The New Orleans Saints made a preseason trade last year that became one of the biggest moves of their offseason by the time the season. The Saints trading Deion Jones to the San Francisco 49ers for running back Zamir White may not have that ceiling, but it's a smart deal for both teams.
Ironically, both of these players were late additions to the team. Jones joined the Saints on the 7th of this month, and White signed with the 49ers five days later. Less than three weeks later, they're on new teams.
The Saints made a deal at this same juncture in the offseason last year to acquire Luke Fortner from the Jacksonville Jaguars after the second preseason game. Ironically, it happened hours after the game between the Saints and Jaguars. The Saints and 49ers didn't face each other, but the timing still lines up.
Zamir White may not make the Saints roster, but Deion Jones definitely wasn't
Fortner ended up stepping into a starting role for half of the season. A lot would have to go wrong for White to deliver a similar impact, but this is still a very low risk trade for both the Saints and 49ers.
The circumstances leading up to the Fortner trade does resemble the lead up to the Jones trade. Both trades can be traced back to each team having expendable talent in a position room and the other team being in a deficit.
That's what this trade all comes down to. Jones likely wasn't going to make the 53 man roster in New Orleans, and the same could be said for White in San Francisco. Instead, White and Jones get a better chance to make the roster elsewhere.
The Jones signing was met with fanfare because of the name, but like the past few years, that status didn't translate during the Saints preseason. Jaylan Ford came up huge in the first preseason game and Isaiah Stalbird was ahead of him on the depth chart.
White faced similar challenges with the 49ers, but now he walks into a running back room that just needs health. The biggest contenders for RB3 are Kendre Miller, Audric Estime and Devin Neal. All of them either have a detailed injury history, are currently injured or both.
White will have a chance to make an impression in the final preseason game, but it's going to be tough. Miller and Estime seem to be in the lead for that role, and it'll be tough for White to come in and jump them.
White has also struggled to stay healthy over the last couple of seasons. However, he had a solid 451 rushing yards in his last healthy season. The stat line won't blow you away, but it's serviceable when considering what the Saints will ask of him throughout the season.
Overall, the Saints traded away a player who probably wasn't going to make the team anyway for someone that may or may not make the team either. The risk here is low to none.
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