Honor is due: Zack Baun is on the road to success with the Philadelphia Eagles. The former New Orleans Saints draft pick changed teams in free agency, and that decision paid off. Baun was just named NFC Defensive Player of the Week for the first time in his career.
Baun was instrumental in helping the Eagles dismantle the NFC East rival Dallas Cowboys. He totaled eight tackles (three solo tackles and one tackle for loss) as well as two forced fumbles and one fumble recovery in the 34-6 win. Why didn't he put up numbers like that in New Orleans?
For one thing, the Saints didn't have much of a plan in mind when they drafted Baun in 2020. Looking to move up from No. 88 to No. 74 (and reacquiring a seventh-rounder in the process), the Saints traded away their third player in 2021, who ended up falling to No. 91. And after they took over Baun, they didn't know what to do with him. He weighed 6-foot-2 and 238 pounds, which was too light for Dennis Allen to carry at defensive end, where Baun played in college. The coaching staff and scouting department were out of step.
They spent the next few years teaching him to return to coverage and work in space, but Allen and his coaching staff never developed much trust in him. After deciding to enter the draft, the Saints selected another linebacker in both 2021 (Pete Werner, at No. 60) and 2022 (D'Marco Jackson, at No. 161). He never had a chance in New Orleans and played nearly twice as many snaps on special teams (1,293) as he did on defense (660) in his 62-game Saints career.
Now the Saints are struggling for answers at linebacker. Demario Davis isn't getting any younger and the injury bug bit him earlier this year. Pete Werner signed a contract extension this summer, but he hasn't proven he can stay on the field either. The Saints have already decided Baun can't be part of their solution, but the Eagles have figured out how to get the most out of him. Now we'll have to wait and see what New Orleans does next.
