The folks over at CBS Sports have decided to take a look back at the 2009 NFL Draft and re-grade each team's performance, now that three years have past. Which is a whole lot better than grading a draft the day after it's over.
You can view their full team-by-team breakdown right here, but below is what they had to say about the Saints. Despite having only four draft picks, they've given the team a B- grade. Pretty respectable I think.
NEW ORLEANS SAINTS (4 Draft Picks)
1 (14) DB Malcolm Jenkins, Ohio State; 4 (116) S Chip Vaughn, Wake Forest; 4 (118) LB Stanley Arnoux, Wake Forest; 5 (164) P Thomas Morstead, SMU
THE GOOD: A cornerback turned safety, Malcolm Jenkins has started 30 games the past two years at free safety, filling the shoes of Darren Sharper with 196 tackles and 3 interceptions over his three-year NFL career
THE BAD: The Saints drafted safety Chip Vaughn in the fourth round, but he never played in New Orleans after he missed all of 2009 with injury and was released prior to the 2010 season, struggling to stick on a roster ever since
JURY STILL OUT: Punter Thomas Morstead has steadily improved over the past three seasons, finishing the 2011 season second in the NFL in net punt average (43.1) and is on his way to being one of the league's best
Re-Grade: B-
The jury is still out on Thomas Morstead? To say that Morstead "is on his way to being one of the league's best" but then claim the jury is still out seems like a bit of a contradiction to me. If his future as a successful NFL player were in doubt, then why would one claim he's "on his way" to being successful? I guess with only four draft selections that year, the writer was stuck with putting Morstead in this category.
Remember how pissed Saints fans were, including myself, when the team not only drafted a punter in the fifth round but also traded up just to get him? If you want a good laugh, check out the original post on Canal Street Chronicles.
Three years later, what do you guys think about the Saints 2009 draft? And how do you feel about their new B- draft grade?