Drew Brees retired after the 2020 season and, despite at least one request, never looked back. But Saints assistant GM and scouting director Jeff Ireland made sure to ask him an important question before he left the building.
What is it that makes you a great quarterback?
The answer: "Processing speed, accuracy, getting the ball out," Ireland said, speaking to the media from the 2023 Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama.
Of course, while those factors might be at the top of the list, there are a myriad of qualities that make up a first-ballot Hall of Famer like Brees. But it's certainly a place to start. And that's why scouting events like the Senior Bowl are so valuable to the Saints. The team has watched all the film on its future QBs. But it's the intangibles that can be harder to identify.
"Some of those are things you’re going to learn watching the tape, and some of those you’re going to learn by sitting down and studying tape with him, and getting to know the kid," Ireland said. "But those are just a couple. There’s so many traits that you’re looking for at the quarterback position. And some guys have all of them. Those usually go really early. Some guys have a few of them and you’ve got to really evaluate deep, get a deep dive on those guys and find out what they’re made of.”
It's why the Saints jumped at the opportunity to get coaches on the field at the Senior Bowl with a change in the game's operation. For the first time, rather than having two team staffs lead each side, coaches from around the league were nominated by teams and chosen by a panel. The Saints were tied with the Washington Commanders for the most on-field representatives with four: Ronald Curry, OC (National Team), DJ Williams, QBs (National Team) Declan Doyle, TEs (American Team); Cory Robinson, Safeties (American Team).
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A team that for so long was set with Brees at QB and had no reason to do anything but look at upside picks in the mid-rounds now has a mystery at the most important position. Curry and Williams got the best look at Fresno State's Jake Haener (the MVP of the Senior Bowl itself), BYU's Jaren Hall and Louisville's Malik Cunningham. As Ireland puts it, the team won't be "throwing darts." They want to be sure. They even went so far as to give those coaches "cheat sheets" of information they were looking for so when they report back, it's as comprehensive as possible.
"We have one free agent quarterback and a practice squad quarterback under contract," Ireland said. "And so we do take it a little more serious this year because we need to find one.”
The free agent quarterback is veteran Andy Dalton, who started the Saints' final 14 games of the 2022 season. The practice squad quarterback is Jake Luton. The notably omission is Jameis Winston, who is still under contract but feels unlikely to be turned to considering how the team bypassed him to stick with Dalton throughout a frustrating 7-10 campaign.
What will the team do next? That's anyone's guess. Could they:
- Settle on a mid-round project, which would likely be the case for any of the six throwers on the field in Mobile?
- Fall in love with the 7th QB in Hendon Hooker who is recovering from an ACL injury and didn't play, but could be a Day 1 or 2 option?
- Spent their recently acquired late first on a QB that wasn't in attendance, such as Stanford's Tanner McKee?
- Trade up for a more highly-touted name such as Kentucky's Will Levis?
- Go all-in on free agency for one of the names available, or even bring back Dalton?
- Get wild in the trade market and bring in an established star? (ahem, Lamar Jackson, anybody?)
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Everything is still on the table, and even more so now with the Saints acquiring a first in the Sean Payton trade to the Broncos. But one more note from Ireland could give insight into the desired path, and it's the answer to a simple question: What traits are you looking for in a quarterback?
“Quarterback is one of those positions where it’s an all-in evaluation. It’s not just me as a college director. It’s not just the coach as a head coach," Ireland said. "It’s a all-in, you’re looking for a very consistent evaluation on the quarterback position. We have to all be in on that particular evaluation and say ‘yea, we all want this guy.’
"So, whether he’s a running quarterback, a dual-threat quarterback. I mean, ideally, if you’re asking me directly, I like the dual-threat quarterbacks. But they’ve got to be able to throw when they’re hurt. When they can’t move their legs, they’ve got to be able to throw, but I do like the dual-threat guys."
In an NFC South that feels open for the taking by the next team that finds that ideal QB option, how the Saints complete that evaluation and execute the plan could be the defining decision of the next decade of Saints football. The same could be said of the Dennis Allen era of Saints coaching, with Pete Carmichael expected to stay on as offensive coordinator.
Some simple, but necessary advice: Don't mess it up.
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