Wide Receivers Are New Orleans Saints Fatal Flaw

In the era of tragic heroes, a “fatal flaw” typically is one where an otherwise heroic character eventually leads to his own demise. For Bleacher Report, a fatal flaw is a weakness of a team that could derail hopes of a Super Bowl run. For the New Orleans Saints, Bleacher Report believes to their wide receiver corps.

As with many of the better teams in the NFL, “fatal flaw” is a relative term with the New Orleans Saints. At first glance this looks like a team more than capable of winning the NFC South again.

However, once you get to the postseason tournament, the margin for error gets a lot narrower. And it’s there that the Saints’ lack of a wide receiver to complement star Michael Thomas could become an issue.

Ted Ginn can still run like a deer, and his 787 receiving yards last year were just three off his career best.

But Ginn is also 33 years old, and consistency has never exactly been his strong suit.

The Saints brought in Cameron Meredith in free agency, and if Meredith can recapture his form from two years ago, the problem could be solved. But recapturing that form is no sure bet after Meredith lost all of last year to a knee injury.

Whether it’s Ginn, Meredith, rookie Tre’Quan Smith or a combination of all three, someone has to become a semi-reliable alternative to Thomas—or it will be bracket coverage for Thomas all game, every game.

It’s no secret that the Saints group of wide receivers behind Michael Thomas fails to instill much confidence in the fanbase. And while Ginn is far from a spring chicken, Cam Meredith (himself coming off a serious knee injury), is only two years removed from his age 24 season when he amassed 888 yards in only 14 games (starting only 10).

If Meredith is fully healed - which is a big “if” - the Saints could have something special at wide receiver. What looked to be a weakness, could be a strength by season’s end.