Saints 2018 Year in Review: Jermon Bushrod

When the New Orleans Saints lost Senio Kelemete in free agency to the Houston Texans, there were questions surrounding the 2018 Saints’ ability to replicate the depth on the offensive line. Enter Jermon Bushrod, who re-signed with the team after after a two-year stint with the Miami Dolphins. Bushrod, at 34 years old, wasn’t expected to be a full-time player, but rather a depth piece to fill in behind the oft-injured Terron Armstead.

Bushrod ended up playing in 11 games for the 2018 Saints, starting 6. He filled in admirably at tackle with injuries to the aforementioned Terron Armstead and Andrus Peat forced Bushrod into a more pronounced role.

Jermon Bushrod - At a Glance

• Approximate Value: 4 (2nd lowest in 10 year career)
• Pro Football Focus Rank: 59th out of 80
• Overall Grade: 62.0
• Pass Block Grade: 78.3 (182 snaps)
• Run Block Grade: 46.1 (192 snaps)
• Total Snaps: 374

Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images

You can see based off those numbers that Bushrod struggled at times (to say the least) creating holes in the run game. It’s no surprise then to see that when Bushrod was on the left side of the line, the Saints opted more often than not to run primarily to the right.

Bushrod’s best moment of 2018 might have been an award he received after the regular season:

For those who don’t know, Bushrod had to deal with the death of a newborn child in the middle of the season. This incident, along with an injury sustained later in the season, forced Bushrod to miss significant time. However, the competitor that he is, Bushrod did his best to help his team win any time he was on the field.

The question for 2019: will Bushrod be on the field again?

Whether Bushrod calls it a career after the 2018 season, or tries to make a final run of it - be it with the Saints or someone else - he has had a great career. Even if Bushrod hangs up his cleats, this won’t be the last we see of him: he’ll be inducted into the Saints Hall of Fame soon enough.