Saints named as most popular bandwagon to hop on in 2022
By Kristen Wong
The Sean Payton and Drew Brees chapters are over, but that doesn’t mean the New Orleans Saints are losing fans in 2022.
As a historically winning franchise, the Saints look to make a deep playoff run this season with a vastly improved roster from 2021. Instead of Taysom Hill and Tre’Quan Smith, fans get to see Jameis Winston and Michael Thomas jumpstart the passing game along with talent like Jarvis Landry and Chris Olave.
NOLA suffered their share of losses this offseason, but they quickly bounced back, nabbing players at key positions of need like offensive tackle Trevor Penning and safety Tyrann Mathieu.
NFL’s Adam Schein named nine bandwagons to hop on and had the NOLA Saints at the top of his list:
"I dig this group. I love the roster general manager Mickey Loomis has assembled and refuse to sell New Orleans short. This is a playoff team. In fact, these Saints can beat out the Buccaneers for the division title. They can win a playoff game or two. I’m ready to drive this bandwagon!"
New Orleans Saints make their case for being America’s favorite team in 2022
We love Schein’s optimism about this group as we, too, can rave about the Saints’ drastic roster changes so far this offseason.
NOLA’s top three wideouts from 2021 have now become backups; on the defensive side, the Saints should be able to maintain their elite performances in both the run and pass defense.
While Sean Payton’s absence at the helm will be felt, there perhaps is no better successor than Dennis Allen, who has helped build the Saints’ D into a top-10 unit in recent years and provides stability and established leadership in 2022.
The Saints missed out on the postseason last year due to injuries, inconsistency, and lack of depth, and have since learned from their mistakes — the team has given themselves the best possible chance to play in January with their plethora of upgrades so far.
Schein listed other bandwagon candidates like Jaguars’ Trevor Lawrence and Broncos’ Javonte Williams, but the Saints stand out the most in our eyes.
New year, new identity. The Saints are back, and they’re stronger than ever in 2022.