Saints Land Shockey...Finally

It has been a story that wouldn't go away. The Saints have been trying to land Giants TE Jeremy Shockey since before the NFL draft and now they have. According to multiple media outlets (first reported by Fox's Jay Glazer), the Saints have landed Shockey for 2nd and 5th round picks in next year's draft. The deal is pending league approval and a physical.

The Saints apparently have been consitent with their talk about acquiring Shockey. There have even been reports that the Saints tried to get involved in the Jason Taylor trade talks to help facilitate a 3-team deal, but that fell through when Taylor was dealt to the Redskins.

I'm not sure what I think of this trade. The Saints gave up the same picks that they had offered before the draft and were turned down. Shockey will be a great weapon on this team and Brees has worked with a great tight end before in Antonio Gates of the Chargers. Will Shockey moved the Saints to the upper echelon of teams in the NFC? Time will tell, but they look to at least be the cream of the NFC South.

My main concern with this trade comes with the 2009 draft. The Saints are built to win now and are they sacrificing the future with these deals? Next year's draft will be a lean one with 2nd and 5th rounders going to the Giants, a 6th rounder going to Green Bay (trade back in the 2008 draft for Adrian Arrington) and 3rd or 4th rounder is still tied to the Jonathan Vilma deal (maybe? the compensation for that trade has been one of the most confusing discussions by Saints fans. No one really knows what was given up). So the Saints will possibly only have a 1st, 3rd/4th and 7th. That's only three selections, using the Washington Redskins draft strategy. Maybe there's some more trades in the works for draft picks with players at crowded positions (Devery Henderson? Jason David? Eric Johnson?).

Enough about the 2009 draft, this is about the present and we have one of the top 3...top 5(?) tight ends in football. Hopefully Sean Payton learned a thing or two about dealing with Shockey when he was with the Giants b/c that's the main reason New York gave him away. They didn't want to deal with the Shockey distractions all season.

If good guys like Drew Brees, Deuce McAllister and Scott Fujita can welcome him with open-arms and he becomes a part of this team and not a me-first guy, then this trade will work out great. If he comes in and complains about his contract, playing time or any number of other things, it could be a disaster.

The other factor to remember is playing in New Orleans. Not all players can do it. Shockey was last seen holding cocktails at the Superbowl. He has a party boy persona, how will that work in New Orleans? There's also injury concerns. He broke his leg late last season. Is he fully healed?

Sure there's lots of questions, but training camp is only a few days away and they'll be answered soon enough. Right now, Sean Payton landed the guys he coveted. The guy he feels can put his team over the top. The guy he feels will open up his offense even further. As a Saints fan, you have to be giddy to see what Payton will do with a legitimate tight end. The 2008 season can't get here fast enough.

Edit: It's official, per the Saints Web site. Saints fans can start getting their #88 Shockey jerseys now.