Derek Carr Moves - Did Saints Overpay For Mediocre Talent in 2026 Free Agency?

Saints GM Mickey Loomis being praised for his aggressive approach to 2026 free agency. Many Saints fans who begged 'make it happen Loomis!' are praising his bold moves which they claim will make the Saints 'instant contenders in the NFC South.' However, a closer look begs the question, are these moves smart? Will they help the Saints toward the long term goal of being true contenders who can make noise in the playoffs.

The truth is, after finding a QB, making what appear to be credible coaching hires, and finishing the season 4-1 including wins over their top 2 division rivals in the standings, the Saints were already contenders to win the NFC South in 2026. But, the NFC South is a weak division. The last 4 years, the NFC South champion has been under .500 (twice) more than they have won a single playoff game (once). No NFC South team has gone to the playoffs on a wild card berth since Tom Brady in the 2020-2021 season. Counting playoff games, the NFC South champions collective record is below .500 overall the past 4 years: 8-10 in 2025, 10-8 in 2024, 10-9 in 2023, and 8-10 in 2022. Unless the Saints signed Tua and decided to run the option featuring him, they were contenders to win the division at 8-9 and get beat in the first round of the playoffs. To have a successful offseason, the Saints needed to make major improvements to build toward being serious contenders in the NFC long term, not go all in to win a weak division they may already have won.

But since the Saints 2026 offseason free agency moves were 'bold', won't they deliver wins and long term competitive? I question that. One factor is that since every team is subject to the salary cap, competitive advantage also comes from value per dollar. Early in free agency, the Saints seemed to commit to making sure that somewhat mediocre talents were offered so much cash that they didn't leave the building, so that we could make a splash early on big enough names without having to pay for premium talent.

Lets look at their biggest acquisitions:

David Edwards - Guard - 28 years old - 4 Years - $61 million - 71.4 PFF in 2025

Travis Etienne Jr - RB - 27 years old - 4 years $52 million - 72.6 PFF in 2025

Kaden Elliss - LB - 30 years old - 3 years $33 million - 67.8 PFF in 2025

Compare this to key Saints losses:

Alontae Taylor - CB - 27 years old - 3 years $58 million - 63.8 PFF in 2025

Luke Fortner - C - 27 years old - 1 year $4.75 million - 66.5 PFF in 2025

Demario Davis - LB - 37 years old - 2 years $22 million - 81.4 PFF in 2025