New Orleans Saints fill multiple major needs in latest 2024 NFL mock draft (2024)

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One of the biggest needs for the Saints is EDGE, which they are expected to try and fill early on in this draft. The team signed Chase Young this offseason but durability has been a major issue with him over the last couple of seasons. Cam Jordan is also getting older and starting to slow down. Finding some impact youth at the position is a priority.

There’s a good argument that Verse may be one of the more over analyzed prospects in the 2024 class. Blessed with outstanding explosiveness and power, Verse can collapse the pocket against the best of them. His upside is still untapped.

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It appears the Saints are going to roll with Derek Carr at quarterback, at least for now. Putting playmakers around him should be a priority, enough to get the football out of his hand quickly. New Orleans has some speed in the wide receiver group, including Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed. One thing they’re missing, however, is impact size at the position.

That’s where Coleman comes in, who is a tremendous value at pick No. 45. While he isn’t the best separator in this year’s class, Coleman is a massive pass catcher with a lot of untapped upside. There’s a world where he is one of the more productive wide receivers to come out in this class if developed properly.

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The Saints would love to address the offensive tackle position earlier in the draft, but unfortunately the board didn’t fall appropriately in this mock. It appears they will have to roll with Trevor Penning and an injury question mark with Ryan Ramczyk going into next season. Trying to find some developmental offensive tackles to develop in the meantime is a very good investment.

There’s a very good chance that Goncalves could have gone much earlier in this class if not for a toe injury that cost him the second half of the 2023 season. Unfortunately for himself, and fortunately for the Saints, he lasts to No. 150. The Pittsburgh product has a requisite level of size, length and athleticism to work with. He has starter upside if healthy moving forward.

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The Saints simply don’t have a consistent tight end on the roster who can make a major difference. While you aren’t necessarily going to find that level of impact in the fifth round, investing someone with receiving upside is a great opportunity. Going into the future with a combination of Juwan Johnson and Foster Moreau isn’t going to scare anyone.

If someone like Wiley is on the board, it would be hard to pass up. The former Texas and TCU pass catcher put together his best reason of his career this past season. Wiley is an impressive combination of size, length and overall athleticism to create mismatches.

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The quarterback options earlier in the draft just weren’t intriguing enough to ignore needs at a couple of other spots. Finding a player like Pratt in round five is just too good to pass up in this juncture. Pratt has become a forgotten member of this class but brings a good combination of arm talent, toughness and movement skills to stick.

Over the course of his Tulane career, Pratt showed consistent improvement for the Green Wave. During his time, Pratt threw for 9,611 yards and 90 touchdowns. He also added another 28 rushing touchdowns on the ground.

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Speaking of underappreciated, there has been almost no buzz on Newton during this draft process. That’s especially weird when you think about the amount of solid film he had for TCU the last couple of seasons. Newton also has the skill set to potentially project inside at nickel as well.

Adding solid depth at cornerback is never a bad thing in the modern NFL, especially one that can play both inside and out. Newton could become very good depth behind projected starters Marshon Lattimore and Paulson Adebo.

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There are major questions about Dennis Allen as a head coach, but there aren’t many about his abilities as a defensive mind. Finding talented, and versatile athletes is always a good proposition. At this juncture in the draft, finding potential big time special teamers is also smart.

Liufau is a maddening prospect, who has an outstanding combination of length, explosiveness and versatility. Unfortunately his instincts are not nearly on the same level. There is developmental upside but the road will be long.

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The projected starting safeties for the Saints are Tyrann Mathieu and Jordan Howden. While the Honey Badger is a very good player, he’s getting older. Adding depth to that room is paramount moving forward.

Oladapo is a very underrated player who isn’t talked about much. He is a big bodied third level defender who does some really nice stuff going back toward the line of scrimmage. The former Beaver standout is also another player who projects very favorably on special teams early on.

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There is a serious lack of buzz around Thomas, which is pretty strange. He is a massive blocker that is mobile and powerful at the point of attack. Technically he is a mass, but that’s what they pay coaches for. Thomas has enough movement skills to last on the outside but also brings the power profile to move inside as well. That flexibility is very valuable in the NFL.

As mentioned in the Matt Goncalves section, the future of the offensive tackle position has major question marks right now. Even if Thomas never develops into a starter, he has the overall talent to develop into a key reserve. Finding that skill set in the seventh round is a low risk investment.