Round 4:
The fourth round passed without much incident. The top tight end remaining on our board, Florida Atlantic’s Harrison Bryant, was picked up, and there was a run on both wide receivers and linebackers, which we were lucky to have gotten ahead of with earlier moves. A few safeties we liked were snatched up, but none of them would have ranked even third-best on this year’s depth chart, so it’s not too large of a concern.
Everything was flowing smoothly until the Eagles drafted Simpson with the final pick of round four. Like the Raiders earlier, they had back-to-back selections, and we tried to trade up. But an inability to exchange future draft picks meant we didn’t have enough firepower to make a deal (that’s not a feature the Draft Network crew have implemented yet). The top-rated talents available going into the fifth round were:
- RB Joshua Kelley, UCLA
- TE Albert Okwuegbunam, Missouri
- TE Devin Asiasi, UCLA
- CB Reggie Robinson II, Tulsa
- DE Trevis Gipson, Tulsa
Round 5:
There were a few guards and cornerbacks on our radar here, but the group of prospects graded highest on our board remained intact. There were many similarly-rated tight ends available, so we’re comfortable waiting to address a position of lower need than others.
In the end it came down to the two Tulsa teammates. They were both first-team All-AAC talents, with Robinson, the cornerback, leading the team with four of its five interceptions and 17 pass deflections, fifth-most in the FBS. Gipson, the pass rusher, led Tulsa in sacks each of the past two years and timed the 40-yard dash in 4.69 seconds at his pro day, weighing in at just over 6-foot-3 and 261 pounds. That’s a body type the Saints are already stocked up with between Trey Hendrickson, Carl Granderson, and Noah Spence.
So we had to go with Robinson based off their full scouting reports. Robinson is a size-speed prototype (covering the 40-yard dash in 4.44 seconds at 6-foot-0, 205 pounds) with extensive experience defending routes out on the perimeter, a skills set the Saints lack depth in (backup corners P.J. Williams and Deatrick Nichols have done most of their work from the slot). He’ll have time to nail down the nuances of the position behind Marshon Lattimore and Janoris Jenkins while contributing on special teams, where he’s blocked a field goal and two point-after kicks at Tulsa.
Rounds 6 and 7:
So, we didn’t have any picks to make here. In reality, the Saints would probably considering trading some late-round selections in next year’s draft for current-year picks, as they’ve often done in the past. That would allow them to land some players they otherwise couldn’t expect to sign as undrafted free agents.
But considering how talented the Saints roster stands, few rookies would have a shot at sticking on the 53-man depth chart when the season kicks off. We saw that happen just a few years ago when the 2018 draft class was decimated during roster cuts; of that group, only first-round pick Marcus Davenport, third-round pick Tre’Quan Smith, and seventh-round pick Will Clapp remain. By targeting better prospects with clear paths to contributing as rookies in this mock draft, we’ve helped increase their odds of success.
Still, there were a few names graded highly on our board that fell through the cracks and into undrafted free agency. Those are prospects the Saints could try to sign after the draft, helping round out the 90-man roster. And sometimes they blow away all expectations — just look at what returns specialist Deonte Harris and defensive tackle Shy Tuttle accomplished last year. Here’s the five best prospects still available for the Saints to recruit at the end of the day:
- DE Trevis Gipson, Tulsa (8th DE, 71st prospect)
- WR John Hightower, Boise State (11th WR, 74th prospect)
- S Josh Metellus, Michigan (6th S, 88th prospect)
- RB Deejay Dallas, Miami ( RB, 94th prospect)
- LB Carter Coughlin, Minnesota ( LB, 98th prospect)
You can recap this mock draft’s results and the numerous trades we made in the gallery linked below:
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