New Orleans Saints Draft Preview

The Saints have the 14th pick in Round One, then do not pick again for nearly 100 picks and three rounds until picks 112 & 114 in Round Four. So, the first round pick is very important to the Saints.

The needs, of course, rest on the defensive side of the ball.  To that end, the Saints did resign LB J. Vilma and added S Darren Sharper and CB Jabari Greer formerly of Buffalo. In addition, former Panther LB Dan Morgan has come out of retirement.

Other free agent roster moves included the release of Saints' all-time leading rusher Duece McAllister, CB Mike McKenzie, FB Mike Karney, WR David Patten, the resigning of OL Jon Stinchcomb, WR Devery Henderson, and the additions of TE Dan Campbell, OL Nick Leckey, WR/KR Courtney Roby, and FB Heath Evans.

As for the draft, the most glaring need is in the secondary. The Saints would like to add an elite safety in the mold of an Ed Reed, but there are none in this draft or any other for that matter.  

In fact there is not a safety worthy of the 14th pick in the 2009 NFL Draft.  That leaves the CB position as a likely target.

The first CB off the board will be Ohio State DB Malcolm Jenkins.  Jenkins was productive in college but does not have great speed for a CB and did not impress at the NFL Combine. He has been projected as a top 10 pick but has slipped in recent weeks.

Next is Illinois’ CB Vontae Davis. Again Davis was productive (when not benched/suspended) in college. Davis has the speed to play CB at the next level, but he like Jenkins did not impress at the combine and one draft analyst, Mel Kiper dropped him out of his “Big Board” top 25.

As large as the hole is at DB, I don’t see Jenkins or Davis as sure things and taking either at the 14th pick is risky. That said, I think the Saints do pull the trigger and take Jenkins, if he is available at 14. Davis has, as I write this, slipped down the Saints' draft board a bit.

If guys like DL Tyson Jackson of LSU, Brian Orakpo of Texas, and BJ Raji of Boston College are available at 14, I would take any of them. Also the LB class is deep especially at the end of Round One. If the Saints could drop back a few slots and grab one of the LB’s like Ohio State's Laurinitis or one of the USC LB’s, that would be better than risking the pick on Davis.

Another interesting pick would be Alabama OT Andre Smith; his stock has fallen, but talent is there.

If he were to slip to 14, he would be an intriguing pick for the Saints.  Additionally, in recent weeks, the Saints' brain trust has been rumored to become enamored with Ohio State RB Chris "Beanie" Wells.  If his college teammate, Jenkins is not there at pick 14, Beanie could be the choice.

As for the rest of the draft, in many ways it is dependent on what the Saints do in Round One.  My take on the fourth round picks is one will be a safety and the other best available player.

My guess on what the Saints will do:

Round One pick 14 DB Ohio State Malcolm Jenkins
Round Four pick 112 S Wake Forest Chip Vaughn
Round Four pick 114 DT LSU Ricky-Jean Francois

My take on what the Saints should do:

Round One pick 14 DL LSU Tyson Jackson
Round Four pick 112 CB South Carolina Captain Munnerlyn
Round Four pick 114 S Oregon Patrick Chung