As the Saints and the rest of the NFL descend on the NFL Draft Combine this week, there are a lot of potential areas that could be mined for talent.
Unlike last year, this is a draft with several elite quarterback options and a potential first-round running back. Unlike last year, there are only a handful of first-round WR prospects.
But, according the NFL Network's draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah, one position stands head and shoulders above the rest in terms of depth.
"I think the tight end group is the best I've seen in the last 10 years," Jeremiah said. "It's outstanding."
Listen to a full conversation about this week's NFL Combine prospects in the latest episode of Inside Black & Gold. Can't see the player above? Click here.
That tight end group is headlined by Utah's Dalton Kincaid, who appears a lock to go in the first round, but is defined by it's depth. Jeremiah said he has a third-round grade or better on a "ridiculous number' of 11 TEs in this year's class.
So who are they?
- Dalton Kincaid, Utah
- Michael Mayer, Notre Dame
- Darnell Washington, Georgia
- Luke Musgrave, Oregon State
- Sam LaPorta, Iowa
- Tucker Kraft, South Dakota State
- Payne Durham, Purdue
- Davis Allen, Clemson
- Luke Schoonmaker, Michigan
- Brenton Strange, Penn State
- Josh Whyle, Cincinnati
I don't think there's a uniform TE-1 in this draft. When you talk to teams around the league you'll hear different names mentioned," he continued. "Usually it's Kincaid, it's Mayer, it's Musgrave, and it's Washington. Those are kind of the four that get mentioned."
So if the Saints are in the TE market, there will likely be a host of potential options to choose from on Day 2 or beyond. In our latest mock draft on Inside Black & Gold, I landed Georgia TE Darnell Washington to the Saints in Round 3 for that exact reason.
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But who are some other players who could ascend into a range for the Saints to take a long hard look at with an impressive combine performance?
The first would be WR Zay Flowers out of Boston College, whom Jeremiah had going to the Saints at No. 29 in his latest mock. Some others:
Calijah Kancey, DT, Pitt
Why: I know everybody is going to compare him to Aaron Donald because is he at Pitt, and that's where Aaron Donald played. He reminds me more of Ed Oliver, but really, really twitchy, really dynamic. He can shoot gaps. You can see him do some freaky stuff with his explosiveness. He is undersized. He gets caught at times and gets washed. He is not going to fit everybody.
Jack Campbell, LB, Iowa
Why: Jack Campbell, linebacker from Iowa, is going to be huge. He is going to be 6'4", 250 pounds. He is going to probably run in the 4.5s. He could start getting some love and some talk about him up there in the first round.
Cedric Tillman, WR, Tennessee
Why: He is going to be 215-plus pounds, 6'2"-plus. He is going to run really fast. He is somebody I think you'll see garnering some attention as well.
A few other players also pique the attention of Jeremiah, including QB Anthony Richardson. The Florida signal-caller has drawn plenty of attention this week and is as high as the No. 2 QB on several teams' boards. Jeremiah currently has him at No. 18 to the Lions, but he could certainly go even higher. Still, if he falls, it could land in the territory for the Saints to make a move for their QB of the future.
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"If you want to fall in love with Anthony Richardson, you pop on Utah and you think he is the first pick in the draft," Jeremiah said, noting the 80-yard TD run against LSU as an example of that elite athleticism he possesses. "Even Missouri he made some big-time plays in that game. I know it's a little bit of a roller coaster. I know he hasn't played a ton, but teams are starting to look at some of these quarterbacks as lottery tickets, and this one has the biggest pay-out."
The other intriguing option is Bijan Robinson, who might be a top-5 player in this draft but is at a position that you traditionally wouldn't see in the top-end of draft boards. There were zero RBs taken in the top-20 picks in any of the past four drafts. And for any team to do it this year, they'd have to believe they can win right away, otherwise it's a mistake.
"That's the conundrum there with Bijan Robinson," Jeremiah said. "He is, no doubt about it to me, he is one of the premiere, premiere players in the draft."
The combine workouts kick off on Thursday with defensive linemen and linebackers. Defensive backs take the field on Friday, followed by QBs, WRs and TEs on Saturday, and finishing out on Sunday with RBs and offensive linemen.
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