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Saints: 6 players the team can’t afford to lose to injury in 2021

By Leigh Oleszczak

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - OCTOBER 20: Eli Apple #25 of the New Orleans Saints gets injured late in the fourth quarter against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on October 20, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Nuccio DiNuzzo/Getty Images)
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - OCTOBER 20: Eli Apple #25 of the New Orleans Saints gets injured late in the fourth quarter against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on October 20, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Nuccio DiNuzzo/Getty Images) /
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Ryan Ramczyk #71 of the New Orleans Saints (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images) /

Saints need Terron Armstead or Ryan Ramczyk to stay healthy

The No. 1 entry on the list is either Terron Armstead or Ryan Ramczyk, as the Saints can’t lose both of these guys at any point during the season. They could theoretically afford to lose one player due to having James Hurst as a solid depth piece on the roster but both tackles going down would sink the Saints’ season, especially with a new quarterback taking over.

Armstead has never appeared in all 16 games in a season throughout his career while Ramczyk has missed just one start in his career, which came during his second year in the league back in 2018.

If one of these guys goes down, Hurst is more than capable of stepping in and handling starting duties until the injured player is able to come back (assuming he can). If, however, both were to miss time due to injury, that’d be a huge blow to the Saints, who are used to having one of the best offensive lines in the league.

Having a strong offensive line is big not only because it helps protect the quarterback, but also to create holes and running lanes for the running backs. That’s huge for a team like the Saints who depend on Kamara and Murray to make those big runs and get huge chunk plays on the ground.

Without a doubt, the Saints can’t afford to lose both Armstead and Ramczyk to injury but if one goes down, they’d probably be okay.

Hopefully, we don’t have to worry about what life will be like without any of these guys. Thomas is the biggest injury risk in 2021 after missing over half of last year with injuries while Kamara is simply a risk due to the position he plays.

Related Story. 3 Free Agents Who Could Be Starters in 2021. light

The Saints absolutely need all six of these guys to stay healthy though if they want any shot at staying at the top of the NFC South.