Packers may regret starting Jordan Love, Dolphins season likely over
Mackenzie Salmon breaks down the top storylines from Week 9 in the NFL.
Sports Seriously
The New Orleans Saints signaled they were heading for an organizational rebuild when they fired head coach Dennis Allen on Monday, Nov. 4 after a seven-game losing streak.
New Orleans wasted little time in continuing to reshuffle its deck. As USA TODAY’s Tyler Dragon confirmed, the Saints traded veteran cornerback Marshon Lattimore to the Washington Commanders.
The Saints will also send the Commanders a 2025 fifth-round pick while getting a 2025 third-round pick, a 2025 fourth-round pick, and their other 2025 sixth-round pick – originally sent to Washington in the John Ridgeway trade back in return.
Lattimore, 28, is a four-time Pro Bowler who won Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2017. The long-time Saints corner is regarded as one of the best cornerbacks in the league and has routinely guarded and shut down No. 1 receivers during his career.
Lattimore has 405 tackles and 15 interceptions in 97 starts and will give the Commanders a big boost in the secondary.
Who are the winners and losers of the blockbuster trade? Here’s what to know about Lattimore joining the Commanders.
The first year of the post-Daniel Snyder era could not be going better for the Commanders. They are 7-2 entering the trade deadline and just acquired a star cornerback to upgrade their improving defense.
Lattimore gives the Commanders a true, No. 1 cornerback for their defense. That will allow Benjamin St-Juste and rookie Mike Sainristil to slide into roles that better suit their skill sets while strengthening Washington’s solid-looking back end. Dan Quinn and Joe Whitt Jr. should be able to get the most out of Lattimore, considering their success coaching up defensive backs in Dallas, so this should be a match made in heaven.
The Saints may have traded away their best defensive player in Lattimore, but this is a good day for the organization. New Orleans has desperately needed a reset following Drew Brees’ retirement. Instead, they tested the limits of the salary cap and have been left in an unforgiving situation.
In recent years, the Saints have had to let key players go each offseason because of their lack of cap space. They were often able to replace these players with cheaper alternatives, but this “Moneyball”-type approach left them merely struggling to be a league-average squad.
New Orleans should escape purgatory as it rebuilds. The team should reset its salary cap – which is projected to be a staggering $61.5 million over the cap in 2025, per OverTheCap.com – by tearing apart its roster while shaping a new contender by acquiring draft capital with which to rebuild its roster.
So, while losing Lattimore hurts the Saints on the field, it should help accelerate their much-needed rebuild off it.
The Falcons and Buccaneers have one game left against the Saints. Each should now have a greater advantage over their divisional rivals, considering their strong passing games and New Orleans’ lack of proven, consistent talent in the secondary.
The Falcons have already swept the Buccaneers in the season series, and earning a sweep of the Saints would put them well on their way toward their first NFC South title since 2016. Meanwhile, the Buccaneers are battling for a wild-card spot, so their remaining matchup with New Orleans getting easier on paper should be welcome for Tampa Bay, especially amid a three-game losing skid.
The Kansas City Chiefs were among the teams rumored to be in on Lattimore. They did not get the star cornerback. That will have teams like the Baltimore Ravens, Buffalo Bills and Houston Texans breathing sighs of relief as they gear up to challenge Kansas City in the postseason and end the Chiefs’ bid for an unprecedented Super Bowl three-peat.
The Chiefs have been among the NFL’s most active teams before the trade deadline. They acquired wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins and pass rusher Josh Uche in two deals ahead of the deadline and were rumored to be in on Lattimore.
Landing Lattimore would have given the Chiefs one of the best defensive backfields in the NFL. He would have paired nicely with Trent McDuffie and helped replace No. 2 cornerback Jaylen Watson, who is likely out for the season with a broken ankle.
Now, the Chiefs will have to look elsewhere for cornerback help. They may find it, but they aren’t likely to get a player with as much talent as Lattimore.
The Eagles can still win the NFC East, but the Commanders’ acquisition of Lattimore is a blow to their chances of doing so. One area of weakness in Washington’s roster was its lack of a true, high-end cornerback. Philadelphia could have taken advantage of that with A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith in their Weeks 11 and 16 matchups, but that will be harder now with Lattimore in tow.
Again, the Eagles are just a half-game out of first place in the division, so the race is far from over. Things just got more difficult for Nick Sirianni’s squad in what is shaping up to be an epic two-horse race.
Any hope that Forbes could find a role in Washington is rapidly fading. The first-round pick from the 2023 NFL Draft has struggled during his career and has only played in five games this season and has lost playing time in recent weeks to journeymen like Noah Igbinoghene.
Lattimore’s arrival will make it harder for Forbes to find playing time in Washington. He’s shaping up to be another bust from Ron Rivera’s regime, and that will leave many Commanders fans wondering why the team didn’t take the consensus better cornerback prospect, Christian Gonzalez, at 16 over Forbes.
