NEW ORLEANS — The 2023 NFL Draft has arrived. It’s the glorious time of year where NFL teams spout nonsense to the media and the media spout it back to the fans, and then Sunday when the draft is over, we’ll all forget every single player opinion, and ridiculous draft rumor we heard the entire month of April.
I love the NFL Draft so much. Never has so much time been spent analyzing an activity where it's considered a smashing success if you know what you are doing half the time.
So what will the New Orleans Saints do during the NFL Draft in 2023? What they always do – try to solve their problems with aggression. While the rest of the NFL seems consumed with draft value and acquiring more picks by trading down, Mickey Loomis and the New Orleans Saints operate in a way that is almost singularly unique. The Saints have traded up in the draft nine times since 2011. The analytics wisdom says trading up is bad and if you do it you should only do it for the most important football position, quarterback.
Mickey Loomis has traded away future first-round picks three separate times since 2011 and not even one involved the Saints picking a quarterback. By the way, the Saints’ refusal to draft a quarterback in the first round is heading into year 52. Archie Manning is the last time the Saints took a quarterback in the NFL Draft in the first round. I personally hope the Saints get to 75 years without selecting a QB in the first round. We can all celebrate that moment like the Queen of England’s Diamond Jubilee. Only 23 more years to go! You can do it Saints, I believe in you. I’ll be 70. We WILL GET THERE TOGETHER!
When it comes to running an NFL team, the Saints don’t just march to the beat of their own drummer, they have built an entire jazz band second lining in the opposite direction of conventional wisdom.
Is the Saints salary cap manipulation a ponzi scheme or brilliant accounting? Opinions differ. What I can tell you is the Saints are currently -$42.7 million in salary cap space for 2024. So the Saints won’t be changing how they operate anytime soon.
So, if like me, you believe the Saints are going to continue to operate as they always have under Loomis, there are some simple things to keep in mind while watching the draft.
1. Once the Philadelphia Eagles are on the clock at pick #10…. Be completely locked in.
The Mickey Loomis trade warning goes into full effect here for two reasons. First, the Saints trading with the Eagles AGAIN might break NFL Twitter and cause Elon Musk to hire more engineers to handle the chaos. I love chaos so why not?
The second reason is depending on your draft pick value chart of choice, Loomis could package picks #29, #71, and the Denver Broncos 2024 second-rounder to get into or close to the top 10.
“Ralph, Mickey Loomis trading with Eagles again is madness.” People, the Saints started this offseason at -$50 million in salary cap space and spent the third most amount of money in the NFL, and gave out the second most guaranteed cash. Trading with the Eagles again for a defensive lineman would be the most Mickey Loomis of all the Mickey Loomis moves. I’m not telling you the Saints SHOULD trade with the Eagles again, I’m just telling you all things are possible with the Saints on draft night.
2. Watch the defensive lineman
The Saints need to both replace the departed Marcus Davenport and prepare for life without Cam Jordan. As the defensive linemen get selected as the Saints wait to pick at 29, will their desperation to get one of the defensive linemen they have rated as first-round picks cause Loomis to pull the trigger on another trade-up? The further the more highly rated defensive linemen fall the less likely the Saints trading up happening becomes.
3. Alvin Kamara Contingency Plans
The Saints made a great move by signing full Pokémon enthusiast and amazing touchdown-scoring running back Jamaal Williams. The thing is Alvin Kamara is probably getting suspended six games as he faces the charge of conspiracy to commit battery and substantial bodily harm in Las Vegas. So the Saints better have a better plan than having Williams splitting carries with the collection of running backs they had in 2022. If the Saints try to depend on Eno Benjamin, David Johnson, and others to hold things down while Kamara is suspended, it would be the worst idea since Elon Musk’s belief in the blue check mark making money for Twitter.
Drafting a running back at some point this weekend is a must.
4. 29 and 71 aren’t winning numbers.
I’m not going to predict whom the Saints will pick, but I will look into my crystal ball and foresee the Saints not picking at either selection 29 or 71.
The Saints won’t pick at 29 because either Mickey Loomis is going to try like heck and trade up to get the player the Saints covet, or he will fail in his attempts to trade up and all the players the Saints want at 29 will be gone and he will – GASP – trade down.
I’d advise you to say your goodbyes to the Saints #71 pick. The Saints are as likely to use that pick on a player as I am to not drink Thursday night. Loomis is going to package #71 to move somewhere in the draft.
However the draft goes, expect the Saints to be in the middle of every trade up rumor starting Thursday morning. The more things change for the Saints, the more things stay the same. Mickey Loomis will solve his problems with aggression.
5. The picks are in...
You want some Saints pick predictions? Fine.
Saints trade pick #71 and #29 to the Seattle Seahawks and select defensive end from Clemson Myles Murphy, then select his teammate defensive tackle Bryan Bresee at pick 40. At pick 115 the Saints select Tulane running back Tyjae Spears and WE PARTY.
Enjoy the draft everyone.
Ralph Malbrough is a contributing writer and Saints fan living in Houston. Email him at saintshappyhour@gmail.com, find him on Facebook, or follow him on Twitter at @SaintsForecast or download the Saints Happy Hour Podcast.