3 New Orleans Saints who won’t be back in 2022

2. Tre’Quan Smith

The Saints had high hopes for Tre’Quan Smith when they took him in the third round of the 2018 NFL Draft. Unfortunately, it hasn’t panned out for either side, as Smith has struggled to stay healthy, and even when he is on the field, the production just hasn’t been what the organization was expecting from the UCF product.

Smith’s best season came last year when he had 448 yards receiving and four touchdowns. His career-high in touchdowns is five, which he did in 2018 and 2019. He had a chance to step up last year when Michael Thomas went down with an injury but to no avail.

Simply put — Smith hasn’t been the wide receiver New Orleans was hoping for and there’s no real reason for them to re-sign him following the 2021 season. Maybe he wants to come back to the Big Easy but considering the production hasn’t been there, that might not be the smartest move for the Saints moving forward.

Smith has yet to appear in a game this season due to landing on IR and there’s still time for him to turn things around. Even if he does blossom into a big-time receiver in the final half of the year, would the Saints want him back? Furthermore, would Smith want to stay in New Orleans or would he want to go somewhere with a more figured-out quarterback situation?

Either way, I don’t see Tre’Quan Smith wearing Saints black and gold next year.