We’re hours away from kickoff between the New Orleans Saints and Carolina Panthers, so here’s a unique way to preview Carolina’s best players: Which of them would you want to go turncoat and join the Saints?
Each of our staff writers here at the Saints Wire made their picks for which opposing player could best suit the team’s needs. Unfortunately, each of these talented playmakers will be suiting up against New Orleans on Monday night:
LT Ikem Ekwonu
No disrespect to Trevor Penning, but that performance against Tennesee and Arden Key of all people cannot happen again. If there was an opportunity to immediately upgrade at that spot I would take it and just call the Penning experiment a wash. In reality, Penning will still have plenty of chances to grow and show improvement, it just will need to happen at least a little bit pretty soon. — Dylan Sanders
DE Brian Burns
Carolina Panthers defensive end Brian Burns would be a great addition to the Saints. Burns is an extremely talented player who also fits a positional need for New Orleans. The Saints have potential at defensive end, but they are still looking to cement that position. Burns would do that. His speed would also be a nice addition to a defensive line that uses a lot of power to get to the quarterback. — Darrion Gray
DT Derrick Brown
The Saints have already added multiple defensive tackles this offseason, between Bryan Bresee, Khalen Saunders, and Nathan Shepherd. But adding a true presence on the inside to match alongside Bresee would make this defensive front a force to be reckoned with. Having a four-man group of Cameron Jordan, Bresee, Brown, and Carl Granderson alongside the depth already on the roster at these positions would bolster the unit even further. — Jeremy Trottier
LT Ikem Ekwonu
The Saints have had a lot of question marks over the past couple of seasons, but one of the biggest has been across the offensive line — something that has been a bit of a revolving door with injuries and such. The Saints would get an upgrade here over Trevor Penning with a more established and proven player. How things continue to shake out among the unit will be something to watch. — Crissy Froyd
DB Jeremy Chinn
I’ll go against the grain here — Chinn is exactly the kind of versatile playmaker the Saints have gotten the most out of in Dennis Allen’s secondary, and he’d be an upgrade over Alontae Taylor in the slot (right now; Taylor is learning on the job and could make big strides in the months ahead). Chinn is a bigger version of Tyrann Mathieu who can run with most receivers around the league. He doesn’t miss tackles or draw penalty flags, and he’d be welcome in almost any defense around the league, including New Orleans. — John Sigler
