Saints' Loss of Hau'oli Kikaha Could Devastate New Orleans Pass Rush

According to Mike Garafolo of Fox Sports 1, New Orleans Saints pass-rusher Hau'oli Kikaha tore his ACL in organized team activities, which likely means he'll end up on the injured-reserve list for his sophomore season in the NFL. Considering the personnel currently on the Saints roster, Kikaha's loss can have a huge impact on the team's defense, which already led the NFL in points allowed and finished second in yardage allowed in 2015.

Kikaha wasn't a defensive end for New Orleans as a rookie, as he played an off-the-ball linebacker role, but he was a pass-rusher in college, both as a 4-3 defensive end and 3-4 outside linebacker. Kikaha's transition from off the ball to on the ball in his second year is rare.

Usually, pass-rushing positions are considered more valuable than true linebacker roles, which is why players start as pass-rushers, then get moved off the ball, such as high-profile first-round picks Vic Beasley and Bruce Irvin in recent memory. Kikaha's move is the defensive equivalent to a guard kicking outside to offensive tackle. The reason for it was clear, though: The Saints needed to do something with their pass rush.

As a rookie, Kikaha posted four sacks, fifth for rookies league-wide, and the same mark that all three first-round edge defenders—Beasley, Bud Dupree and Shane Ray—were able to hit. Between his background as a college pressure generator and his rookie production, it was an easy call to move the former Washington Husky down to the line of scrimmage.

His college background did come with some baggage, though.

He was an All-American who posted 35.5 sacks for his career, but along that journey, he tore his ACL two times. His hand technique was amazing, possibly coming from his history practicing Judo, but his athleticism was well below average, based on his pro day numbers, and his injury history was a big red flag. Two years in, his professional career has played out like his scouting report.

Cameron Jordan will start opposite of Kikaha's replacement. Jordan made the transition from a 3-4 defensive end to a 4-3 defensive end a few years ago and has totaled 38 sacks over the last four years to go along with two Pro Bowls and a $60 million contract extension. While Jordan's situation is locked in, the race for Kikaha's substitute is fluid.

Unless the Saints make a late push to bring in a street free agent—such as Dwight Freeney—there are four names to know in New Orleans: Obum Gwacham, Bobby Richardson, Davis Tull and D.J. Pettway.

Since Kikaha's injury, Gwacham has been taking first-team reps with the team, per Christopher Dabe of the Times-Picayune. Gwacham is a 25-year-old sophomore defensive end from Oregon State whom the Seattle Seahawks drafted 209th overall in 2015 with a sixth-round pick. He didn't make the final cuts for the team, and the Saints claimed him off waivers.

In his rookie campaign, Gwacham played in nine games, starting zero times and posted 2.5 sacks for the year. He has always been viewed as a project, as he didn't transition to the defensive side of the ball until his senior year with the Beavers. Prior to that, he was featured as a wideout and a track athlete in Corvallis, Oregon.

On paper, he's athletic, but it should be noted that athleticism relative to density is important for pass-rushing positions. You can be undersized, but you have to be that much more explosive of an athlete to make up for a thin frame. Gwacham is athletic in space but not on the sliding scale of density, as his 6'5", 246-pound frame at the combine was one of the thinnest ever for the defensive end position.

According to Mock Draftable, he compares favorably athletically to Aaron Maybin, whom the Buffalo Bills drafted 11th overall in 2009 and posted zero sacks with the team through two years, before getting cut by the franchise. Maybin spent four years with two NFL teams and a preseason with another, totaling six career sacks before his NFL career was a closed book.

That's hardly a name you want a June first-teamer associated with.

Richardson, who started 11 games at defensive end last year and played in 15 games, seems to be the logical guess as to who the next man in line on the depth chart is. Despite the opportunities he had, though, the 2015 undrafted rookie only had half a sack on the year.

In three years at Indiana, he posted a combined 8.5 tackles for a loss and 2.5 sacks. It wasn't until his senior breakout season of 9.5 tackles for a loss and 5.5 sacks that he was even considered a camp body at the next level.

Richardson's body made him an odd fit for the professional game, too. At 6'3" and 283 pounds at the combine, some second-guessed his ability to play 3-technique, the defensive tackle position he played in college.

He was a poor athlete, even for his size, as a defensive end, though. According to Mock Draftable, he was in the eighth percentile or worse in the 10-yard split, 40-yard dash, broad jump and three-cone drill for the position, at possibly the most physically demanding role in the sport.

Richardson appears to be a square peg surrounded by round holes. After his lackluster rookie season, there's reason to side with the Saints organization for bumping Gwacham past him in the pecking order.

After those two, there are two non-experienced players who might compete for a significant role at defensive end this fall, and they come from different backgrounds.

Tull was an FCS All-American at Tennessee-Chattanooga and scored in the 99th percentile or higher in both the broad and vertical jumps at the combine in 2015, per Mock Draftable. Pettway was a late-breakout player at Alabama who was one of the worst pass-rushers from an athletic perspective at the 2016 combine.

Tull was listed as an outside linebacker during his rookie season, like Kikaha, but he spent most of his season on the injured-reserve list and never saw the field.

History is against 24-year-olds breaking out, but considering his athletic potential and the fact that he has never been given a chance to see the field in the NFL, it's worth it to at least entertain the idea of the second-year fifth-round pick becoming something down the line.

Pettway is almost the polar opposite of Tull. He isn't an upside player. Who he is now is likely who he is going to be for his career. The undrafted rookie is a quality two-down defender who needs to be spelled in passing situations, but if New Orleans signs a pass-rushing specialist like Freeney, do not be shocked if Pettway takes over the starting base end role, while he's subbed out in dime and third-down situations.

He has some off-field issues. He was charged with robbery, which was eventually dropped, but that forced him to go to the junior college level before returning to Alabama. On the field, though, he's the safest option of the four edge defenders.

To recap, there is no established option to fill in Kikaha's vacancy post-injury. Gwacham is getting first-team snaps, but he's spent as much time in the NFL as a second-year player at defensive end as he did in college. Richardson was given chances to flash as a rookie but didn't do enough to get him out of the fourth defensive end slot coming into this offseason.

Tull is a potential breakout candidate, but we haven't seen a snap of him in the NFL. Pettway is a safety net and an option if the team wants to feature a specialist, but that player isn't currently on the roster.

As of now, whoever starts opposite of Jordan may be the weakest overall three-down edge defender in the league in terms of June projections. Hopefully, for the Saints' sake and the sake of fans across the league, one pass-rusher will step up to the plate and break from the pack this summer.