The New Orleans Saints May Consider These Free Agents To Hire Klint Kubiak As Their New Offensive Coordinator
Here are a few players with ties to Klint Kubiak who could suit the Saints in the NFL free agency that begins in a little over a month.
After Super Bowl LVIII, newly hired offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak of the New Orleans Saints will take up his formal role with the organization. Earlier this month, Kubiak, the 49ers’ passing game coordinator, was brought in to take Pete Carmichael’s spot.
The offensive staff still needs to fill a few positions. The positions of RB coach, QB coach, WR coach, and offensive line coach are all open. As he becomes comfortable with his new offensive players, Kubiak will probably have a voice in those hires. It will also be free agency in a little more than a month.
Because of the salary cap, it is not anticipated that the Saints will make a significant splash in free agency. On the other hand, you’ve been living under a rock for the past ten years if you believe that the team won’t be able to rearrange and restructure contracts in order to free up cap space and recruit players.
Keeping that in mind, keep in mind that the Saints will have new offensive coordinators and a new system in place by 2024. It is customary to add players who know the system well or who are connected to the coaches.
These pending free agents are former Klint Kubiak players.
Osborn, K.J., WR
Osborn, a Miami, Florida native selected in the fifth round of the 2020 NFL Draft, has spent his whole four-year career with the Minnesota Vikings. Osborn saw limited play as a rookie, but in the last three seasons, he has 158 receptions for 1,845 yards and 15 touchdowns. In 2023, he caught 48 catches for 540 yards and 3 touchdowns.
In 2021, Osborn caught 50 catches on 82 targets for 655 yards and seven touchdowns, making it his most prolific year to date. Klint Kubiak was Minnesota’s offensive coordinator that year. It’s also important to remember that in 2020, the year the Vikings selected Osborn, Kubiak was their quarterback coach.
Osborn, a surprisingly physical receiver who can operate well through a defense’s intermediate zones, is 5’11” and 203 pounds. He can be used both inside and outside the spot and is comfortable serving as an offensive teammate. For a New Orleans squad losing wide receiver Michael Thomas this offseason, he might be a great possession target and third receiver.
G. Dalton Risner
Kubiak’s rushing strategy is based on a one-cut zone blocking concept that dates back to Mike Shanahan and his father, Gary Kubiak. This is a system that depends on tandem blocking from players who are familiar with it and on athletic lineman.
Risner, 28, is a good fit for this plan. The Denver Broncos selected him out of Kansas State in the second round of the 2019 NFL Draft. Over his four years with the Broncos, Risner started 62 of 66 games that were feasible. Last season, he signed with the Minnesota Vikings, where he appeared in 15 games, starting 11 of them.
Before Risner came, Kubiak had left Minnesota, but in 2022, he coached him while working for Denver. Only once in his four years with the Broncos was Risner called for holding. He might be a great addition to a New Orleans line that, after a difficult campaign the previous year, needs a few pieces.
Jon Feliciano,
A 32-year-old guard/center, has nine years of NFL experience and has represented four different teams. Born in Miami, Florida, he was selected by the Oakland Raiders in the fourth round of the 2015 NFL Draft. He recently finished his rookie season with San Francisco.
Feliciano played for a 49ers line that was regarded as one of the finest in the league in 16 games, starting seven of them in addition to the two playoff games. San Francisco was first in rushing touchdowns, third in running yardage, and only permitted 28 sacks of quarterback Brock Purdy.
The offensive lineman for New Orleans, Cameron Erving, James Hurst, and Andrus Peat, are all expected to be unrestricted free agents. Trevor Penning, a tackle, appears to be a draft bust, and the Saints’ interior blocking was seriously lacking. Anticipate an early draft pick from the team to fix the offensive line (again). On the other hand, Jon Feliciano, who has Kubiak’s blocking scheme familiarity and starting experience, would be a cheap addition.
In 2024, Sam Darnold, quarterback Derek Carr, will be the starting quarterback for the Saints. There is no doubt about that. New Orleans will probably need a backup at the position, though. In addition to Jake Haener, a 2023 fourth-round pick who is still raw, Jameis Winston is a free agent and will not return.
Let me introduce Sam Darnold, the third overall pick of the New York Jets in the 2018 NFL Draft out of USC. Darnold is just 21-35 as a starter for the Jets and Panthers after serving as a backup in San Francisco the previous season. Over his career, he has thrown for 12,064 yards with 63 touchdowns and 56 interceptions on just 59.7% of his tosses.
As ridiculous as it seems, the Saints might consider Darnold to be a good backup to Carr. Indeed, he has demonstrated beyond a doubt that he is not a good starter. Darnold, though, might be a capable backup in the event that Carr is hurt. He has a year of useful experience with Kubiak’s system, which is more significant.
Jauan Jennings, wide receiver (WR) Jennings was selected by the 49ers in the seventh round of the 2020 NFL Draft out of Tennessee. After a career-low 19 receptions for 265 yards and one touchdown in 2023, he is returning to action. He has, nevertheless, proven to be a dependable supplementary weapon over his three seasons with San Francisco.
Jennings, 26, is a big, strong wideout who weighs 212 pounds and stands 6’3″. He has made several incredible receptions for the 49ers in crucial situations. In addition, he’s been a great blocker, which is a quality that the Kubiak system requires of its receivers.
Jauan Jennings is well-versed in this system’s route trees. He is a restricted free agent, though. It’s improbable that the Saints will forfeit the comparable draft pick necessary to sign him should the 49ers make an offer.
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