loved to say (to the chagrin of many players when negotiating contracts), Alontae Taylor passes the eyeball physical.

If football were a movie, the rookie looks the part.

So, what happens Sunday? CJ Gardner-Johnson does a lot of barking at the Saints, maybe at the head coach. That’s if he plays.

Gardner-Johnson has not since he suffered a lacerated kidney in a November 27th game against Green Bay. One can argue the Eagles have missed his presence significantly on that side of the ball.

Whether the Eagles win the Super Bowl or not, he gets paid big in the offseason.
Meanwhile, the Saints have Alontae Taylor for four years at the insanely-low total price of $7.794 million.

Remember, trades always look different down the road.

Speaking of that… right now, the Eagles look like they also fleeced the Saints for their 2023 first round pick.

What happens if Trevor Penning turns into a franchise caliber offensive tackle while Chris Olave thrives as a top NFL wideout?

Remember, in 2017 the Saints traded wide receiver Brandin Cooks to New England for the 32nd choice in the first round. That pick turned out to be Ryan Ramczyk, one of the top two or three offensive lineman in 56 years of Saints football.

Also remember, many analysts called the Saints pick of Taylor “a reach.”

It’s best to let careers and the results of trades play themselves out before declaring a verdict.