In a season that’s already seen Golden Tate go to the Eagles, Demaryius Thomas to the Texans, and Josh Gordon to the Patriots, the recent signing of Dez Bryant by the Saints has to be the most interesting and exciting move of the year. Following a workout on Tuesday, Bryant has been signed by the New Orleans Saints to a one-year deal.

Dez will wear #88 in New Orleans and report to the facility Thursday after spending today in Dallas with his son on his birthday. #ThrowUptheX https://t.co/n9HDSlGAen

— Jane Slater (@SlaterNFL) November 7, 2018

Dez, who spent his first eight seasons with the Cowboys, has the most receiving TDs in Dallas history (73) and the most receiving TDs in the NFL from 2012 – 2017 (58). He racked up an impressive 531-7,458 line in his time in Dallas. 

He most notably averaged 91-1,311-14 from 2012 – 2014, landed a huge contract and proceeded to tailspin in production in the three years after that. Still, he’s not an old man, and he could make an impact on his new team right away.

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The move makes sense for New Orleans after losing Ted Ginn to the IR, an unproductive effort from Cameron Meredith (now also going on IR), and Tre’Quan Smith’s raw but unpolished talents. Only Michael Thomas and Smith have caught passes at WR for the Saints over the team’s last three games, and it’s clear that this team needs another reliable option. Here are the receiving leaders for the Saints this season excluding Ted Ginn.

 
Dez fills a clear void on the team. Let’s take a look at what this signing means for the Saints players. 

Dez Bryant
Bryant had been roundly criticized for his diva behavior, lack of attention to detail in his route running, and overall work ethic before being cut by the Cowboys, but his behavior and attitude should be kept in check by a strong Saints culture. Dez has a history of elite production and was dominant for three years. His huge three-year stretch from 2012 – 2014 saw him average 5.7 receptions for 82 yards per game. After his 2015 foot injury, those numbers dropped to 3.9-53.6 from 2015 – 2017. His broken foot required a bone graft and cost him seven games in 2015. He hasn’t had the same explosiveness since the injury. 

While he hasn’t been the same player since his injury, Dez still chipped in 14 receiving TDs in 2016 – 2017, including 10 in the red zone. He also racked up over 800 yards in his final season in Dallas, showing that he hasn’t fallen off a cliff. He will fill the need for a solid number two option and red zone target as the Saints have the possession receiver and downfield threat roles covered already by Michael Thomas and Tre’Quan Smith. Cameron Meredith has been largely a bust in New Orleans, and Dez will be a nice addition for a team devoid of talent behind their current top two WRs. New Orleans is clearly in the Super Bowl conversation this year and adding Bryant makes sense down the stretch. 

I’m very optimistic for Dez’s production playing with a HOF QB in a pass-happy offense in a stable organization with a strong leader in Sean Peyton. The pressure should be off as Michael Thomas is clearly the lead WR on this team. Expect Dez to be a mid to low-end WR3 for now with a lot of upside and the potential for some big weeks due to his TD prowess and the high-powered Saints offense. 

Michael Thomas
This move should actually help him out. Thomas ranks fourth in the NFL with 880 receiving yards, averaging 110.0 per game including a Saints-record, 212 yards in Week 9. He’s been targeted a healthy 9.9 times a game (10th in the NFL), and he’s second in the league with 8.75 receptions per game. He’s a target monster and catches nearly everything thrown his way. With Bryant on the field alongside Tre’Quan Smith in three-receiver sets, Thomas should see even more quality looks from Drew Brees. He’s still a weekly top-five play, but his outlook gets a very slight uptick after the Dez signing. 

Tre’Quan Smith
His value takes the biggest hit from this move, but he’ll still fill the role of burner on this offense. Dez isn’t that type of receiver, but his presence will still impact Smith’s production. Bryant is another mouth to feed, and Smith has only averaged 3.5 targets per game in his four starts this season. He was a popular add on the waiver wire after he caught Drew Brees’ 500th career TD pass and exploded for 3-111-2 in Week 5, but Drew Brees has eyes for Michael Thomas and Alvin Kamara. The rest of the receivers on this team are largely dart-throws in a given week, and the addition of Dez Bryant makes Smith nothing more than a deep-league bench stash. Just weeks after being hyped on the waiver wire, he can be dropped in 12-team leagues. 

Cameron Meredith
He hasn’t gotten a target since Week 5, so you weren’t using him anyway. With news breaking of his knee injury, the signing of Bryant makes even more sense now.

Alvin Kamara
He may see one fewer target per game, but he’s Drew Brees’ reliable underneath option, and that won’t change now. He’s on pace for over 100 receptions this season, so there’s no concern here. Dez could eat into Kamara’s work in the red zone, but last year’s offensive ROY will continue to be a top-three play at RB.

Benjamin Watson
He’s been a decent streaming option at a scarce position this season, but his production will take a hit with the signing of Dez Bryant. Bryant figures to be a solid red-zone option because of his big frame and jump-ball abilities, so Watson’s use around the goal-line will likely be scaled back. Both of Watson’s scores this season have come from inside the 20-yard line. He’s still streamable in the right matchup, but expectations need to be tempered.

Drew Brees
He’s a top-five option, and this move should bump up his production slightly. Brees has rebounded nicely from a down 2017 season, and he’s on pace for 36 TDs and just two INTs. As mentioned above, Dez is the one of the most prolific TD scoring WRs in league history. New Orleans could always use more scoring as they load up to potentially take down the Los Angeles Rams one more time in the playoffs on the road to a Super Bowl appearance. The move to add Dez can certainly be viewed as part of an arms race with LAR. With another big body and reliable scoring option close to the goal line, Brees’ outlook only gets better as his arsenal grows.

Conclusion

Dez Bryant is joining a team that gives him a far better chance to succeed than Dallas. He gets Sean Peyton instead of Jason Garrett. He gets Drew Brees instead of Dak Prescott or Tony Romo. He gets the bonus of playing as the team’s number two option behind Michael Thomas, taking the pressure off and allowing him to play freely. Once one of the league’s two or three best receivers, the talented Dez Bryant should instantly succeed in his new home in New Orleans, and he should be picked up immediately in fantasy leagues.

Keep that same energy

— Dez Bryant (@DezBryant) November 7, 2018

Moving forward let’s hope #88 keeps the same energy in New Orleans as he had while in Dallas.

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Zachary Hanshew is a correspondent at FantasyPros. For more from Zachary, check out his archive and follow him @zakthemonster.