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Let’s start this off with a round of applause for The Athletic’s Dane Brugler, who put together a comprehensive seven-round mock-up of the 2020 NFL Draft. It’s difficult enough to build a mock draft for just one team, much less all 32. Here’s who Brugler ended up connecting with the New Orleans Saints:
- Round 1, Pick 24: LB Patrick Queen, LSU
- Round 3, Pick 88: WR Van Jefferson, Florida
- Round 4, Pick 130: CB Troy Pride Jr., Notre Dame
- Round 5, Pick: 169 DT Larrell Murchison, N.C. State
- Round 6, Pick 203: RB Raymond Calais, Louisiana
However, this gave us a great opportunity to try out a re-draft, making our own choices at each of the Saints draft picks. While we left the rest of Brugler’s mock draft intact, here are the prospects we ended up selecting for the Saints:
- Round 1, Pick 24: WR Justin Jefferson, LSU
- Round 3, Pick 88: LB Malik Harrison, Ohio State
- Round 4, Pick 130: CB Michael Ojemudia, Iowa
- Round 5, Pick: 169: DT Larrell Murchison, N.C. State
- Round 6, Pick 203: T/G Tremayne Anchrum, Clemson
While Queen would be a huge addition for the Saints defense, we have Jefferson rated higher on the big board and feel he’s more of a sure thing as far as his NFL projection. It took Queen some time to climb the Tigers depth chart and there are still some warts to his game, whereas Jefferson played in a very similar offense and could slot into the same role in New Orleans. Linebacker is definitely a bigger need than receiver after the opening waves of free agency, but we’re comfortable bringing in Jefferson to overload Drew Brees with weapons and study under Emmanuel Sanders for the next two years.
While this year’s draft class isn’t as deep at linebacker as it is at receiver, we were happy to pick Harrison out of Ohio State in the third round. He’s a big, heady defender who should compete right away with Alex Anzalone and Kiko Alonso to start at either middle linebacker or on the strong side. He moves well (especially for someone his size, at 6-foot-3 and 247 pounds) and could also help out on special teams. This is the sort of smart, good-value pick the Saints have been known for recently.
As for the remaining selections: Ojemudia was a better fit for the Saints from a height-weight-speed perspective than Pride, thanks to his wider wingspan (nearly 78 inches against Pride’s 74 inches) and greater collegiate experience (appearing in 51 games against Pride’s 45). This decision will probably be a push in most war rooms, but we went with Ojemudia based off the types of players the Saints have shown interest in before.
We were in agreement with Brugler on Murchison, a mid-round interior lineman who spearheaded the Wolfpack defense in his senior year. The team captain also led N.C. State in both tackles for loss (12) and sacks (7) last season, and should bolster the Saints defensive line while Sheldon Rankins continues to recover from his latest lower-leg injury. Murchison was the best prospect available here.
And now we’ll close out with Anchrum, a three-year starter at right tackle for Clemson who also earned team captain recognition in 2019. He might lack the length teams covet to remain at tackle in the NFL but his aggressive style of play and well-conditioned body should help him execute blocks on the move. He could be a candidate to compete for Larry Warford’s job if the Saints move on from him next offseason, which is maybe the best you can hope for out of a sixth-round pick.
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