27-year old Marques Colston is Drew Brees’ go to man.  Colston played in 16 games (14 starts) for the Saints last season and he caught 70 passes for 1,074 yards (15.3 avg) with 9 TD grabs.  He has now played in 57 games (46 starts) in his four years with the Saints and he has caught 285 passes for 4,074 yards (14.3 avg) with 33 TD grabs.  Colston is a outstanding blend of speed and hands as he is one of the best kept secrets at WR in the NFL.

28-year old Devery Henderson is the speed merchant of the WR corps.  He played in 16 games (11 starts) for the Saints last season and he caught 51 passes for 804 yards (15.8 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  Henderson also carried the ball 4 times for 13 yards (3.3 ypc) last season.  Henderson has now played in 76 games (43 starts) in his six years in the NFL and he has caught 157 passes for 3,094 yards (19.7 avg) with 16 TD grabs.  He also also carried the ball 13 times for 89 yards (6.8 ypc) with 1 TD run in his career.  When Drew Brees is looking deep it’s usually Henderson that he’s chucking the ball to.

The Saints have brought 25-year old Robert Meachem along slowly and it started to pay off last year.  Meachem played in 16 games (7 starts) for the Saints last season and he caught 45 passes for 722 yards (16.0 avg) with 9 TD grabs.  He also carried the ball 6 times for 82 yards (13.7 ypc) last year.  Meachem has played in 30 games (10 starts) in his two years with the Saints and he has caught 57 passes for 1,011 yards (17.7 avg) with 12 TD grabs.  Meachem also carried the ball 7 times for 102 yards (14.6 ypc) with 1 TD grab in his career.  I would not be surprised at all if Meachem had a true breakout season in 2010 for the Saints.

26-year old Lance Moore was banged up a lot last season.  He played in 16 games (7 starts) in which he caught 14 passes for 153 yards (10.9 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  Moore has now played in 43 games (10 starts) in his four years with the Saints and he has caught 126 passes for 1,393 yards (11.1 avg) with 14 TD grabs.  I look for Moore to be involved a lot more in the offense in 2010.

27-year old Courtney Roby did most of his work on special teams for the Saints last season.  He played in 15 games (0 starts) for the Saints last season and he caught 1 pass for 6 yards.  Roby has now played in 46 games (6 starts) in his NFL career and he has caught 24 passes for 323 yards (13.5 avg) with 1 TD grab.  He has also carried the ball 3 times for 19 yards (6.3 ypc) in his career to date.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE SAINTS WRs in 2010:  B+

The Saints have signed 31-year old QB Patrick Ramsey.  Ramsey did get into any games in the NFL in 2009.  He has played in 38 games (24 starts) in his NFL career and he has completed 511 of 913 passes (56%) for 5,930 yards with 35 TD passes and 30 INTs (74.9 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 47 times for 89 yards (1.2 ypc) with 2 TD runs in his NFL career.  Ramsey has a 10-14 record as a starting QB in the NFL.  This was a good signing for the Saints as Ramsey should be a big upgrade over Mark Brunell who looked like he was toast last year.

29-year old Jeremy Shockey is still an elite TE when healthy.  He played in 13 games (12 starts) for the Saints last season in which he caught 48 passes for 569 yards (11.9 avg) with 3 TD grabs.  Shockey has now played in 108 games (105 starts) in his NFL career and he has caught 469 passes for 5,280 yards (11.3 avg) with 30 TD grabs in his career.  Shockey is a 4-time Pro Bowler who could make if 5 if he can play all 16 games for the Saints in 2010.

27-year old David Thomas is a TE on the rise.  He played in 15 games (8 starts) for the Saints last season in which he caught 35 passes for 356 yards (10.2 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Thomas has now played in 47 games (21 starts) in his NFL career and he has caught 56 passes for 617 yards (11.0 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  The Saints are in great shape at TE this season as Thomas is more than capable of starting if something were to happen to Shockey.

Rookie 3rd round pick Jimmy Graham out of Miami (Fla) has the size at 6’6″, 259 pounds and solid upside to be a good player down the road for the Saints.  But for now he will be learning from Shockey and Thomas.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE SAINTS FBs in 2010:  A-

31-year old Heath Evans will be the Saints’ starting fullback in 2010.  Evans played in 6 games (5 starts) for the Saints last season in which he carried the ball 5 times for 16 yards (3.2 ypc) with 1 TD run.  He also caught 10 passes for 70 yards (7.0 avg) with 2 TD grabs last year.  Evans has now played in 127 games (17 starts) in his NFL career and he has carried the ball 162 times for 577 yards (3.6 ypc) with 4 TD runs.  He has also caught 50 passes for 398 yards (8.0 avg) with 3 TD grabs in his career.  Evans could also fill in at tailback if the need arouse for the Saints as he is that talented.

23-year old Marcus Mailei is currently #2 on the depth chart for the Saints.  He is 6’1″, 245 pounds and he brings youth to this crew.  He played in 2 games (0 starts) for the Saints last season in his first taste of the NFL and he didn’t get to touch the football.

30-year old Jason McKie is #3 on the depth chart as training camp opens but he was a starter for the Bears last season.  McKie played in 16 games (11 starts) for the Bears last season in which he caught 5 passes for 13 yards (2.6 avg).  He has now played in 88 games (47 starts) in his NFL career in which he has carried the ball 29 times for 84 yards (2.9 ypc) with 3 TD runs.  McKie has also caught 68 passes for 364 yards (5.4 avg) with 3 TD grabs in his career.

28-year old Zak Keasey will also be in camp for the Saints.  He did not play last season.  Keasey has played in 20 games (3 starts) in his NFL career in which he has carried  the ball 2 times for 4 yards (2.0 ypc).  He has also caught 3 passes for 25 yards (8.3 avg) in his career.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE SAINTS FBs in 2010:  B-

UPDATE:  (7/29/2010) – The Saints have released Jason McKie.