The Tampa Bay Buccaneers won the NFC South last season despite the majority of NFL analysts and fans writing them off after Tom Brady retired. The New Orleans Saints were the popular pick to win the NFC South after they signed Derek Carr in free agency.
Well, the Saints offensive line completely melted down. Trevor Penning has been a bust for them on the left side and Ryan Ramczyk might never play another down of football again. This led Matt Holder of Bleacher Report to link Donovan Smith to the Saints in free agency and if that happened, Bucs fans would laugh for hours.
"After struggling to begin last season, the Saints benched Trevor Penning and started Andrus Peat at left tackle about seven weeks into the campaign. Peat is now a free agent and the 2022 first-round pick is currently penciled in as Derek Carr's blind side protector.Matt Holder
While Smith struggled a year ago, he'd at least give New Orleans a veteran option to turn to if Penning doesn't show signs of improvement during training camp."
Bucs fans would love it if the Saints signed Donovan Smith
Smith was a disaster during his final year in Tampa, allowing six sacks and getting 12 penalty flags thrown in his direction. He signed with the Kansas City Chiefs in the 2023 offseason and while his sack numbers went down, so did his PFF grade, as he received an overall grade of 55.4 for 748 snaps at left tackle.
If the Saints were to sign Smith, their left tackle situation would be an upgrade from what Penning has given them so far but Bucs fans know how bad it'd be. At least they'd know who to attack in their two match-ups against New Orleans.