Anyone can write up their take on the NFL power rankings, but there aren’t many analysts who can offer an informed take on the general manager power rankings. That’s where NFL.com’s Gregg Rosenthal comes in. Rosenthal listed every GM in the league, and it’s kind of a tough look for Mickey Loomis. The New Orleans Saints’ shot-caller is the longest-tenured general manager in the sport, and Rosenthal put him all the way down at No. 14.
But the issue is results, not the process that led the Saints where they are now. Rosenthal gave them credit for some unconventional team-building strategies, but he took care to highlight the misses as much as the hits. Here’s what he had to say of Loomis going into 2023:
The Saints entered the offseason more over the cap than any team, then proceeded to spend more money in free agency than nearly anyone else, including the acquisition of Derek Carr. And they still have plenty of cap space! I give the Saints front office credit for creatively working around the cap, using the cash Gayle Benson is willing to spend. The process isn’t necessarily flawed, but the execution is. Loomis hired Dennis Allen and has stuck by him. The staff kept after Sean Payton feels stale compared with the one ex-Saints player/coach Dan Campbell put together in Detroit. Continuing to spend big on a defense in decline feels short-sighted.
The trade of Chauncey Gardner-Johnson was a total misfire, and the Saints’ decision to let Marcus Williams walk while signing Tyrann Mathieu and Marcus Maye ultimately hurt. Recent drafts have major hits (Chris Olave, Alontae Taylor, Pete Werner) and some potential misses (Payton Turner, Cesar Ruiz, Trevor Penning). This is a franchise that feels a bit all over the place since the final days of Sean Payton’s tenure, with everyone trying to keep the paychecks going. It’s all added up to a team stuck in the middle, but damned if New Orleans doesn’t make the NFL more interesting.
Yeah, that’s tough to argue with. The Saints have pioneered creative salary cap accounting strategies that have become common around the NFL, using that approach as a means to max out their resources each year. It’s helped them build some outstanding football teams. But some spotty decision-making in which players to invest in didn’t quite work as planned, and the Saints have, at times, been too aggressive and shortsighted for their own good on draft day.
Much of that responsibility falls on Loomis. He’s held the job for 20 years and his tendencies are well-known around the league. He’s brought the Saints a Super Bowl championship and multiple Hall of Fame players, and negotiated the difficult divorce with a Hall of Fame coach. He’s also struck out on some high-profile draft picks and pricey free agent signings. It is what it is, and that’s what earned him the spot at No. 14 among his peers.
