Draft News

By Brian Allee Walsh - Special to the Sun Herald

New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton fashions himself as somewhat of a gambling man — e.g. “Ambush’‘ in Super Bowl XLIV. And, the team’s general manager is known as Trader Mick, so what I’m about to propose just might be right up their alley.

The Black and Gold hold six picks in the NFL draft, which runs Thursday through Saturday in Nashville, Tennessee. Only one — No. 62 overall which falls late in the second round on Day 2 — comes in the first four rounds.

The remaining five picks are scheduled to come off the board on Day 3 — one in round 5 (No. 168) and two each in rounds six (Nos. 177, 202) and seven (Nos. 231, 244).

Full Story - The Sun Herald

By John Sigler | Saintswire

The 2019 NFL Draft broadcast will be headlined by Daniel Jeremiah of NFL Network, who took time to hold a national conference call previewing this year’s event and discussing the outlook for every team, including the New Orleans Saints. This year’s draft may be a bit of a letdown for Saints fans with the team not making its first selection until No. 62, and then waiting until No. 168 to pick again. But Jeremiah likes the way this draft could shake out for New Orleans:

“It can be frustrating having to sit and wait, but again, as I kind of mentioned at the top (of this conference call), I think there’s so little difference between player 20 and who a player is going to be in the 60s or the 50s,” Jeremiah said. “The Saints are 62, so there’s going to be a player they’re going to really like there.”

Full Story - Saintswire - USA Today

By John Sigler | Saintswire

The New Orleans Saints will be one of the few teams to not allow cameras from NFL Network into their war room during the 2019 NFL Draft; a record 23 teams are opting in to allow access. The Saints join a list of other organizations that are famously stingy with media access, including the New England Patriots and Oakland Raiders:

• Baltimore Ravens
• Chicago Bears
• Cincinnati Bengals
• Jacksonville Jaguars
• Miami Dolphins
• New England Patriots
• New Orleans Saints
• Oakland Raiders
• Washington Redskins

Full Story - Saintswire - USA Today

By Brett Martel - AP

The Saints have no time to waste if they want to win another Super Bowl with record-setting quarterback Drew Brees under center — which is why three of their top four 2019 draft slots have already been traded away.

The Saints aren't slated to pick until late in the second round — 62nd overall — because they largely mortgaged the top of this year's draft in hopes of winning it all last season.

New Orleans traded this year's first-round pick last year in order to move up and select defensive end Marcus Davenport. The Saints gave up their 2019 third-round pick in a trade for reserve quarterback Teddy Bridgewater late in the 2018 preseason. And in the middle of last season, they exchanged this year's fourth-round pick for cornerback Eli Apple.

It nearly paid off. But less than a week after Brees turned 40, the Saints fell to the Rams in an NFC title game tainted by officials' decisions not to throw flags against Los Angeles for a hit to the head of a Saints receiver on a play that also could have been called pass interference...

By James Parks | 247 Sports

It has already been a busy offseason in New Orleans, but the Saints are a long way from finishing their business before they embark on a crucial 2019 campaign.

Already, the team has seen a pair of household names leave the organization in Mark Ingram and Alex Okafor, while they have added a few well regarded players to replace them.

But the Saints are hoping to find some more long term solutions in the 2019 NFL Draft.

Though they will not make their first selection until late in the second round, the Saints are still approaching the event with an eye towards securing some players at important positions.

Here is a rundown of their biggest draft needs right now.

Full Story - 247 Sports

By Josh Katzenstein, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune

Unless they make a trade to move up in the selection process, the New Orleans Saints will have to sit and wait until late in the second round before they make their first pick in the 2019 NFL draft.

However, the long wait might not be too detrimental, according to NFL Network draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah.

“I think there’s about 15 to 16 players that everybody in the league kind of agrees are the top guys, and then after that, once you get to 17, 18, all the way to 50 or 60, they’re in all different order there,” Jeremiah said on a teleconference Thursday.

Full Story - NOLA.com

By John Sigler | Saintswire

The crop of wide receivers in the 2019 NFL Draft is huge, presenting many options for the New Orleans Saints. With just two or three top prospects projected to go in the first round (namely Oklahoma’s Marquise Brown and Mississippi’s D.K. Metcalf), the Saints could have a number of talented players to choose from when they make their first pick at No. 62. Even after that big first wave, there’s prospects of interest to be found later in the draft. Here’s 10 names to know.

Deebo Samuel, South Carolina

Samuel’s career with the Gamecocks was all too brief after he suffered a broken leg early in the 2017 season, but he was electric when on the field and finished strong with his efforts in 2018. Including his activity on special teams as a kickoff returner, Samuel found the end zone on 27 of his 215 career touches at South Carolina — numbers that any player would be proud of. He’s an asset as a receiver on short- and intermediate-range routes and the occasional rushing attempt. And he can also return kickoffs, averaging 29 yards per attempt with four returns scoring a touchdown.

Full Story - Saintswire - USA Today

By Rod Walker | The Advocate

The Saints enter the NFL draft with six picks. Barring a trade, the Saints will have a pick in the second round (No. 62 overall), one in the fifth round (168), two in the sixth round (177 and 202) and two in the seventh round (231 and 244).

How will the Saints use those picks when the draft rolls around on April 25-27th?

Leading up to the draft, we take a look each day (from least-needed position to fill to biggest need) for the Saints.

Today, we look at the offensive line.

Full Story - The Advocate

By Nath Pizzolatto | Bayou Brief

It’s a little over a week until the NFL Draft, although probably a day longer for the Saints, who don’t have a first-round pick after last year’s big trade. While they could always make another big move, it’s more likely, I think, that they try to find a few pieces to plug some roster depth with the handful of picks they do have. (Lacking a third- or fourth-round pick, it would be hard to make a big impact unless they traded away even more future picks.)

The roster is pretty stacked, though, so there isn’t a need for one big move here. Just plugging and improving some depth at a few positions would be a solid outcome given the picks they have. So let’s look at some offensive positions, and some guys that, just as a Saints fan, I’ve been keeping my eye on:

Running Back

Latavius Murray is the new backup to Alvin Kamara, but there’s opportunity behind him. The team drafted Boston Scott last year in hopes he would fill that role, but they weren’t able to keep him on the 53-man roster and the Eagles snatched him from the practice squad.

Full Story - Bayou Brief