Tag: round 1

2024 NFL draft grades: Buccaneers pick OL Graham Barton at No. 26 overall

2024 NFL draft grades: Buccaneers pick OL Graham Barton at No. 26 overall

With the New Orleans Saints first pick out of the way, they now look ahead to what their other NFC South rivals will do. We got our first glimpse of what Jason Licht has in mind for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers draft class tonight with their first-round selection.

With the 26th overall pick, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers selected Graham Barton, an offensive lineman from Duke University. Barton is an intriguing prospect, playing at left tackle the last three seasons, however, he did play center his freshman year. Some platforms project him to play center at the next level, while others believe he could stick at tackle possibly. The problem with that for Tampa is that Barton has not played right tackle, and Tristan Wirfs currently plays on the left side.

Ultimately this leads me to believe that Barton is going to start off as a competitor for the center position with Robert Hainsey, who had nine penalties last season and gave up 33 pressures with four sacks. Ultimately the flexibility of Barton is a positive, and his skillset made him one of the better players remaining on the board.

Grade: B+

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Breaking: Saints take RT Taliese Fuaga at No. 14 overall

Breaking: Saints take Oregon State right tackle Taliese Fuaga at No. 14 overall

New Orleans Saints fans can rejoice as they end up landing one of the top tackles in the class with right tackle Taliese Fuaga out of Oregon State. The  Saints selected Fuaga at No. 14 inn the first round of the 2024 NFL draft.

With Ryan Ramczyk’s knee a ticking time bomb, Fuaga makes the most sense out of anyone else on the board right now. A lot of people had him as their second best tackle in the class, but he ends up being the fourth one taken.

Fuaga is an athletic freak and mauler at right tackle, checking pretty much every box that the Saints could have asked for while picking outside of the top ten. After years of being criticized for complicating things in the first round, they opt for the easy choice.

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How Saints fans can watch Round 1 of the 2024 NFL draft

How New Orleans Saints fans can watch Round 1 of the 2024 NFL draft: Time, channel, and what to look for

The 2024 NFL draft is officially upon us as the first round is set to kick off on Thursday night at 7 p.m. CT. The New Orleans Saints are currently scheduled to pick at No. 14 overall, and the majority of expert mock drafts have them taking an offensive tackle in Round 1.

With the rest of their selections, there are a few key positions that the Saints should look to target: defensive tackle, wide receiver, safety and more offensive linemen. Other positional needs that maybe aren’t as pressing but can definitely be added to are nickel, tight end and pass rusher specifically in the middle to later rounds.

There’s a sense of urgency within the organization and the fan base to hit big on this year’s class. You can tune in to ESPN, ABC and NFL Network when the draft starts on Thursday, April 25 from Detroit. Here’s the full schedule for the event:

Day 1: Round 1

When it starts: Thursday, April 25 at 7 p.m. CT

Where the Saints are picking: No. 14

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Mel Kiper’s instant reaction to the Saints selecting Bryan Bresee

ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper’s instant reaction to the Saints selecting Clemson defensive tackle Bryan Bresee

Mel Kiper has seen it all. ESPN’s senior NFL draft analyst shared his instant reaction to the New Orleans Saints selecting Clemson defensive tackle Bryan Bresee at No. 29 overall on Thursday night, and he feels that the move addressed their top position of need.

Here’s what Kiper had to say of the pick, as transcribed by Clemson Wire’s Alex Turri:

“Damascus High School, he was rated anywhere between 1 and 3 (recruit in the country). He was also on the basketball team. When he came in in 2020 with Myles Murphy and Trenton Simpson, linebacker, he looked like he was going to be a top-10 pick, top-15 pick at worst. He had a great 2020 season, 6.5 tackles for loss and he had 4, 4.5 sacks that year, forced a fumble.

He was really active along the interior, really got after it. (2021), starts out the season, then the ACL. Then this past year, his sister passes away, he has the kidney infection, and then he looked rejuvenated at the combine. Ran 4.93 at 6-5.5, 300 pounds. He looked like Bryan Bresee was back like he was in 2020.

You talk about what he means to that defense – the No. 1 need for the Saints, defensive tackle.”

That’s a good breakdown of who Bresee is, why the Saints valued him so highly, and what the concerns are for him moving forwards. He’s a high-end athlete with a bit of an injury history and immense pro potential. Now it’s up to the Saints to help Bresee tap into it.

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List of all New Orleans Saints draft picks in 2023

Here’s the list of all New Orleans Saints draft picks in 2023, as well as selections they can barter in 2024, 2025, and 2026

It’s finally here: the 2023 NFL draft’s first round is just hours away, and the New Orleans Saints are scheduled to make their pick at No. 29 overall. But it’s a seven-round event, and the Saints are prone to trading picks in future years to maneuver around their competitors and go get prospects they value highly.

So it’s important to keep track of their picks in each round as well as what’s in play for future years. The Saints are projected to receive a couple of compensatory draft picks in 2024 after their free agency losses this spring, and that’s going to be burning a hole in Mickey Loomis’s pocket when it comes time to negotiate with other teams. Knowing he’ll get back some of the picks he can trade away might make him more reckless than usual.

With that said: here are the Saints draft picks in 2023:

  • 2023 Round 1 (29, via San Francisco 49ers through Denver Broncos and Miami Dolphins)
  • 2023 Round 2 (40)
  • 2023 Round 3 (71)
  • 2023 Round 4 (115)
  • 2023 Round 5 (146)
  • 2023 Round 5 (165, via Philadelphia Eagles)
  • 2023 Round 7 (227)
  • 2023 Round 7 (257, compensatory)

And here are their picks in 2024 as well as 2025 and 2026; teams are only allowed to trade picks up to three years in the future.

  • 2024: Rounds 1, 2 (via Denver Broncos), 4, 5, 6, 6 (via Tennessee Titans through Philadelphia Eagles)
  • 2025: Rounds 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
  • 2026: Rounds 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7

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How to watch the first round of the 2023 NFL draft

Here’s how you can tune in to see what the Bucs do tonight at No. 19:

Good morning, Bucs fans. The time for talk is over.

The 2023 NFL draft will take place tonight, and it’s time for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to make the first draft pick after the Tom Brady era (assuming they don’t trade out). Even outside of the Bucs, this draft has taken twists and turns in its narratives that should make it one of the most unpredictable in recent years.

Check out how you can watch it below:

Report: Saints among teams that could trade up in 2023 draft’s Round 1

SI’s Albert Breer reports that the Saints are among the teams that could trade up in the first round of the 2023 draft. That’s in line with their draft-day history:

Well that’s something. Right now, the New Orleans Saints are scheduled to pick at the end of the Round 1 in the 2023 NFL draft — at No. 29 overall, to be exact. To take that a step further, the Saints would not submit their pick until about 10:22 p.m. CT on Thursday night. But if they get their way, fans might not have to wait so long to greet the newest member of the black and gold.

Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer reports that the Saints are one of a few teams who could trade up in the first round, along with the Pittsburgh Steelers and Kansas City Chiefs. Breer wrote: “I’d put the Saints in that category as well, with their history being that they identify guys and aren’t afraid to make moves up for them (last year, they went up for Chris Olave), even if costs them future capital.”

Breer adds that other teams are looking to acquire 2024 draft picks in hopes of eventually trading for a top-flight quarterback like USC’s Caleb Williams or UNC’s Drake Maye, so New Orleans could very well find a willing trade partner if the right situation presents itself. We’re speculating, but watch out for teams the Saints have traded with before like the New England Patriots (at No. 14), the Washington Commanders (at No. 16), and the Minnesota Vikings (No. 23).

That tracks with their usual strategy under general manager Mickey Loomis. The Saints often spend the days leading up to the draft calling other teams to gauge interest in possible trades if the right prospect is available at the right pick, and New Orleans is willing to pay the right price to another team. It’s all about finding the right match.

Sometimes a deal materializes (as happened last year when they leaped from No. 16 to 11, targeting wide receiver Chris Olave; and again in 2018, when they moved halfway up the board for defensive end Marcus Davenport). Sometimes nothing comes of it (as happened a year earlier, when the Saints were eyeing top cornerbacks Jaycee Horn and Patrick Surtain Jr.).

Without seeing how the 2023 draft shakes out we can’t say that the Saints are readying to push their chips in for a certain prospect. This won’t be the last report or rumor to float around as the Saints put the finishing touches on their 2023 draft strategy.

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ESPN has Chiefs adding Pittsburgh DE Habakkuk Baldonado in early 2023 mock draft

ESPN has the #Chiefs selecting an intriguing edge rusher in the first round of their latest way-too-early 2023 mock draft.

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The Kansas City Chiefs landed an edge rusher in the first round of the 2022 NFL draft and one media outlet thinks they’ll land another in 2023.

With the college football season inching near, ESPN draft analyst Matt Miller revealed some way-too-early predictions for the first round of the 2023 NFL draft. Miller dictates the NFL draft order based on where ESPN’s FPI projects the team to finish in 2022. In the case of the Chiefs, they’re picking at No. 24 in the first round.

Who do they select with this pick, though? Miller believes that they’ll target Pittsburgh DE Habakkuk Baldonado. Here is what he had to say:

“Even after drafting George Karlaftis in the first round in April, Kansas City could use another end with the future of Frank Clark in question. Baldonado is one of my favorite under-the-radar prospects, and I’m projecting a big year for him in 2022. He had nine sacks and a forced fumble last season.”

Baldonado (6-5, 260 pounds) had a bit of a breakout campaign in 2021, boasting an ACC-leading 48 total pressures. In the COVID-altered 2020 campaign, Baldonado was limited to just four wildly-ineffective games due to injury. As a sophomore in 2019, he appeared in all 13 games for the Panthers as a reserve defensive end, recording 30 total tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, four sacks and a fumble recovery.

A native, of Rome, Italy, Baldonado has taken an interesting path to find himself playing college football. He learned of the game by watching it on Sky Sports as a kid. He began playing wide receiver at just 13 years old for the Lazio Marines — a team that former Chiefs special teams assistant Brock Olivo has both played for and coached. He only played there for a half-season before returning to other activities, but when he returned to football he’d grown and would play defensive end. Despite playing a single season of high school football in the states, Baldonado was heavily recruited.

Another successful campaign in 2022 could place him among the top edge rushers in the 2023 NFL draft. There’s little doubt that the Chiefs could use another young pass-rusher opposite George Karlaftis in the future too. At this point, it’s all about how Baldonado performs during the upcoming college football season.

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How Saints fans can watch, stream, and listen to the 2022 NFL draft

How Saints fans can watch, stream, and listen to the 2022 NFL draft, via @MaddyHudak_94:

The 2022 NFL draft is rapidly approaching, and the New Orleans Saints have already made moves to garner excitement. Their trade with the Philadelphia Eagles put picks Nos. 16 and 19 in hand and indicates head coach Dennis Allen isn’t taking his foot off the gas. While known for their aggressiveness in trading up, rarely is it set in stone weeks prior. What’s curious is exactly how they’ll use those picks: select two starters, or chess pieces to trade up.

And they’re well-prepared for it. The Saints currently hold seven draft picks as they look to reload at several roles — with three selections in the top 50. Key positions to watch are left tackle, wide receiver, and quarterback. But safety and defensive tackle shouldn’t be discounted as early round targets.

There’s a sense of intrigue fans haven’t had in years with these premium picks and a new head coach. You can tune in to ESPN, ABC, and NFL Network when the draft starts on Thursday, April 28 from Las Vegas, Nev. Here’s the full schedule of the event:

Top prospects at positions of need for the Saints in Round 1

The New Orleans Saints have plenty of options at positions of need in the first round of the 2021 NFL draft, starting with the cornerbacks.

There’s a sense of urgency surrounding the New Orleans Saints first-round selection in the 2021 NFL draft. It’s not difficult to identify the roster holes this year’s class needs to address; the ultimate decision at No. 28 is not so simple. While New Orleans must prioritize positional need, selecting the best player available for the Saints incurs a necessary balancing act. Particularly with opt-outs and COVID-19 restrictions hindering scouting efforts, the team can only concede so far before a need-based pick becomes a reach.

That said, positional need will be a critical factor in molding how the Saints build their draft board. Those top needs rank as follows: cornerback, linebacker, defensive line, and wide receiver. There are depth and longevity concerns at both edge rusher and defensive tackle, so this would pop up in a “best player available” scenario. How players rank within each position group is a paramount factor. Let’s take a look at the three best prospects to watch at the Saints top positional needs, with who is expected to be available at their current slot near the end of the first round.