Draft season is in full swing, with everyone having their take on what the New Orleans Saints should do in the upcoming 2023 draft (you can find our mock draft here). The Saints have holes to fill at quarterback, defensive tackle, running back, in the secondary, in the skills positions, and many other areas — that’s going to be the case for a team that was lucky to finish with 7 wins last season. New Orleans has a lot of work to do if they’re going to compete for the NFC South title in the fall.
And the latest projection comes from ESPN’s Matt Miller, who has the Saints doubling down on their defensive line in his two-round mock draft:
Round 1, Pick 29: DE Keion White, Georgia Tech
I’ve been joking around in our Saints Wire staff groupchat that White is going to end up with the Saints, writing: “If ‘Missed the first eight games of the season while recovering from an offseason injury’ doesn’t convince you then may I add that he’s listed at 6-foot-5 and 286 pounds with limited pass rush production and uncertain position fit.”
White shares too many uncomfortable parallels with both Marcus Davenport and Payton Turner. For better or worse, he shares many of the qualities that drew the Saints to both players and that have frustrated fans through their time in New Orleans. Miller’s take on the fit:
“Ahead of the Senior Bowl off last week, I texted a handful of NFL scouts to ask their opinions on the best player in attendance. Every one of them replied, “Keion White.” Indeed, he impressed all week with power, quickness and traits that point to positional versatility in the NFL. At 6-foot-5 and 280 pounds, White has the power to knock blockers off their spots, but he also showed a nasty spin move and more agility than expected. According to one NFL general manager with whom I spoke, he can play inside as a 3-technique or outside as a head-up defensive end — which is good because New Orleans could lose David Onyemata and Marcus Davenport to free agency. White posted 7.5 sacks and 11.5 tackles for loss in 2022.”
Round 2, Pick 40: DT Tuli Tuipulotu, USC
Tuipulotu is picking up steam as a second-round match for the Saints. He’s a versatile pass rusher who can wreck havoc from multiple alignments so it’s easy to see why he would appeal to them. Spending both of these early-round picks on defensive linemen isn’t the best use of resources given all of the vulnerabilities New Orleans needs to address. But Tuipulotu might be more of a safer pick than White, and the Saints do need to rebuild the depth chart all along the line, so I understand it. Miller’s writeup on the pick:
“A quarterback would be the dream here, but I don’t have a high Round 2 grade on any left on the board. Instead, the Saints could continue to add to the defensive line. Tuipulotu led the NCAA with 13.5 sacks and is an instant-impact pass-rushing interior lineman with quickness and an ability to cut through gaps.”
Who would we pick instead?
I’ve seen enough from Davenport and Turner to turn me off of projects like White in the first round, so I’d rather go with TCU guard Steve Avila given the options available at No. 29. Minnesota center John Michael Schmitz is a better player and I’d be fine with picking him instead, but Avila deserves a look too. He’s logged 1,000-plus snaps at both left guard and center while starting games at right guard and right tackle in his college career. He’s a versatile player who immediately makes Andrus Peat expendable and can fill in at different spots. The Saints value players with his skill set and he’d make sense given their draft history.
Tuipulotu is a fine pick in the second round, but fixing the Saints offense takes priority. We improved the protection in the first round, now let’s get more dynamic at the skills positions. North Carolina slot receiver Josh Downs makes sense here but his smaller stature doesn’t add much with Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed on top of the depth chart. Oregon State tight end Luke Musgrave is probably an immediate upgrade over Adam Trautman and he’d be a nice compliment to Juwan Johnson though he’s coming off a season-ending injury.
I understand if this is too early for some to pick Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker (Miller’s mock draft has him going off the board at No. 52) but he’s on the same recovery timeline as Joe Burrow and Deshaun Watson after their mid-November knee injuries and he’s expected to be ready for training camp. Drafting him this early and passing on players who can help right away is a gamble, but with an uncertain-at-best quarterback situation it’s a bet I’d be comfortable making. The Saints are at a point where they need to start throwing darts at the board and hoping one hits. Hooker may not make it to their next pick in the third round.
