No team waited longer to draft a wide receiver than the New Orleans Saints. After selecting Tre’Quan Smith with the 91st pick in 2018, the Saints didn’t draft another wide receiver until Kawaan Baker at the 255th pick in 2021. Neither player dressed out for Sunday’s loss to the Carolina Panthers, when New Orleans’ subpar receiving corps struggled to separate before the offensive life fell to pieces behind them snap after snap after snap. It’s a bad situation.
And it’s a group that has to work with training wheels, relying on Sean Payton’s play designs to scheme them open because they aren’t talented enough to consistently beat opponents one-on-one.