Saints met with top QB prospect Cam Ward [Schefter: CLE, NYG or maybe Saints have to make an offer compelling enough for #1 pick]
Huh? He’s done it plenty of times. It’s called speculation.
I’m not saying the saints wouldn’t throw a feeler out there to see what the cost would be, but there’s literally NO chance of it happening. Yes, this is pure speculation on my part. I don’t think the Saints were ever truly interested in trading up to 1. I don’t think if they were we hear about their interest in Ward as early as we did.
Again, pure speculation on my behalf. I could very well be wrong. Wouldn’t surprise anyone haha.
I believe Loomis inquires about the cost of moving up to the #1 EVERY YEAR. It's part of HIS due diligence process. Look it up....he does this OFTEN, and I believe it's every year. In order to assess the cost/benefit of trading up, you need to know the cost for the #1; the cost of staying put is "free". From that, you can extrapolate an approximation of cost for any draft position. Or even develop a cost/benefit analysis for moving back.
The draft chart is ONE method, but is only a GUIDELINE, and doesn't factor in strength of overall draft; or "top heavy" draft; or strong draft at premium positions, such as QB, OT, EDGE, CB, etc... Anyone who considers "moving up and down the board" (ahem....LOOMIS!) needs to know the cost of that #1 pick, relative to their current pick. Whether there's actual interest in that #1 pick is a different discussion; but there is absolutely interest in knowing the COST of that pick.
This draft is represented to be thin at the top, but stronger than usual in the middle. The chart doesn't account for that. I'm willing to bet the Saints (and other teams) look at the draft in terms of "tiers". If there are only 10 legitimate prospects with first round grades on them, rather than 32+/-, those 10 picks become more valuable than usual, and picks 11-32 become less valuable than usual, because even though those are 1st round picks, they are graded as 2nd round talents. Conversely, maybe picks 65-81 become more valuable, because even though those picks are 3rd rounders, they are graded as 2nd round talents . And so on, and so on. Whatever the Saints "tiers" look like, I'm willing to bet that Loomis has an "adjusted chart" to account for the value of those tiers, specific to this year only. That chart gets shredded immediately after the draft, because next year will almost certainly be different.
So maybe Loomis inquiring about #1 pick is smokescreen. Maybe it's sincere. But I have 100% confidence he inquired, because he needed the information. What happens beyond that will be predicated on the perceived cost of the pick, versus the perceived benefit of the player targeted, according to Loomis' MODIFIED chart based on Saints grades from scouting, and cost of moving to #1 pick from #9.
I don't think we're moving up to #1. Titans are right....the #1 overall pick should be a generational talent. When you're moving up from #9 to #1, it MUST be a generational talent. I'm not a scout, but I don't see generational talent. Add in to the mix that this draft is supposed to be strong at positions of need for the Saints; and that it's supposed to be stronger than usual in rounds 2-3, possibly even 4. The Saints are finally armed with more picks than usual, and most of them are in that sweet spot of rounds 2-4. This draft is tailor made for the Saints to "get well soon" with respect to roster holes, and bolstering depth. Add in that we still have salary cap issues to work through, and rookie contracts are cheap, so lots of picks are more apt to solve more problems than trading a boatload of picks to take a QB with question marks about his future development. All the Saints have to do is SIT STILL (or trade BACK for more of those 2-4 rounders!) and draft well...make those picks COUNT.