Saints Replace Dez Bryant by Signing Veteran Brandon Marshall
Last week, the New Orleans Saints made huge news across the NFL by signing veteran wide receiver Dez Bryant to a one-year deal. Everyone around the league, and Saints fans especially, sounded excited about what Dez could bring to a red hot Saints offense.
That all came to a stop when in Dez Bryant's second practice with the Saints, he tore his Achilles tendon, and is done for the year (possibly his career).
Saints players spent the weekend "throwing up the X", Dez Bryant's usual touchdown celebration, in honor of their fallen (two day) teammate. Multiple players had a chance to make the motion, as the Saints scored plenty against the Cincinnati Bengals. An offense output that didn't seem like it needed another receiver.
But the team was set on adding a veteran receiver for the playoff push, because today they came to terms with 34-year-old Brandon Marshall.
Marshall might be best known for his time as a Chicago Bear, where he scored 31 of his career 83 receiving touchdowns. Marshall started his career in Denver, where he was a Bronco for 4 seasons. He hauled in 25 touchdowns in 61 games for Denver, before heading to Miami. He played two years with the Dolphins, catching only 9 touchdowns in 30 career games.
After Chicago, Marshall made his way to New York, where he got two seasons in with the Jets, before switching over to the Giants side of NY. He started this year with Seattle, until he was released after 6 games.
At 6-5 and 232 lbs, Marshall won't be burning any defensive backs down the sideline, but he makes for an interesting red zone threat, and an option as a possession receiver when Drew Brees really needs a first down over the middle.
Additionally, with Drew Brees setting records and reaching milestones this season, he could help Marshall reach one of his own. If Marshall plays well, he could reach 1,000 career receptions. He is currently at 970, which means he'd really need to click with Brees to get it done. If he played this week, he would need to average 4 catches a game for the rest of the year to hit the mark.
There's no word on whether or not Marshall will be ready to start this weekend.