By Ross Jackson
While this year’s NFL Draft quarterback class is drawing more comparisons to 2022 than 2024, the class still has some solid talent, even if not an abundance of first-round talent. With questions still lingering about the future of the position for the New Orleans Saints, it is worth considering the potential of investing in a passer for the third consecutive year.
It makes even more sense with new head coach Kellen Moore in the building. Moore’s experience and success with signal callers like Jalen Hurts with the Philadelphia Eagles, Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Jusin Herbert, and Dallas Cowboys passer Dak Prescott brings up questions about Moore’s preferred quarterback type against what the Saints have to offer.
Without a commitment to veteran quarterback Derek Carr, young passers Spencer Rattler and Jake Haener wait in the wings. Providing competition beside them could help to drive their development and could potentially end up landing Moore the perfect option for his tenure. Here are three quarterbacks that, early in the draft process, are checking the boxes as fits for Moore.
Ole Miss QB Jaxson Dart
Dart checks a lot of boxes. The Senior Bowl passer led the SEC in passing yards in 2024 with 4,279 passing yards. He also tossed 29 touchdowns to just six interceptions. Dart showed his ability to take care of the football and make good decisions. He also added 124 rushes and three rushing touchdowns. At 6-foot-1 and 226 pounds, he is a near carbon copy of the Hurts prototype, when it comes to physical size.
The biggest question facing Dart at the next level is whether or not he can be comfortable relaying play calls to his offense in a huddle rather than receiving calls from the sideline. But these days, that isn’t a wildly uncommon leap to make when it comes to the college to pro transition.
Dart’s rushing ability could help to raise his floor, something NFL teams are loving in today’s game and something the Saints have not been able to take advantage of in recent years.
In addition to his versatile playstyle, he has good location on his passes and the arm to attack all three levels. He may need time to develop at the next level, but allowing him to do so while in competition for a future role could be a solid option for Moore and the Saints.
Dart is getting a lot of round one attention in the media, but it sounds like scouts are looking at him as a Day Two or early Day Three option. With the NFL Scouting Combine on the way, there is a great chance that Dart could drive his stock up further. Scouts could have whatever grade they want on him, but if a coach falls in love, he could become a first round selection quickly.
Alabama QB Jalen Milroe
The Crimson Tide quarterback is better known for his rushing ability (726 yards and 20 touchdowns) but has shown flashes in the passing game, as well. However, he is far more raw as a passer than teams would typically like for an immediate starter in the NFL.
Milroe would be the type of investment that made sense if the Saints made the decision to continue with Carr for 2025, before turning things over at a later time, if necessary. A system pioneered by Milroe would be massively different from one led by Carr, but with Moore’s ability to be flexible and make changes based on personnel, that could work with an offseason in between.
Milroe gets dinged often for not having taken many snaps under center at Alabama. However, such a concern wouldn’t be necessary with Moore as the play caller. Per the Fantasy Pros data suite, here are the shotgun snap percentages for Moore’s last three quarterbacks:
2024: Jalen Hurts – 91.7%
2023: Justin Herbert – 94.5%
2022: Dak Prescot – 94.6%
Bringing a shotgun-style college quarterback to a shotgun-style pro offense should be a far lesser hurdle than the typical transition.
Milroe will have to make strides as a passer in the NFL in order to pan out, but the 6-foot-1 and 220 pound quarterback has some undeniably exciting traits with which to start.
Syracuse QB Kyle McCord
A much more “pocket passer” type than the two previous quarterbacks, this is where the versatility of Moore comes into play. Sure, the former Eagles offensive coordinator won a Super Bowl ring with a mobile passer in Hurts. But he also found a lot of success with quarterbacks like Herbert and Prescott, who like to operate in structure.
McCord gets the ball out quickly with an average time to throw in 2024 of just 2.4 seconds, No. 8 among FBS quarterbacks with at least 200 dropbacks and has a good arm which was showcased quite well at the East-West Shrine Bowl.
With just 17 scrambles in 2024, per Pro Football Focus, he won’t be the dynamic athlete running around for big gains, but his poise in the pocket, ability to read the field and deliver, and experience in pro-style offenses are all very appealing traits. Hence why the Syracuse passer led the FBS in passing yards last year with 4,779. He also totaled 34 passing touchdowns to 12 interceptions. However, five of those interceptions all came in one game against the Pittsburgh Panthers. So, expect composure after mistakes to be a big examination in his process.
