Over the last 20-ish years, New Orleans Saints fans have been treated to the greatest run in team history thanks to a series of strong drafts, smart free agent investments, and the leadership of head coach Sean Payton — all of which is thanks in some part to the decision-making of longtime general manager Mickey Loomis.
With the 2023 NFL draft just days away, it’s a good time to take a look back at the draft classes that came before and the players who helped make this team so special. Here’s a quick rundown of the best draft pick from every year since Loomis took over in 2002:
2002: DE Charles Grant, Georgia
- Round 1, Pick 25
Donte’ Stallworth and LeCharles Bentley both have strong cases, but it has to be Grant. He spent his entire 118-game career in New Orleans and left the team ranked among their all-time sacks leaders (47).
2003: T Jon Stinchcomb, Georgia
- Round 2, Pick 37
Stinchcomb only saw one Pro Bowl appearance, but he was a mainstay along the offensive line in New Orleans.
2004: DE Will Smith, Ohio State
- Round 1, Pick 18
Smith made an immediate impact and helped set the tone for a locker room that needed leadership after Hurricane Katrina. He bagged 67.5 sacks in 139 games. Devery Henderson was an important player for the Saints but it took him some time to get up to speed. Mike Karney deserves a shoutout for his longevity at fullback.
2005: T Jammal Brown, Oklahoma
It’s a shame that injuries cut Brown’s career short. He was a two-time Pro Bowler and earned All-Pro recognition in New Orleans as a standout left tackle.
2006: WR Marques Colston, Hofstra
- Round 7, Pick 252
It’s so hard to whittle this down to just one player, but Colston feels right. Roman Harper experienced rare longevity at safety. Jahri Evans is probably going to be a Hall of Famer. Rob Ninkovish was the one who got away. Zach Strief was, like Colston, an afterthought in the seventh round who played over 100 games. Reggie Bush didn’t meet expectations but he was still a good player in the NFL for a long time. But Colston had so little fanfare in his arrival, only to take the team’s receiving records when all was said and done.
2007: T Jermon Bushrod, Towson
- Round 4, Pick 125
Robert Meachem was a solid first-round pick and Usama Young had some good years, but Bushrod deserves a lot of credit for rising above his draft status as a late fourth-round pick to start most of the 145 games he played in the league. He earned two Pro Bowl appearances along the way.
2008: DB Tracy Porter, Indiana
- Round 2, Pick 40
Porter made the biggest interception in team history in the 2009 NFC championship game, and he followed it up two weeks later by picking off Peyton Manning to score a defensive touchdown and win Super Bowl XLIV. Injuries shortened his career but he still had many great seasons in black and gold. That’s also true of fifth-round pick Carl Nicks, who was on a Hall of Fame trajectory before he left in free agency and suffered career-ending health issues.
2009: DB Malcolm Jenkins, Ohio State
- Round 1, Pick 14
I really wanted to say Thomas Morstead here — but it has to be Jenkins, who started nearly 200 games in the NFL, earned three Pro Bowl nods, and won a couple of Super Bowl rings.
2010: TE Jimmy Graham, Miami
- Round 3, Pick 95
Graham still might get into the Hall of Fame when it’s time for voters to argue his case, but he would have been a first-ballot lock if he hadn’t left New Orleans. His schism with head coach Sean Payton was a career-changing move and goes down as an all-time bleak moment in Saints history. Defensive tackle Al Woods (a fourth-round pick) deserves praise here for continuing to play at a high level all these years later.
2011: DE Cameron Jordan, California
- Round 1, Pick 24
Jordan entered the NFL with high expectations as the son of a Pro Bowler, but he’s only surpassed them as time has wore on. There were years he was doing it alone defensively for the Saints. Now he’s the franchise sacks record-holder.
2012: DE Akiem Hicks, Regina
- Round 3, Pick 89
Hicks’ best days came after he left New Orleans, but the fact remains that he was a great talent. It’s a shame the Saints couldn’t better deploy him when he was in town to get the most out of his abilities.
2013: T Terron Armstead, Arkansas Pine-Bluff
- Round 3, Pick 75
Armstead brought prodigious athletic gifts to the NFL, but he deserves a ton of credit for the work he put into refining his technique to become (at times) the league’s best left tackle.
2014: WR Brandin Cooks, Oregon State
- Round 1, Pick 20
The Saints were right to identify Cooks as a game-changing talent, even if he didn’t last that long in New Orleans. He’s still a highly effective receiver after being traded from one team to the next three or four times.
2015: T Andrus Peat, Stanford
It’s disappointing that the Saints had so many picks in this draft and only came away with three long-term contributors in Peat, P.J. Williams, and Tyeler Davison. But of the three Peat is the only one to get regular Pro Bowl consideration and be paid among the top players at his position.
2016: WR Michael Thomas, Ohio State
- Round 2, Pick 47
Thomas has been frustrated by a series of injuries in recent years but that doesn’t diminish what he accomplished earlier in his career. He was the league’s best wide receiver when healthy and he’s on a mission to prove he still has that in him.
2017: RB Alvin Kamara, Tennessee
- Round 3, Pick 67
Kamara has trailed off the last few years without competent quarterback play or direction on the headset, but he’s still earned more Pro Bowl appearances (5) than anyone else in one of the greatest draft classes in NFL history. Marshon Lattimore and Ryan Ramczyk are also home-run hits in the first round here.
2018: DE Marcus Davenport, UTSA
- Round 1, Pick 14
Yeah, Davenport is also our pick for the worst pick from this draft class — what of it? In all seriousness, it says more about the mediocrity the Saints came away with in 2018 that Davenport is both the best and worst part of their haul. He’s the most-accomplished player they drafted this year while also failing to meet the high expectations set for him. It’s a conundrum. A paradox. It makes no sense. Compels me, though.
2019: C Erik McCoy, Texas A&M
- Round 2, Pick 48
C.J. Gardner-Johnson is going to take issue with this, but McCoy was the first one of the pair to earn a long-term contract extension, so he gets the hat tip. He’s been a reliable player at the pivot up front.
2020: C Cesar Ruiz, Michigan
- Round 1, Pick 24
This is another gnarly draft class, but credit to Ruiz for developing into a steady player for the Saints (even if it took a couple of years and a change at his position coach). If he keeps it up, he’s in line for a well-earned contract extension.
2021: LB Pete Werner, Ohio State
- Round 2, Pick 60
Werner has it all: athleticism, instincts, and clean tackling technique that no one else can boast at linebacker for New Orleans right now. He just needs to prove he can stay healthy. Injuries have limited him to 27 of 34 games through his first two years.
2022: WR Chris Olave, Ohio State
- Round 1, Pick 11
Olave joined the Saints with great fanfare, and if anything he met every expectation set in front of him. He’s looking to step up and join the upper echelon of receivers around the league in 2023 and beyond.
