Offline
The Saints Dline is going to need to be seriously revamped going forward and I think Kenneth Grant could be a key to this. He is a monster of a man who plays with power and agility and has a fun nature on top of all that. I think he could be there in the 2nd and if he is the Saints should not hesitate to grab him. He could help free up Bryan Breese just like he helped free up Mason Graham. He is more of a NT than a 3 Tech but could play a bit of both if needed. He would help us tremendously in run support and in freeing our other guys to get to the QB as he often requires a double team. I wouldn't take him in the 1st round, but I would think about trading up in the 2nd a bit to get him.
As we all know the Saints need help everywhere. There is no need vs BPA debate this year, you take the best player available period. As we pick 9th, here are the 9 players in order I would want the Saints to draft with there 1st pick: (I am not including Ward or Sanders in this list as they probably will both be gone and I don't love either, though if Ward were available at 9 he could easily be the pick. Sanders isn't a 1st rounder IMO)
Abdul Carter - Easily the best pass rusher in this class. The Saints have been looking for prototypical 4-3 DE's with size and power and passing up on DE's with bend and speed. (see Trey Hendrickson) It is time we re-think this strategy (and possibly even the 4-3 defense). Abdul Carter would instantly upgrade this Dline with a younger, faster feel to it. Getting pressure on the QB is nice but it doesn't matter much if we don't take the QB's down. Saints were near the top in terms of pressures on the QB this year but very low on actual sacks. Carter would change that statistic.
Tetairoa McMillin - This is not the deepest draft when it comes to WR, but there are about 5 or so that could go in the first two days. I only have 1 with a 1st round grade (sorry Luther Burden). Shorter faster WR's can be great but this team needs a true X WR. TMac is a tall smooth WR with great hands and great after catch ability. He is tall enough to avoid head shots when running across the field. He is a slower Randy Moss style player or a faster more agile Mike Evans type guy something in between those guys. I know that is saying a lot but I believe he is the real deal.
Ashton Jeanty - Wait...Give me a chance to justify this pick. I know RB's in the top of the 1st round are frowned upon, but this guy is the cream of the crop in a deep RB class. This team needs playmakers and Jeanty is that in spades. Most teams these days have running backs by committee and we just re-signed Kamara. The best way to utilize and extend Kamara's RB career is to have another RB who can carry the rock. This tandem would be very dangerous and would make defenses respect the running game opening up the passing game. You can't play lower (pad level) than this powerful, fast RB who can beat you in a ton of ways.
Will Campbell - He plays for LSU so the Saints will probably over look him. (JK...kind of) Is he a Tackle, Guard, Center? The fact is he could play every position on the oline in a pinch, he is that versatile. I think he is best suited at Guard or RT and would immediately upgrade the play and attitude of the oline. Has great instincts and a head for the game. We could start him at LG next to Fuaga or put him at RT and move Penning inside. Either way our oline would be in much better shape with him in the line up.
Mason Graham - A monster 3-Tech who is relentless. Plays both the run and pass well. He would probably be higher on my list if we didn't have Breese because they are similar in ways, but Mason Graham is a much more powerful force than Breese is. In fact these two together on passing downs would be a tough matchup for any oline. If we did decide to go to more of a 3-4 they could also play the DE position because of their athleticism as well. If we picked Graham here and a Kenneth Grant or Deone Walker in the 2nd or 3rd our dline would go from a weakness to a strength very quickly.
Travis Hunter - He is lower on my list than most peoples, but he is still a force. The Saints need WR help and could use a CB with Lattimore gone. He wants to play both positions in the NFL, but I think that is a tough task. If a team asked him to chose, I believe he would want to play WR as that is where the money is at. The problem for me is I think he is a better CB (and could even be a better Safety) than he is a WR. Regardless of where he ends up he will be a high quality player with flexibility that many teams could use. (but he could be a perineal pro-bowler at safety mark my words.)
Malaki Starks - Safety is not a position I would want to draft in the top 10 ever. But the Saints are going to need some serious help at that position and Starks is one of the best pure Safety's to come out of college in a looong time. Serious!!! This guy has the speed and length to stretch the field, great ball instincts, reads the QB very well and plays the run like a beast. He can play deep, sideline to sideline or in the box. He does it all and he does it all very well. I would prefer the Saints to trade down to 12 or 14 to get him but I wouldn't hate the pick at 9. (Honestly he may even be above Travis Hunter in my rankings for the Saints)
Will Johnson - A true CB with good size 6'2" 200+ lbs. and great instincts and speed. He is a look down type CB and is the best true CB in the draft. He does have some injury history and CB isn't the biggest need for the Saints but he would be a starter day 1 and probably the best CB on the team before long. He takes calculated risks that usually pay off and is a very good tackler for a CB. Probably too good of a prospect to pass up if he were available at 9 and no one above on this list were there but not super excited about drafting a CB in round 1.
James Pierce Jr. - I probably have Pierce ranked higher than some but he gets after the QB in a serious way. Tall (6'5") but a little lean (245 lb.) has crazy bend and athleticism. He needs to bulk up a bit to be able to play the run in the NFL but his tape is beautiful. I am tired of the Saints taking chances on DE's because of a good build and potential. (It is why I really don't want to see Mykel Williams at this pick) With his quality tape and potential to get better, his floor is higher than a player like Williams and his ceiling is just as high as Williams making him a better prospect.
Players I would avoid at 9 - Mykel Williams (deemed an athletic freak, I just don't see it. I think he processes the field too slowly) ; Kevin Banks Jr. - probably the build you look for at LT, but plays too stiff and tall for an LT at the NFL level ; Luther Burden - our WR's are already on the smaller side and he just wouldn't add much difference to our WR room.
Let me know what yall think.
As we all know the Saints need help everywhere. There is no need vs BPA debate this year, you take the best player available period. As we pick 9th, here are the 9 players in order I would want the Saints to draft with there 1st pick: (I am not including Ward or Sanders in this list as they probably will both be gone and I don't love either, though if Ward were available at 9 he could easily be the pick. Sanders isn't a 1st rounder IMO)
Abdul Carter - Easily the best pass rusher in this class. The Saints have been looking for prototypical 4-3 DE's with size and power and passing up on DE's with bend and speed. (see Trey Hendrickson) It is time we re-think this strategy (and possibly even the 4-3 defense). Abdul Carter would instantly upgrade this Dline with a younger, faster feel to it. Getting pressure on the QB is nice but it doesn't matter much if we don't take the QB's down. Saints were near the top in terms of pressures on the QB this year but very low on actual sacks. Carter would change that statistic.
Tetairoa McMillin - This is not the deepest draft when it comes to WR, but there are about 5 or so that could go in the first two days. I only have 1 with a 1st round grade (sorry Luther Burden). Shorter faster WR's can be great but this team needs a true X WR. TMac is a tall smooth WR with great hands and great after catch ability. He is tall enough to avoid head shots when running across the field. He is a slower Randy Moss style player or a faster more agile Mike Evans type guy something in between those guys. I know that is saying a lot but I believe he is the real deal.
Ashton Jeanty - Wait...Give me a chance to justify this pick. I know RB's in the top of the 1st round are frowned upon, but this guy is the cream of the crop in a deep RB class. This team needs playmakers and Jeanty is that in spades. Most teams these days have running backs by committee and we just re-signed Kamara. The best way to utilize and extend Kamara's RB career is to have another RB who can carry the rock. This tandem would be very dangerous and would make defenses respect the running game opening up the passing game. You can't play lower (pad level) than this powerful, fast RB who can beat you in a ton of ways.
Will Campbell - He plays for LSU so the Saints will probably over look him. (JK...kind of) Is he a Tackle, Guard, Center? The fact is he could play every position on the oline in a pinch, he is that versatile. I think he is best suited at Guard or RT and would immediately upgrade the play and attitude of the oline. Has great instincts and a head for the game. We could start him at LG next to Fuaga or put him at RT and move Penning inside. Either way our oline would be in much better shape with him in the line up.
Mason Graham - A monster 3-Tech who is relentless. Plays both the run and pass well. He would probably be higher on my list if we didn't have Breese because they are similar in ways, but Mason Graham is a much more powerful force than Breese is. In fact these two together on passing downs would be a tough matchup for any oline. If we did decide to go to more of a 3-4 they could also play the DE position because of their athleticism as well. If we picked Graham here and a Kenneth Grant or Deone Walker in the 2nd or 3rd our dline would go from a weakness to a strength very quickly.
Travis Hunter - He is lower on my list than most peoples, but he is still a force. The Saints need WR help and could use a CB with Lattimore gone. He wants to play both positions in the NFL, but I think that is a tough task. If a team asked him to chose, I believe he would want to play WR as that is where the money is at. The problem for me is I think he is a better CB (and could even be a better Safety) than he is a WR. Regardless of where he ends up he will be a high quality player with flexibility that many teams could use. (but he could be a perineal pro-bowler at safety mark my words.)
Malaki Starks - Safety is not a position I would want to draft in the top 10 ever. But the Saints are going to need some serious help at that position and Starks is one of the best pure Safety's to come out of college in a looong time. Serious!!! This guy has the speed and length to stretch the field, great ball instincts, reads the QB very well and plays the run like a beast. He can play deep, sideline to sideline or in the box. He does it all and he does it all very well. I would prefer the Saints to trade down to 12 or 14 to get him but I wouldn't hate the pick at 9. (Honestly he may even be above Travis Hunter in my rankings for the Saints)
Will Johnson - A true CB with good size 6'2" 200+ lbs. and great instincts and speed. He is a look down type CB and is the best true CB in the draft. He does have some injury history and CB isn't the biggest need for the Saints but he would be a starter day 1 and probably the best CB on the team before long. He takes calculated risks that usually pay off and is a very good tackler for a CB. Probably too good of a prospect to pass up if he were available at 9 and no one above on this list were there but not super excited about drafting a CB in round 1.
James Pierce Jr. - I probably have Pierce ranked higher than some but he gets after the QB in a serious way. Tall (6'5") but a little lean (245 lb.) has crazy bend and athleticism. He needs to bulk up a bit to be able to play the run in the NFL but his tape is beautiful. I am tired of the Saints taking chances on DE's because of a good build and potential. (It is why I really don't want to see Mykel Williams at this pick) With his quality tape and potential to get better, his floor is higher than a player like Williams and his ceiling is just as high as Williams making him a better prospect.
Players I would avoid at 9 - Mykel Williams (deemed an athletic freak, I just don't see it. I think he processes the field too slowly) ; Kevin Banks Jr. - probably the build you look for at LT, but plays too stiff and tall for an LT at the NFL level ; Luther Burden - our WR's are already on the smaller side and he just wouldn't add much difference to our WR room.
Let me know what yall think.
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