6 days Ago
FILE - Louisville quarterback Tyler Shough runs a drill at the NFL football scouting combine in Indianapolis, Saturday, March 1, 2025. (AP Photo/George Walker IV, File) Facebook Twitter WhatsApp SMS Email Print Copy article link Save The first NFL draft of the Kellen Moore era is officially in the books, as the New Orleans Saints selected nine players and addressed nine different positions with those players. We won’t really know until this fall — and in the years that follow — how this initial class of the Moore era will pan out, but we can address some of the questions about the draft now that it’s been assembled.
As far as the draft goes, New Orleans went safe (or as close as that gets) on the first day, took some big swings on the second day and looked for value to close things out. Let’s sort back through it. The age question Count me as one who is skeptical about Tyler Shough’s age really mattering in the grand scheme of things.
Yes, he’s one of the oldest prospects in the class. Shough will turn 26 years old a month into his rookie season, and if he plays this year he will be one of the oldest rookie quarterbacks since the AFL-NFL merger: Only former pro baseball players (29-year-olds Brandon Weeden and Chris Weinke) and former BYU quarterbacks who previously served a religious mission (27-year-old Taysom Hill and 26-year-old John Beck) were older than Shough will be in Week 1. And yes, his age does matter.
Shough is further along in his physical development than every other quarterback in this class, meaning what the Saints get now from him physically is not likely to get much better. While there’s no true hard line, an athlete’s prime age is generally at the tail end of the region Shough is in now. But it’s not like Shough’s age will prevent him from playing a full career.
The age conversation is different for quarterbacks than it is for other positions. Aaron Rodgers was 25 when he took over as the Green Bay Packers starting quarterback in 2008. Kirk Cousins and Russell Wilson were 24 during their 2012 rookie season.
Those three players have combined to play more than 600 NFL regular season games. Age didn’t seem to be an issue last year for Jayden Daniels (who turned 24 midseason) or Bo Nix (who turned 25 right before the Super Bowl), both of whom seemed to benefit from their lengthy college experience while transitioning to the pro game. And while a lot has been made about Shough being in the same recruiting class as Trevor Lawrence, Daniels and Nix were the class right after them.
Quarterbacks last. Just in the last 10 seasons, eight players have thrown for more than 4,000 yards in a season after their 35th birthday. Last year, four quarterbacks started at least half their team’s games at 36 or older.
So Shough’s age matters to an extent, but the only really important thing is whether he is any good. If he is, and he is able to get past the injuries that kept him in college so long, there is nothing stopping him from enjoying a 10-12-year career. Why OL at No.
9? New Orleans had a lot of different directions it could have taken with its first pick, but it ultimately landed on Texas offensive lineman Kelvin Banks Jr. Here are some numbers to consider. For clarity’s sake, these numbers do not include undrafted free agents.
Since 2000, 139 offensive linemen have been drafted in the first round. Of those, 25 (18%) have earned at least one first-team All-Pro nod, and 52 (37.4%) have made at least one Pro Bowl.
Breaking it down even further, 11 of the 41 offensive linemen selected in the top 10 since 2000 have earned first-team All-Pro (26.8%) and 18 (43.9%) have made at least one Pro Bowl.
In that same span, 790 offensive lineman have been drafted in Rounds 2-7. Of those, 20 (2.5%) have earned at least one first-team All-Pro and 64 (8.
1%) have made at least one Pro Bowl. While it is possible to find high-level offensive line play on Days 2 and 3 of the draft — and the Saints have done it several times, with players like Terron Armstead and Erik McCoy — the numbers just prove it is a lot harder. That is somewhat true for a lot of positions, but the numbers are not as drastic as they are up front.
At wide receiver, for instance: 10 of the 105 first-round picks since 2000 made All-Pro (9.5%) versus 23 of the 636 receivers taken on Days 2 and 3 (3.6%).
The Saints had a hole on their offensive line, and they made the best possible bet to fill it. Day 3 value The Saints have an entire staff devoted to scouting college football players, and like every other team they assemble their own set of draft rankings — sometimes referred to as a “board.” Those are unique to New Orleans, and may vary drastically from another team’s set of rankings — or from those put out by my colleagues in the media.
Still, it was a little jarring to see some of the Saints picks compared to the projections made by some in the media. Banks, for instance, was rated 26th and 27th, respectively, by The Athletic and NFL Media . Texas DT Vernon Broughton, whom the Saints selected 71st overall and considered in the second round, did not even crack NFL Media’s top 150 as a prospect.
All four of New Orleans’ Day 1 and 2 picks ranked lower on these lists than their ultimate draft position. But, at least in terms of those media rankings, the Saints rallied on Day 3. The Athletic had both linebacker Danny Stutsman (87) and corner Quincy Riley (94) as Top 100 prospects, and the Saints got them with picks 112 and 131, respectively.
Running back Devin Neal, whom the Saints selected 184th overall, was ranked as high as No. 49 by Yahoo . The Athletic also had defensive end Fadil Diggs, the Saints’ last pick of the draft at No.
254, as a top-160 player. Nobody will remember the rankings a few years from now when we see how these careers play out, but it certainly wouldn’t hurt a Saints team that desperately needs some young impact players to hit on a couple Day 3 picks..
