New Orleans Saints Review

As many expected, the Saints have parted ways with longtime defensive end Charles Grant.  Also released were guard Jamar Nesbit and linebacker Mark Simoneau.

Grant was a 1st round pick from Georgia for the Saints back in 2002.  During his first three seasons with the team, he appeared to be a star in the making with 7, 10 and 10.5 sacks, respectively.  Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to keep up that pace and his best sack total after those first three years never went higher than 6.

In recent years there were questions about Grant’s work ethic and personal life, as he was implicated in a murder outside of a Georgia night club.

For Saints fans, it seemed that Grant was one of the poster children for underachieving defensive units over the years.  During the latter part of the Jim Haslett and early part of the Sean Payton eras, the team struggled to stop the run and generate a consistent pass rush, both areas where Grant struggled to make an impact.

As the team looks to shape its 2010 roster, the $4.25 million that Grant was due to earn wasn’t on par with his production.  So as of now, it would appear that defensive end will become a priority in free agency and/or the draft.

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This entry was posted on Friday, March 5th, 2010 at 8:50 am and is filed under Opinion. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.