The New Orleans Saints made a splash in the latest 2024 mock draft from Draft Wire’s Curt Popejoy by picking one of the most divisive quarterbacks in the upcoming class, but not before addressing their offensive line. Between Trevor Penning’s struggles to get in the lineup and Ryan Ramczyk’s worsening health, improving protection out at the tackle spots has to be a priority.
And Popejoy has the Saints picking Oregon State right tackle Taliese Fuaga in the first round at No. 11 overall. Fuaga would be a good pick — especially with Ramczyk’s degenerative knee condition slowing him down and causing him to miss more games — but the real story here centers on the second-round pick, Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy.
McCarthy has yet to beat the Saturday player allegations after cruising through Michigan’s 2023 schedule without facing many challenges. He was asked to throw more than 30 passes in a single game just once all year with the Wolverines’ stout defense and effective running game dominating opponents. There just wasn’t much pressure on McCarthy’s shoulders and it’s unclear how effective he’ll be in the NFL because of it.
A halfhearted (but aggravating) Heisman Trophy campaign didn’t exactly help his image. McCarthy has only thrown 19 touchdown passes in 13 games going into Michigan’s pivotal Rose Bowl matchup with Alabama. His coaches have talked him up as the next Andrew Luck, but he hasn’t produced anywhere close to the level Luck did at Stanford more than a decade ago. McCarthy does a good job reading the defense and throwing with anticipation (and protecting the football), but he hasn’t shown enough to deserve this kind of early-round buzz.
Now, the Saints do need a plan for the future at quarterback. Derek Carr hasn’t impressed anyone but the coach who convinced the front office to overpay him. It’s hard to believe that McCarthy would take a big leap in New Orleans and develop into someone the Saints can lean on as their defense continues to age out. But they lack for draft picks and may have to settle for less here or there. If that’s the case, they’d be better off looking at other positions in the second round.
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