Saints head coach Sean Payton got his chance to weigh in on the Dez Bryant signing on Thursday morning and Payton said that the veteran wideout has been on the team’s radar for a while.
Payton said he spoke to Bryant before the draft and any interest was put on hold when the team drafted Tre’Quan Smith. There were other conversations, but it took Cameron Meredith’s ongoing knee issues -- Payton confirmed Meredith will have arthroscopic surgery -- in order for something to happen.
Payton said, via multiple reporters, that Bryant is about five pounds heavier than the team would like, but that’s something they consider normal and that they liked what they saw in this week’s workout. That said, Payton said he hasn’t seen Bryant practice yet and “we’ll see” if Bryant plays this weekend after that changes.
If Bryant does play, Payton said he won’t be moving around the formation right off the bat and he pointed to the red zone as an area where the former Cowboy might be able to make an impact for the Saints.