Full 7-round Saints mock draft: The post-scouting combine edition (2024)

This isn’t too different from what we had before — I like to make a quick projection of the offseason leading up to the draft, which better shapes the team needs we’ll be looking to address. One big change is that we’re projecting Marcus Williams to leave in free agency along with Terron Armstead. The Saints aren’t expected to issue the franchise tag to either player, and its’ really tough to see New Orleans paying them the $100 million (or thereabouts) they can both expect to find in free agency. One ripple effect of that is it should allow the Saints to re-sign P.J. Williams, maintaining depth in the secondary, while they look to bring in a more affordable starter at free safety.

• Retained free agents: QB Jameis Winston, WR Deonte Harty, RB Dwayne Washington, DB P.J. Williams
• Free agency departures: FS Marcus Williams, LT Terron Armstead, LB Kwon Alexander, WR Tre’Quan Smith, CB Bradley Roby (salary cap casualty)
• Free agency additions: Starting wide receiver (Christian Kirk or DJ Chark Jr.), starting free safety (Quandre Diggs or Justin Reid), and a veteran defensive tackle (Derrick Nnadi or Quinton Jefferson)

So we’re going into the draft having addressed our most important team needs (quarterback, by re-signing Winston; and wide receiver, by adding Kirk or Chark while re-upping Harty), though the offensive line remains a priority. We’ve got a new starter at free safety and better depth at defensive tackle. Pete Werner is ready to replace Alexander next to Demario Davis.

Let’s go reinforce the offensive line and add athleticism wherever possible on offense. It’s critical to surround Winston with better protection and weapons so that he is in the best position to succeed. Upgrading to a faster and more explosive set of pass catchers should do him a lot of good, but so should improved pass protection. Let’s see which options are available to us:

So this was kind of a disaster. Sort of. The top four offensive tackles went in the top seven picks, and two of the top receivers were off the board by the twelfth pick. That meant there wasn’t any single great tackle prospect worth moving up for. While Iowa center Tyler Linderbaum and Texas A&M guard Kenyon Green were both available at No. 18, I can’t justify picking a second interior lineman in three years in the first round. Even though I want to go offensive line here, it’s just not the right fit.

I’m looking at the receivers and there are plenty of players to like: only Alabama’s Jameson Williams and Ohio State’s Garrett Wilson have been picked ahead of us. Ideally I’d trade down, add another pick later, and still get a great receiver prospect. But I didn’t get any good offers at this point so that’s not happening.

One off-the-wall name to consider: Georgia defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt, who had an excellent year with the Bulldogs and an outstanding combine. He was just quite literally overshadowed by his teammate Jordan Davis (who was just picked at No. 17, as it happens). And I’m thinking that’s where I’ll go here. Wyatt would be an ideal lineman to partner with David Onyemata in the middle of New Orleans’ defense. He’s explosive, disruptive, and reminds me a lot of Sheldon Rankins coming out of Louisville. He could really elevate an already-solid Saints pass rush into a dominant force. Remember, Onyemata accounted for more pressures last year than every other Saints defensive tackle combined, while missing six games. The group needs an upgrade.

And this receiver class is so deep that we can still find a great player in the second round. Don’t get me wrong: I really, really, really want to pick Ohio State’s Chris Olave here. I think he’s the best receiver in the draft class, he checks every box, and he’d help Winston truly uncork the Saints passing game with Michael Thomas and a free agent starter drawing coverage. History suggests the Saints prefer to build through the trenches, and if we can’t get an offensive lineman, why not look to the other side of the ball? While I would prefer Olave, Wyatt feels like the direction the Saints would go. Let’s pick Wyatt and see how this exercise plays out.

On to the second round, and I’m immediately making calls about moving up to get a receiver. That may seem like overkill with Thomas returning, a new starter signed in free agency, plus Marquez Callaway and Harty brought back, but I want to embarrass Winston with weapons. And there’s just one receiver who really caught my eye in this range: North Dakota State’s Christian Watson, who bullied his opponents with a blend of size and speed that was validated through a fantastic workout at the combine. He’s my guy.

I started calling teams once we were ten picks out from No. 49, offering the fourth round compensatory pick we’re projected to get for losing Rankins in free agency last year. I don’t want to put any future picks in jeopardy until we’ve solved the quarterback problem, or an emergency presents itself later. And while it wasn’t a sure thing, Chicago accepted that offer. We moved up from No. 49 to 39 and picked Watson, who adds a lot of juice to our offense. He torched the 40-yard dash in 4.36 seconds at 6-foot-4 and 208 pounds. Nobody else on the roster moves like he does at that size.

Obviously the jump in quality of competition will challenge Watson, but I like first-year receivers coach Kodi Burns to help him pick it up while more-experienced teammates draw attention from defenses. He’ll be in a terrific spot to develop and maybe pack on some more muscle while getting plenty of good looks to make plays.

We badly needed to address the offensive line — with Armstead departed in free agency, James Hurst and Ryan Ramczyk are going to be the opening-day starters. That may be good enough to get by, but I’d rather bring in more competition. And Penn State left tackle Rasheed Walker is a good prospect who was available at the end of the third round.

Walker has an impressive frame at 6-foot-6 and 313 pounds, with 33 and 5/8-inch arms, and he plays with a mean streak. He’s also got 32 starts behind him in his college career and has held his own against some elite pass rushers in the Big Ten. He didn’t test at the combine while recovering from an undisclosed injury (which also kept him out of Penn State’s bowl game), but he is expected to run at his upcoming pro day, which will tell us a lot about how well he fits New Orleans’ tendencies.

So he’s the pick here, even if I was tempted to add a tight end or running back instead. As it would have been in the first round, going offensive line here may be the safer choice. Walker can compete with Hurst to start on either end of the line opposite Ramczyk; if the rookie wins that job, Hurst can then push underwhelming 2020 first rounder Cesar Ruiz for the starting gig at right guard.

So this was interesting — one prospect I took a flier on in the later rounds in our pre-combine mock draft has had an incredible combine, and I couldn’t pass up on Virginia tight end Jelani Woods when he was available at No. 118 overall. After timing the 40 yard dash in just 4.61 seconds at 6-foot-7 and 253 pounds. And it isn’t that he was just a workout warrior. Before the combine, Woods was the star of Shrine Game practices earlier this offseason. He’s almost impossible to cover between his size and speed and understanding of passing concepts as a former quarterback.

I’d love to see if Pete Carmichael could help Woods maximize his potential the way he once helped Jimmy Graham. I don’t know how the depth chart would shake out exactly between Adam Trautman, Nick Vannett, and Juwan Johnson with Woods thrown into the mix, but it’s a problem worth solving. What I do know is that the Saints don’t have anyone who can run like Woods, and adding that dimension to the offense has value on its own.

So here are my remaining priorities after addressing a sneaky defensive need in the first round, upgrading the receiving corps in round two, and bringing in some promising help at left tackle and tight end in the subsequent cycles. I still want to find a defensive back to develop in case injuries crop up in the secondary. And I’d like to find a running back with some juice who can help steady the ship if Alvin Kamara misses time with a suspension. It’s also worth considering athletic defensive ends later on — no team has enough pass rushers.

That brings us to Hassan Haskins. He’s a very different type of running back than Kamara at 6-foot-2 and 228 pounds, with a reputation for playing hard-nosed football. He posted one of the lowest stuff rates in the nation last year and scored 20 touchdown runs in 14 games. He’s also talked about as one of the better pass protectors in the rookie class, and that’s going to help him play early on in 2022. He’s only caught 24 receptions, sure, but that wasn’t something Mark Ingram was very good at coming out of college either. Maybe he needs more opportunities. At this point in the draft, I’ll take someone who knows exactly what he is and hope he can help the team. If nothing else Haskins may offer more than Tony Jones Jr. as the third back on the depth chart.

• Round 1: Georgia DT Devonte Wyatt
• Round 2: North Dakota State WR Christian Watson
• Round 3: Penn State OT Rasheed Walker
• Round 4: Virginia Tech TE Jelani Woods
• Round 5: Michigan RB Hassan Haskins
• Round 6: North Carolina CB Kyler McMichael
• Round 7: Oregon S Verone McKinley III

I’m really pleased to get Watson in round two, but I’m still frustrated I wasn’t able to get the instant-starting left tackle I coveted earlier on. But Wyatt is a great consolation prize and he should wreck teams rushing shoulder-to-shoulder with David Onyemata (which is going to free up Cameron Jordan, Marcus Davenport, and Payton Turner to do more damage off the edge).

Walker, Woods, and Haskins all have traits that make me think they could help out the offense early on in the right situations. The Saints have done a stellar job of drafting and developing defensive backs these past few years, so I’m comfortable with those late-round picks. Maybe they work. Maybe they don’t. Either way, I think our process led to the correct decisions.