There are many challenges the New Orleans Saints are facing heading into this season. Of all of them, NFL.com’s Eric Edholm listed finding the right starting offensive line as the biggest.
Erik McCoy and Cesar Ruiz are locks at center and right guard, respectively. Taliese Fuaga feels close to that category (we can’t rule out the possibility he has to move back to right tackle), while Nick Saldiveri and Trevor Penning are fighting for their spots in new positions. As of today, those five appear to be in the lead at their respective positions. There are backups fighting for snaps like Landon Young, Olisaemmeka Udoh, and Lucas Patrick, too.
It’s difficult to overstate the importance of offensive line play. There’s a strong argument it’s the engine of any offense. You want your quarterback to have time to throw and your running back, at the worst, to not be swarmed in the backfield before he can make a move. Both of these rely on the unit up front.
In Klint Kubiak’s offense, the offensive line will need to be on point. The wide zone system is based in the offensive line giving the running backs multiple options. Poor performance in the trenches will muddy the picture for those running backs and limit production.
Building trust and familiarity will be important for this unit. The offensive line is the greatest example of a unit in football. They rely on each other every play to do what is expected so there are no exploitable gaps.
