Saints mock draft simulation No. 2: This time, we take our quarterback in Round 3

Shedeur Sanders has emerged as the headliner of the 2025 NFL Draft, both inside and outside of New Orleans. But we passed on making him the headliner in our second NOF mock draft simulation.

As much as we’d like the much-needed injection of excitement Sanders would bring to a team and city that desperately need it, we decided that the QB stars didn’t align for us until Round 3.

As always, Nick and I collaborated to make all nine picks for the Saints through seven rounds:

ROUND 1, PICK 9

GONE: 1. EDGE Abdul Carter. 2. CB Travis Hunter. 3. QB Cam Ward. 4. RB Ashton Jeanty. 5. DT Mason Graham. 6. OL Will Campbell. 7. WR Tetairoa McMillan. 8. OT Armand Membou.

TRIP: I’ve never been a trade-down truther, but I really want to trade down here.

For one thing, I’ve never covered a Saints team with so many long-term needs across the board. I just want this team to have a stockpile of young talent that feels like an actual nucleus to build around for the next few years. But more importantly, I like a ton of guys projected to go in the teens and twenties and don’t have a strong conviction that any one player stands out above all the rest here.

Of course that all gets thrown out the window if the Saints have one of the top five or six players on their board available here. It’s easy for me to say I don’t love a specific player, but they might. And if they do, that’s great. The candidates that stand out most to me for that possibility here are TE Tyler Warren, LT Kelvin Banks and whichever style of Georgia pass rusher they prefer between Mykel Williams and Jalon Walker.

NICK: Definitely feels like a good spot to trade down. Sanders is still on the board, and if someone wants him, this is a good place to come get him … if you think there’s another team out there that could select him before Pittsburgh does. But the PFF simulator isn’t offering us anything, so we’re just going to sit and pick.

Let’s just start with the obvious thing here: I’m going to pass on Sanders. I just don’t think they’d pick him ninth overall, and it seems like the Sanders camp is entertaining that as a possibility with Shedeur taking a visit to Pittsburgh this week to meet with the Steelers, who have the 21st pick.

As a fan of football and someone curious about how Shedeur’s career goes, let me say this: I’d LOVE for the Saints to have him. I can’t think of anyone in this whole entire draft class, other than Cam Ward, who I’d rather watch and cover. Man, think about the atmosphere in the Dome. Everyone holding their watches up and wearing the Air Diamond Turfs to the games. It would be an incredible atmosphere. Brandon would get a whole month of podcast topics over what number he should wear since Spencer Rattler took 2.

I would be so excited to see him at practice and watch him in games. It would be a jolt of life to a team that hasn’t had much since Drew Brees walked out of a mostly-empty Superdome for the last time. But it’d also be super fake for me to sit here and not talk about the value when I just don’t see Shedeur as a sure thing. I think he’d be a big reach for any team in the top 10. This is the kind of pick desperate teams make and hold their breath. The Saints should feel desperate for a quarterback, but they don’t have to make moves out of desperation. There’s a big difference between those two things, even though they’re born from the same place.

We’ve said this a million times. Reaching for a quarterback is about the most terrifying thing I think you can do. Sometimes it works, but when it doesn’t, it can set your team back years. I just can’t be the one to make that call for the Saints. I’ll leave it up to Mickey Loomis and Jeff Ireland and Kellen Moore if they want to move that direction. My prediction is that they won't make the call for Shedeur. But it’s just that — a prediction.

So, back to the board … good options here, as you said. We both love Tyler Warren, so he’s a good pick here. Mykel Williams has great attributes. Feels a little boom or bust, but the boom is so good and he immediately gives you hope about your pass rush. I think both those guys make you feel different about the team on draft night.

And then there’s Banks. I’m not sure you leave the draft feeling excited about spending yet another pick on the offensive line. A Banks pick would mark four first rounders and the Saints’ first pick in the 2019 draft that got spent in this position group. It feels like it should be built … and yet, it isn’t built and it needs to be built. And a pick on the line might be the thing that really builds this team. Sometimes, you have to eat your broccoli.

TRIP: First of all, I completely agree on Shedeur. I would love it if the Saints were totally convinced on him. I’ve talked to Sean Payton and several other Broncos personnel throughout this offseason at various events, and each time they immediately break into some passionate speech about how much they love Bo Nix. They all feel like they’re still on their honeymoon – even though most of us from the outside didn’t see the same thing in Nix 12 months ago. So if the Saints can fall in love that hard with a QB at pick 9, nothing would be more music to my ears.

Like you, I’m just betting against that happening at this point – both because the Saints might pass or because another team might like Sanders enough to take him in the top 8.

Meanwhile, I get that it sucks to spend yet another pick on the offensive line. But this is a little different if they find a left tackle that they feel is worthy of the No. 9 pick. The Saints haven’t picked this high in 17 years! So past picks be damned, this is their best shot in a long time to find a true foundational building block at either QB, DE or LT. They could move Taliese Fuaga back to RT and I’d suddenly feel way better about the long-term future of the offense.

The tougher part of the equation is finding an actual LT worthy of the No. 9 pick, especially since Campbell might be a guard and Membou a right tackle. But Banks has been generating a lot of buzz lately, and I’m getting the idea that draft analysts were wrong about their initial projections of his draft value. I don’t think this would be a reach. Let’s do it.

OUR PICK: LT KELVIN BANKS, TEXAS

ROUND 2, PICK 40

GONE: 10. CB Jahdae Barron. 11. TE Tyler Warren. 12. LB Jihaad Campbell. 13. DT Kenneth Grant.

33. QB Shedeur Sanders. 34. EDGE Nic Scourton. 35. G Tyler Booker. 36. WR Jack Bech. 37. CB Trey Amos. 38. WR Jayden Higgins. 39. DT Tyleik Williams.

NICK: So, it feels like there’s one spot where the Saints are a little bit backed into a corner and need to add someone before the season. Don’t get me wrong. I like Ike Yiadom. I think you can get by with Ike Yiadom. I just don’t want to put all my eggs in that basket … especially not with egg prices soaring the way they are. The team needs a stronger basket.

TRIP: How can I compete with bars like that?

Of course we have to consider QBs again here, since Jaxson Dart, Tyler Shough, Jalen Milroe and Quinn Ewers are all available. But cornerback does feel like both a need and value in this range with Maxwell Hairston, Azareye’h Thomas and Shavon Revel all available after Trey Amos just went three picks before us.

I really like the odds of the Saints having a corner as the top magnet on their board at this stage – and not just because this is where they also landed Alontae Taylor and Kool-Aid McKinstry in two of their last three drafts.

NICK: I’ve been doing a lot of work on the corners this week. I don’t know if this is one of those things where you start looking at the same players and the same names too much, but I’ve found myself drawn to Shavon Revel as of late. He’s just really that big, long prototype you like at corner. He can play press, is super fast, and his tackling pops off the screen. The problem is that you have to do a whole lot of projecting to imagine what he’ll look like against NFL receivers, which could mean there’s an adjustment period.

OUR PICK: CB SHAVON REVEL, EAST CAROLINA

ROUND 3, PICK 71

NICK: I think the thing I liked most about watching Jaxson Dart was watching Tre Harris catch his passes. I don’t want to oversell him or anything. He’s not a world-class athlete or super quick, but he is tall and long and can make contested catches. He plays with a great motor and fights for the ball.

He just sort of looks like the missing piece for this receiver group. They kind of run a weird offense at Mississippi, too, and I have a feeling Harris has more to offer than what he’s shown in college.

TRIP: Just like we said with corner in the last round, our “best available” list has receivers in the top three spots right now and four of the top seven. Once again, we’re filling a glaring need – but we’re doing it in a spot where it feels like the draft is offering great value. And I agree that Harris is the one I like as the best fit of this group at 6-2, 205, ahead of other available options like Jalen Royals, Jaylin Noel and Kyle Williams.

My only hesitation is that Shough is still here at QB. Part of the reason I was happy to pass on Dart at in Round 2 is because I was kind of hoping Shough might last until Round 3.

OUR PICK: WR TRE HARRIS, MISSISSIPPI

ROUND 3, PICK 93

TRIP: Looks like things worked out great. Shough is still here.

I’m not positive the Saints will be this fortunate in real life. But then again, who knows with this quarterback class? Someone’s gonna have to love Sanders, someone’s gonna have to love Dart, someone’s gonna have to love Milroe, someone’s gonna have to love Ewers, someone’s gonna have to love Shough. And there are only so many teams in the market for early-round QBs this year. So some real intriguing guys could last into Rounds 2 and 3.

Shough obviously comes with question marks. He’s already 25 years old and battled a relentless series of injuries throughout his seven-year career … yes, I said SEVEN years. But if you just evaluate the skillset, I know you’ve really liked what you’ve seen from watching his tape. Totally worth the dice roll at this stage of the draft, right? Might even be worth it as high as Round 2. Like we said with Sanders, I won’t quibble with price tag if the Saints and Kellen Moore in particular have a real conviction on one of these guys.

NICK: I think teams like this guy a lot more than people in the media. I watched him the other day and was surprised by how much I liked him. If he wasn’t going to be 30 by the time his rookie contract expires, I honestly might be screaming that he’s QB2 in this class … which is a weak class, but, hey, you can only compete against the guys who are there.

I think he’s gone by pick 50 — and I wouldn’t be at all surprised if he’s gone by Pick 33. I’ve been told there are several teams that have him ranked higher than some of his more-hyped counterparts. It’s really going to be fascinating to see how these guys come off the board. I think anything can happen … except this. There’s no way he lasts this long.

Like you said, he’s old. And he’s been hurt. I think the injuries were a little freakish and the kind you don’t necessarily worry about recurring. But you select Shough knowing there’s a limit on what you get. I think if you draft him you’re looking to get a bridge QB, one of those guys who ranks in the middle of the league and needs some help to win, but he costs nothing.

OUR PICK: QB TYLER SHOUGH, LOUISVILLE

ROUND 4, PICK 112

NICK: You were pushing to wait for the running back in the last draft, and I overruled and went with Ashton Jeanty. You had final call this time on that first pick, and Jeanty wasn’t there, but I would have kept fighting for him if he was on the board. I really, really believe in him.

However, you aren’t wrong. You can definitely wait in this draft and have good options at the position. We pushed this one pretty far, passing up a bunch of good running backs along the way to address other positions, and there are guys who look and feel like they should be able to contribute right away.

TRIP: I don’t know if we’re “cheating the system,” but I feel like we’re getting the best position value with almost every pick in this exercise. Maybe Round 2 or Round 3 is even better value for running backs, but if you’re telling me to bet on a fourth-round pick panning out at any position, this might be No. 1 on my list.

Case in point: Georgia’s Trevor Etienne is still on the board, among other intriguing options. He was more solid than spectacular in college, so we’d be betting on some untapped potential. But the Southern Louisiana native is a well-rounded back at 5-9, 198 pounds.

OUR PICK: RB TREVOR ETIENNE, GEORGIA

ROUND 4, PICK 131

TRIP: We’ve definitely reached the point now where it’s way more about player values than filling any specific needs. So it’s just scanning the list and finding that highest-graded player. And if we need a tie-breaker, we should probably hit the defense after going offense with four of our first five picks.

The top value pick that stands out to me here is Oklahoma safety Billy Bowman. A little smaller at 5-10, 192. But he’s a versatile and dynamic playmaker who started for four years in Oklahoma with 11 interceptions over the past three years. Bring on the inevitable Honey Badger comps if he lands in New Orleans.

NICK: Makes a ton of plays. Doesn’t tackle well. So, you get a major plus trait and potentially get a major playmaker if you can clean that up? Sign me up. I’m certainly OK with boom or bust at this point.

OUR PICK: S BILLY BOWMAN, OKLAHOMA

ROUND 6, PICK 184

NICK: So, we’ve entered the doldrums of the draft, the place where you’re picking traits and hoping for the best. It’s just impossible to get everything you want. The one spot we missed is on pass rusher. The other one would be guard, but I say we fix that here and take the best one on the board. You can still get lucky and hit gold at that position.

TRIP: I’m a little surprised to see Georgia’s Dylan Fairchild still here. He’s the second best Georgia guard in this draft class, and he was only a two-year starter, so he’s still got room to develop. But this is Round 6, and finding a player with room to beat that value works for me.

OUR PICK: G DYLAN FAIRCHILD, GEORGIA

ROUND 7, PICK 248

TRIP: This is like the fourth time now where some of the best values on the board are wide receivers. I guess that’s a good sign that it’s a deep position in this year’s draft. I definitely don’t regret taking Harris in Round 3. But maybe it’s worth double dipping, especially since we never got a pass-catching tight end.

I’m fascinated by Arkansas’ Andrew Armstrong, who is a big favorite of one of our readers. Somehow he’s 6-4, 204 and led the SEC with 1,140 receiving yards on 78 catches last season – and yet he’s widely projected to go at the end of the draft. I’m not gonna predict the next Marques Colston here, but that feels like a smart value bet if we’re just throwing darts at this point.

NICK: I know one of our community members is going to love this pick!

OUR PICK: WR ANDREW ARMSTRONG, ARKANSAS

ROUND 7, PICK 254

NICK: Do your thing, Mike! Next one, though, we’re going with the all-world returner. I think Phil Galiano is going to keep running the Rizzi study.

TRIP: For the record, I’m the one who started our trend of picking return specialists at the end of every mock over the past couple years. That’s probably the smart move if we’re trying to decide what the Saints WILL do.

But I’m standing on the table again for what the Saints SHOULD do – take the punter position more seriously. They can’t just hand this job to Matthew Hayball after his uneven rookie year. If he can show development and lock it down, great. But give him some serious competition. Last week, we got our top choice in Florida's Jeremy Crawshaw. This week we have to settle for the No. 2 punter on the board.

OUR PICK: P JAMES BURNIP, ALABAMA