The New Orleans Saints found their way to Jake Haener in the fourth round of the draft because, in part, he had a lot of the traits that allowed Drew Brees to be successful over the course of his Hall of Fame career.
WWL Radio's Bobby Hebert sees a lot of the same in the former Fresno State QB who grew up idolizing the Saints QB. But the Cajun Cannon took it a step further.
"What else can we say that I think we truly got the second coming of Drew Brees with Jake Haener," Hebert said to Mike Detillier on SportsTalk. "I like him a lot. … We talk about the intangibles. It is like, what you want in an NFL quarterback. The only reason why he was drafted where he was drafted is he’s little, but Drew Brees is little."
Listen to the full segment in the player above. Can't see the embed? Click here.
Hebert pointed to Haener's ability to process information, getting the ball out on time and on target, and doing so at a level that rises above any limitations from his smaller build at the position. The prototypical height at the QB position is something that's clearly lost a bit of its value in the scouting process in recent seasons, considering the No. 1 pick in two of the past five drafts (Kyler Murray and Bryce Young), would probably need cleats on concrete to measure in at 5-11. Haener's official combine measurements were 6'0", 207 pounds.
And in fairness to Hebert, Saints head coach Dennis Allen was quick to toss out a Brees comparison when breaking down the decision for the pick following Day 3 of the draft. The Saints traded up to No. 127 overall to make the pick and pair Haener with another Fresno State alum in Derek Carr.
Related
“We had a lot of success here with a guy that probably didn’t have all the physical traits of some of the other quarterbacks around the league, but was highly skilled with decision-making, processing, getting the ball out on time, throwing the ball with accuracy and timing," Allen said. "I think those are really traits of a quarterback that allow him to be successful.”
At the end of the day, even the loftiest comparisons will leave room for at least one season sitting behind Carr and Jameis Winston, who returned on a 1-year deal as the backup in 2023. But beyond that?
"At Fresno State, how many linemen at Fresno State got drafted? Who’s protecting him? Zero. He’s making them all better. I’m telling you, him waiting in the wings. I don’t know if he’ll ever be an ultimate starter like Drew Brees, but he’ll be that quarterback who’s going to be a professional, he’s going to have a double-digit career, because I think he understands what it takes to be a winning quarterback," Hebert continues. "And Derek Carr wants to mentor him. They’re homeboys. They’re both from Fresno State. I mean, you take care of your boy. … So I think the quarterback room, I’m not even talking about Jameis Winston, I don’t even know. Jameis Winston is going to be the guy short-term, but 2024 and beyond it’s Derek Carr and it’s going to be Haener.”
Related
