To start with, I would not have approached the draft the way the Saints did. The draft was heavy with potential superstar defenders, especially at edge, but the Saints went with positional need rather than the proverbial “best player available.” They left defensive ends until the very last pick of their draft and then their undrafted free agents, hoping to land an undrafted gem such as Carl Granderson.
In other words, they left a lot of gettable talent for other teams to snatch up.
That said, from what I can tell, the “position needs” players they did get look quite solid.
Without further ado, and without further belaboring what they could have done and numbering by the order the Saints took them, not by actual round:
1. Kelvin Banks, OL. Anybody who wins both the Lombardi Award and the Outland Trophy is likely to make a good pro. He will immediately solidify the Saints’ previously dicey offensive line. Good choice.
2. Tyler Shough, QB. Quitcherbellyachin, you critics. This young man can play! His arm strength and touch are both absolutely superb; he runs an impressive 4.6 40-yard-dash and is very large, so he can scramble for first downs. He is smart. The only big flaw is, under pressure, he throws leaning backward, off his back foot, too often. (Even then, he makes some really good throws.) I think Coach Kellen Moore can fix that. Overall, Shough could be about as good as Jared Goff. Again, solid.
3. Vernon Broughton, DT. In my draft preview, I wrote that I wanted the Saints to draft him. He will be a good interior rotational piece. I had him falling all the way to spot 119, so for the Saints to grab him at 71 was a bit of a reach when other players were available, but I do think we’ll be happy to have him.
4. Jonas Sanker, Safety. I knew nothing at all about him before the Saints took him. Now that I’ve looked, at least cursorily, I think he looks fine.
5. Danny Stutsman, LB. I absolutely love this pick. I have had Stutsman on my radar for two solid months. He comes to play, and knows how to find the ballcarrier fast and bring him down. At draft spot 112, he is a terrific value.
6. Quincy Riley, DB. You gotta love anybody with “Quin” in his name. Seriously, though, a first review shows he can really, really make plays. He may gamble a bit too much, but he’ll force turnovers. And forcing turnovers wins games.
7. Devin Neal, RB. At pick 184, he could be the steal of the draft. He too was on my radar for weeks. Hyper-productive, tough-nosed runner. He ran for more yards at Kansas than either Gale Sayers or John Riggins. He will give us confidence that we can rest Alvin Kamara for a few whole series each game, to keep him fresh, without us losing good productivity. Hooray!
8.Moliki Matavao, TE. I had never heard of him. His stats and bio make him sound worth a try in the Seventh Round. Okay.
9. Fadil Diggs, DE. See what I wrote for Matavao.
Undrafted free agents. Who knows? This is one area where I trust GM Mickey Loomis entirely. He is an ace at UDFA. And at least four of the 11 he signed, including the punter, sound promising to me.
Who dat say dey gonna beat dem Saints? Who dat? Who dat?
