Saints Letting Robby Anderson Join Panthers on Cheap Deal is Hard to Justify

The NFC South may as well be on the steroids in 2020. Every single team in the division improved, particularly the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who added former New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady in a major warning shot to the rest of the NFL.

Yet, the New Orleans Saints appeared to take the shine away from the Bucs by signing Emmanuel Sanders to a two-year contract last week. Even after the transaction, however, the Saints still had enough money to give quarterback Drew Brees an additional weapon in free agency.

Unfortunately, those plans were officially tabled on Tuesday, as the Saints lost out to the Carolina Panthers for top free agent wideout Robby Anderson, who heads to Charlotte on a two-year, $20 million contract.

Obviously, Anderson was intrigued by the chance to play for Matt Rhule, his former head coach at Temple University. But given these financial details, the Saints could've exceeded the Panthers' offer given their $16 million in cap space, to say nothing of their enviable status as Super Bowl contenders.

Yes, the Saints' championship window is closing, especially considering Brees' age alongisde the fact of Alvin Kamara, Marshon Lattimore, and Ryan Ramczyk all hitting free agency over the next two years. New Orleans' chances to compete for Super Bowl LV would've increased if Brees had a receiving corps consisting of Sanders, Anderson, and Michael Thomas.

That would've felt like overkill, but it would allow the Saints to combat the Buccaneers, Panthers, and Atlanta Falcons while leaving nothing up to chance.

This dream remains just that: a dream. Now, the Saints get to see Anderson and his speed twice a season for the next two years.

Good luck with that.