Mickey Loomis: Marshon Lattimore a fantastic player, trade was good value for us

The Saints made one of the bigger moves before Tuesday’s trade deadline when they sent cornerback Marshon Lattimore to the Commanders for draft picks.

Lattimore was a first-round pick in New Orleans in 2017 and is one of several older players the Saints are pinning their hopes on this season. Their 2-7 record makes it clear that wasn’t the way to go, and General Manager Mickey Loomis said Tuesday on WWL “that this will spur calls” from teams looking to bolster their own rosters.

The Commanders’ call offered the Saints third-, fourth- and sixth-round picks in the 2025 draft and Loomis said that was too much value to ignore.

“Marshon has been a fantastic player for us,” Loomis said. “He was a great draft pick – he was the defensive rookie of the year and made the Pro Bowl a number of times. He’s a fantastic player, he’s a good teammate. I have nothing but good things to say about Marshon. Unfortunately, he has had some soft tissue injuries and a few other injuries in recent years. But he is still, I believe, one of the better corners in our league and Washington is getting a good player for their playoff push and their run. So I wish him nothing but the best, I really do. Ultimately it came down to a deal that I thought was good for us, a good price for us, and that’s why we did it.”

The Saints’ cap situation remains difficult to deal with through the 2025 season, which makes it all the more important to start building with younger, cheaper pieces across all parts of the roster. The Lattimore trade will help, even if it makes the short-term outlook in New Orleans a bit bleaker.