Analysis of Draft Picks & Undrafted Rookie Free Agents

I just came across this Saints draft write-up yesterday, it was only posted a couple days ago--so it's a rather fresh look at things. It's by Thor Nystrom, who has been doing pretty solid draft coverage for quite awhile and pen's his own top 500 prospects annually. Didn't think it was thread worthy and it only covers a handful of the prospects, but I thought it dovetailed nicely with some of the excellent work of our guy Bdogg:

7. New Orleans Saints​


PickProspectRankPositionSchoolCompHtWtRAS
14Taliese Fuaga17OT4Oregon StateDarnell Wright60563249.63
41Kool-Aid McKinstry30CB5AlabamaA.J. Terrell51131967.55
150Spencer Rattler79QB6South CarolinaJeff Blake60022114
170*Bub Means176WR26PittsburghCody Latimer60102129.35
175*Jaylan Ford198LB15TexasMicah McFadden60232398.3
199Khristian Boyd224DL21Northern IowaQuinton Bohanna60233294.63
239Josiah Ezirim307OT24Eastern KentuckyMax Scharping60563288.5
UDFADallin Holker156TE7Colorado StateBo Scaife60322346.07
UDFAMason Tipton251WR35YaleSamie Parker50971798.03
UDFAMalik Langham271DL27PurdueMarlon Davidson60423026.14
UDFATrajan Jeffcoat285ED31ArkansasMalik Herring60402677.63
UDFAMillard Bradford384S28Texas ChristianBrandon Hill51041937.7
UDFAKyler Baugh418DL36MinnesotaQuinn Pitcock60163028.56
UDFAIsaiah Stalbird434LB39South Dakota StateDavion Taylor51162219.5


Draft: OT Taliese Fuaga was a beautiful selection in that he is a safe, ready-to-play, Day 1 starter at New Orleans’ area of biggest need, offensive tackle. Fuaga is a bully with high-octane power. He has hilarious reps wrecking LBs at the second level. The Saints just found a long-term, tone-setting RT solution. CB Kool-Aid McKinstry entered last season as a top-15 prospect, but he was overshadowed by Terrion Arnold‘s leap in 2023, and then his stock took another hit with subpar athletic testing. Even still, the fall to No. 41 was surprising. I loved GM Mickey Loomis’ pick of QB Spencer Rattler at 5.150. Following the 2020 season, Rattler would have been the highest-ranked quarterback in this draft class. As a redshirt freshman in 2020, Rattler ranked No. 4 in the FBS with a 92.5 PFF grade. He was a magician, leading the FBS in PFF big-time throws when under pressure and passing grade out of structure. He has enough pocket-passing skill to hang around the league as a backup quarterback for a long time. But if things click for him, he also has starter upside.


UDFA: TE Dallin Holker lacks speed (4.78), and he needs space to build up to that meager gear (24th-percentile 10-yard split). He’s also one of the classes’ oldest players. But Holker is a hands-catcher with real ball skills, a rarity amongst this class. Holker’s 10 contested catches last year were two more than any TE in this draft class. Holker was tied with the 6’7/260 Brevyn Spann-Ford for the longest arms of my top-15 TE. This gives Holker a deceivingly large catch radius that he uses to great effect, extending those long levers out to greet the rock at its earliest point every time. Holker posted a sublime 94th-percentile 3-cone and an 83rd-percentile short shuttle. One other signing to keep an eye on: Intriguing Yale WR Mason Tipton, a prospect with the game and athleticism to hang as a developmental project for future slot duties.