By Ross Jackson
Watch out for offensive line at the top of this year’s New Orleans Saints draft class. Conversations are heating up around what the Saints might look to do at No. 9 overall, and there looks to be a good chance that New Orleans leans on the league’s old, faithful notion and builds the trenches.
The draft week rumors are usually robust. Back in 2020, the draft week rumor was that the team was enticed by Wisconsin running back Jonathan Taylor and were possibly looking to trade up for him. Ultimately, when the Saints were up on the clock at pick No. 24, Taylor on the board, the team instead selected offensive lineman Cesar Ruiz.
A year later, the Saints were said to have interest in trading up for either cornerbacks Patrick Surtain II or Jaycee Horn. But with selecting at No. 28 overall, there was little chance for the team to find a way to make that move.
In this instance, even though the rumors were true (former head coach Sean Payton later confirmed so), the Saints could not get it done.
That same year, New Orleans had been loosely connected to Stanford quarterback Davis Mills, who the team passed up on twice before he finally went to the Houston Texans at No. 67.
The lesson here is that the bigger the rumor, even when confirmed on draft day or during draft week, the harder they fall in hindsight. This year’s rumor of building in the trenches, however, makes perfect sense.
New Orleans has invested 11 of their last 13 first-round picks since 2015 in either a defensive or offensive lineman. Of the 11, five have been offensive linemen. In 2019, the Saints did not have a first-round selection but took center Erik McCoy with their first selection, which came in the second round.
This year, the Saints could certainly go the route of building their trenches again which will help their expected young passer (who may also be selected in this year’s draft) stay clean and help to bolster the run game. Considering the success head coach Kellen Moore saw with his Super Bowl-winning rushing attack with the Philadelphia Eagles last year, it stands to reason that he would look to fortify that area in New Orleans.
Offensive linemen to watch this week will be LSU’s Will Campbell, Missouri’s Armand Membou, Ohio State’s Josh Simmons and Texas offensive lineman Kelvin Banks Jr., who has already been hinted about going higher than many expected this year.
Top offensive playmakers like tight end Tyler Warren and running back Ashton Jeanty would absolutely be of interest, as would defensive tackle Mason Graham. But if none of those names are on the board, an offensive lineman would be no surprise for New Orleans who may choose to stick to the tried and true methodology of the NFL that the game is won in the trenches.
