NOLA Saints should avoid trading for Carson Wentz

How any quarterback-needy NFL team might consider trading for Carson Wentz this offseason:

Is Aaron Rodgers available? No.

Is Russell Wilson available? No.

Is Jimmy G or Derek Carr available? No.

Is Carson Wentz available? Yes. (Said too quickly.)

Er, we’ll think about it.

Quarterbacks that have the type of season that Wentz had usually go to the most desperate, and the New Orleans Saints are trying to establish standards in 2022.

After reports circulated that Wentz’s second NFL marriage is already on the rocks, the Saints technically count as one of the several NFL teams that need a quarterback next season.

But NOLA has little reason to bring Wentz on given Wentz’s 2021 track record. His 27 touchdowns against seven interceptions make him seem palatable — until you watch actual footage of Wentz play. He does things like this:

And this:

All in one game. And lest us forget this head-banger in a regular season game against the Titans:

New Orleans Saints cannot reform the hopeless and erratic Carson Wentz

With a 9-6 record heading into their last two regular season games, Indy was a near-guaranteed lock to make the playoffs The Colts only needed to win against the Raiders or the Jaguars, and Wentz being Wentz lost them both.

Traded to Indy at the start of the 2021 season, the Colts optimistically believed they could reform him, the bad boy that Wentz was. Villainized as a pick-throwing goblin in Philly, Wentz was given a sacred second chance in Indy, where he reconnected with head coach Frank Reich. Wentz had everything he could want: the best running back in the NFL (at the time), a solid wide receiver room, a top-tier offensive line, a good defense to boot. And still, he failed.

Long removed from his 2017 Pro Bowl year, Wentz’s latest stint in Indy should scream “DAMAGED GOODS” to the Saints, and especially at his price point, NOLA should stay far, far away.

The Saints’ best quarterback option is still Jameis Winston, who could be described as having most of Wentz’s good qualities and less of his atrocious ones. Like Wentz, Winston can make the occasional smack-yourself-because-you-didn’t-believe-it-at-first pass, but he can also play a tighter, cleaner game to get those crucial first downs and sustain a game-winning drive.

In the event that Winston signs elsewhere, Wentz wouldn’t be the absolute worst option for NOLA, but he’d be pretty down there.

The Saints get a fresh start in 2022, which means getting rid of any lingering toxicity (the Michael Thomas drama, for one) and maintaining a winning culture.

Let Wentz be somebody else’s problem.