Jeremy Shockey May Give Saints Best Offense in NFC

Look out NFC, the Saints may have just become the best offense in the conference.

On Monday, the Super Bowl champion New York Giants decided that their former Pro Bowl tight end was dispensable and agreed to trade Jeremy Shockey to the New Orleans Saints in exchange for second and fifth-round picks in 2009.

The offense already has superstars in Pro Bowlers Drew Brees and Deuce McAllister, as well as Heisman trophy-winner Reggie Bush and 2006 NFL Rookie of the Year finalist Marques Colston. The Saints' high octane offense is about to get more potent.

With Shockey, the Saints get a tight end who is strong, fast, physical, and loves to catch the ball. He also blocks better than most tight ends in the league.

Throughout his six seasons with the Giants, despite battling several injuries, Shockey established himself as a huge offensive threat en route to making four Pro Bowl appearances. Shockey has averaged 61 catches for over 700 yards each season, with a total of 27 career touchdowns.

Now, back under the tutelage of Sean Payton, Shockey is expected to surpass his 74 career receptions this season. With quarterback Drew Brees coming off of two consecutive 4,000 plus yard seasons, there is no doubt Payton likes to spread the ball around.

With a tight end who can catch and block in the mix, this takes pressure off of the Saints' other play-makers in Bush, Colston, and McAllister.

Last season, the Saints thought they had the answer by adding former 49er Eric Johnson, but that did not go as planned. If you are an opposing defense, it is quite possible you may have to plan on on stopping Shockey, Bush, Colston, McAllister and Brees all at the same time. That may be darn near impossible.

So as the Saints start up their preseason training at Millsapps College in Jackson, Mississippi this week, Payton will go to work immediately on scheming some of his offensive plays which proved to be genius two seasons ago.

And if Deuce McAllister returns 100 percent healthy to the offense, there is no doubt this will be the best offense in the NFC, even if Brett Favre returns to Green Bay. Expect the Saints to be an automatic playoff contender with their offense alone.