The New Orleans Saints receiving corps needs some reinforcements. While fans saw plenty to like out of youngers Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed in 2022, the players under contract for 2023 include backups like Tre’Quan Smith, Kirk Merritt, and Kawaan Baker — plus injured starter Michael Thomas, whose status is less than certain.
It’s kind of set up for a good situation for Jarvis Landry to return to. He already knows the Saints’ playbook, he remains popular with fans and teammates, and if Olave and Shaheed are your starters it makes sense to hold onto a veteran presence at the position who can still teach them a thing or two.
On the other hand, Landry is coming off the worst year of his career and he may want to try his hand somewhere else around the league. Let’s review his 2022 campaign with the Saints and decide whether he should re-sign:
Season stats
Landry set new career-lows in targets (39), receptions (25), receiving yards (272), touchdown catches (1) and first down conversions (12) in 2022, though a lot of that can be chalked up to an early-year ankle injury limiting him to just 9 games on the season. That injury kept him in and out of the lineup as a lot of things changed around him, including a move at quarterback. Landry looked like a stellar fit with Jameis Winston in Week 1 (totaling 7 receptions for 114 yards) but he never got into rhythm with Andy Dalton the way Olave and Shaheed managed to.
Snap counts
Landry played 301 snaps on offense for the Saints last season, with 90 of them coming in the first two weeks. That lingering ankle injury kept him in and out of the lineup all year long. After getting on the field for 72% and 68% of the team’s snaps in those initial two games, he only saw more than 63% of snaps in two of the seven games left on the schedule. He was relegated to more of a bit part in the offense while struggling with his health.
2022 season review
There’s no way to look at Landry’s return to New Orleans than as a disappointment. Even his highlights from the season-opener in 2022 set a high bar that he wasn’t able to meet as the year wore on. But how much of that is on Landry?
No position is more reliant on forces outside its control than wide receiver. You’ve got to deal with the quarterback throwing you the ball and the play caller putting you in a position to win. Those were major problems for the Saints last year, and for Landry specifically. It’s unfortunate.
Future value to Saints
Again, if the Saints are going to ask Olave and Shaheed to start at receiver then they probably need a veteran in the receiving corps for them to lean on; Tre’Quan Smith is currently the only player signed for 2023 who really fits that description, and he’s far less a proven commodity than even Landry at this point in his career. It would make sense for the Saints to bring Landry back for another year so he can continue to help coaching up those young playmakers, but his days as an impactful starter might be behind him.
Stay or go?
Landry’s free agent market will probably be quieter this year than it was last summer, when he had to settle for a modest one-year contract with New Orleans. He’s another year older and he has continued to decline. If the price is right (and it should be), bringing him back makes sense for the Saints.
But will Landry want to return for another run in their rebuild? Or would he be more receptive to joining a playoff contender in hopes of winning a championship before hanging up his cleats? The Saints should totally explore another run with Landry, but it shouldn’t surprise anyone if he has bigger ambitions.
Poll: Vote on Twitter!
Will the Saints re-sign their soon-to-be free agent wide receiver Jarvis Landry?
— TheSaintsWire (@TheSaintsWire) January 29, 2023
