The New Orleans Saints slumped to their third 7-9 season in four years in 2015, no thanks to a truly abysmal defense. With Drew Brees’ career slowly winding down, can the Saints find some impact rookies with their six picks that can get them back to playoff contention?
Read on below and check out which players the Saints should look to target with five of their six picks in the 2016 NFL Draft. And for more team-centric mock drafts, check out our picks for the New York Giants and Chicago Bears.
NEEDS at DT: The Saints’ defense has been one of the worst in the league for the last few years, and the lack of depth and quality along the interior of that defensive line has been one of the main culprits. Nick Fairley was a nice free agent signing, but they need more top-end talent to lift the overall quality of that defensive unit.
STRENGTHS: Sheldon Rankins is as versatile as interior linemen come. Capable of playing in either a 4-3 or a 3-4, Rankins just makes plays. He’s remarkably quick for his size, making him a real handful to block. At 6-1, 300 lbs, he knows how to use his body’s leverage and drive through offensive linemen. He’s also a very capable interior pass rusher, something the Saints have been sorely lacking for some time.
NEEDS at WR: The Saints are renowned for their high-powered passing attack, but with the release of Marques Colston, their depth chart at wide receiver suddenly looks very bare. Having only Brandin Cooks, Brandon Coleman and Willie Snead as options for Drew Brees just won’t do.
STRENGTHS: Boyd has good size for a wide receiver at 6-1, and is versatile enough to move into the slot. He’s similar to Cooks in that he’s a smart route runner. He’s also got a very safe pair of hands, and had quite a low drop rate in college. He’s not spectacular at any one thing, but he also has very few weaknesses.
Round 3: Pick #15 (78th overall) – G Vadal Alexander – LSU
NEEDS at G: The once-great interior of New Orleans’ offensive line has a bunch of question marks heading into the draft. Ben Grubbs was traded last season, while Jahri Evans was cut this offseason. The Saints are expected to re-sign Tim Lelito, which will help, but they need a little more depth at guard to keep the aging Brees well-protected.
STRENGTHS: At 6-5, 325 lbs, Alexander is a mammoth of a man. His long arms and powerful hands allow him to control defenders by getting to them first. Meanwhile, his huge frame and natural power allows him to handle opposing bull rushes.
NEEDS at OLB: The Saints have done surprisingly well drafting linebackers lately. They got a good young pass rusher in Hau’oli Kikaha and a tackling machine in Stephone Anthony. Now they need someone with a bit more range and athleticism to complement those two.
STRENGTHS: Like just about everyone coming out of LSU, Jones is quite the physical specimen. He’s seemingly all fast-twitch muscles and has the speed and athleticism to go from sideline to sideline. He’s a disciplined run defender and can hold his own in coverage. He also excels in special teams, which should get him some early playing time.
Round 5: Pick #13 (152nd overall) – DE James Cowser – Southern Utah
NEEDS at DE: The Saints had one of the most anemic pass rushes in all of football last season, one which recorded just 31 sacks. Rolling the dice on another edge rusher to pair opposite star Cameron Jordan sure wouldn’t hurt.
STRENGTHS: Cowser was a highly productive pass rusher in college, albeit against less-than-stellar competition. He set new Big Sky conference records (previously set by Jared Allen) in sacks (43) and tackles for loss (80). He broke those records with his good edge speed, good agility, and active hands.
