The New Orleans Saints’ scouts were busy in the first week of the college football season, with team personnel reserving seats for Missouri’s game with South Dakota, per the St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s Eli Hoff. Other teams in attendance included the Kansas City Chiefs, San Francisco 49ers, New York Jets, and Arizona Cardinals.
Many of the top 2024 NFL draft prospects in this game suited up for Mizzou (which helped them win a 35-10 landslide): defensive backs Ennis Rakestraw Jr. (who had a pass breakup and tackle for loss) and Kris Abrams-Draine, left tackle Javon Foster (who extended his streak of consecutive starts to 27 games), and linebacker Ty’Ron Hopper were among the standouts.
It’s a long season ahead, and many of these young athletes will have opportunities to show NFL teams what they’re capable of. But don’t expect the Saints to draft one of them just because they sent a scout to catch one of games. This is just one step in the process. With that said, making some plays and looking the part in live action can do a lot to make a strong first impression.
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