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Things could have gone very differently for the New Orleans Saints — and for future Super Bowl-winning league MVP Patrick Mahomes. The former Texas Tech quarterback was a highly-valued prospect in the 2017 draft, and he ranked high on the Saints draft board. He ranked so highly, in fact, that the Saints would have picked him at No. 11 overall if the Kansas City Chiefs hadn’t leapfrogged them in a trade up to No. 10.
And Mahomes would have welcomed that opportunity. He was impressed by a predraft visit with Saints coach Sean Payton, who put him through a private workout and left quite a positive impression.
“I mean, obviously he’s an offensive genius, but he also really is respected by his guys in his locker room,” Mahomes said during Wednesday’s media availability session. “Yeah, I mean, obviously then you could see how all the stuff he’s done for years and years had success and then when you watch them on film, you can see all the different game plan plays that they have is as long as their base plays.”
While Payton’s reputation preceded him, Mahomes’ interactions with him during their throwing session showed him everything he wanted to see: this was a coach who could get the most out of him.
Mahomes continued: “I think that was the first thing you kind of see I mean, the way he talks to you, the way he coaches you can tell he truly cares about the guys he coaches and he wants to make them better. That day he wanted to get it out of me and see where I was at and also help me improve in every way possible. You can see how he coaches.”
However, he acknowledged that Payton didn’t quite tip his hand one way or the other. Mahomes knew the team’s makeup meant they weren’t necessarily looking to draft another quarterback, and he didn’t think New Orleans was as invested in acquiring him as, say, the Chiefs.
“Yeah, with the Saints I didn’t sense it as much. I know I definitely had a good workout, but I didn’t sense that they were going to pick me obviously with Drew (Brees) still being there and the success that he still has to this day,” he finished.
Mahomes did take time to point out that the Saints landed a pretty good prospect after missing out on him: cornerback Marshon Lattimore, the 2017 Defensive Rookie of the Year. Lattimore is one of several defenders Mahomes is wary of facing on Sunday, describing the two-time Pro Bowler: “He’s a great cornerback. I mean, he’s not only physical, he can run and he’s very smart and he recognizes plays and so they do a lot different coverages.”
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