We're getting closer and closer to the draft, so it's about time we start talking about trades. Will this be the year the Saints get wild?
That's what we broke down in the latest episode of Inside Black & Gold, but heading in different directions. Steve Geller's job was to find a trade up in the first round, while mine was to find a way to trade down. Check out the latest episode in the player below for the full breakdown.
Can't see the embed? Click here.
As always with these mock drafts we used Pro Football Focus' simulator to establish the pool of selections. If you have any issues with the non-Saints picks, take it up with them.
━━
MOCK 1.0 PICKS (see more)
Steve: 14. Jared Verse, Edge, Florida State; 45.
Jeff: 14. Taliese Fuaga, OT, Oregon State; 45. Mike Sainristil, CB, Michigan
MOCK 2.0 PICKS (see more)
Steve: 14. Byron Murphy II, DT, Texas; 45. Michael Penix, QB, Washington
Jeff: 14. Taliese Fuaga, OT, Oregon State; 45. Xavier Legette, WR, S. Carolina
━━
STEVE'S MOCK 3.0 (trade up)
The trade
Saints send: No. 14, No. 175, 2025 3rd rounder
Bears send: No. 9
Why: I didn't have the ammunition, or at least not ammo I wanted to use, to make an earth-shaking move up the board that would be get me in range for the top QBs. I wanted to keep the price within reason, and this certainly does that, while allowing me to target the top option at a key position. The real question of this trade would be whether the Bears would actually make it, but PFF gave the thumbs-up, so I'm going with that.
The board
1. Bears: Caleb Williams, QB, USC
2. Commanders: Jayden Daniels, QB, LSU
3. Patriots: J.J. McCarthy, QB, Michigan
4. Cardinals: Dallas Turner, Edge, Alabama
5. Chargers: Malik Nabers, WR, LSU
6. Giants: Drake Maye, QB, N. Carolina
7. Titans: Marvin Harrison Jr., WR, Ohio State
8. Falcons: Quinyon Mitchell, CB, Toledo
9. Saints: Joe Alt, OT, Notre Dame
(see the rest of the simulated picks in the video atop the page)
The plan is here simple, the Saints have a need at tackle and they fork over some assets to go up and get the top one on the board. He's got the pedigree, elite athleticism and profile to be a Day 1 starter at left tackle, and those things are tough to find.
This also feels like a steal from a value perspective. In another draft, Alt might very well be a top three pick. In this draft that's loaded with top-end QBs and WR prospects, he gets pushed down to a range where the Saints can definitely get to without mortgaging too many future assets.
The only question is value. If the first tackle of the draft doesn't go off til No. 9, that means that you'd likely be guaranteed one of the top options will fall to you at No. 14. Is your grade on Alt that much higher than your grade on an Olu Fashanu, Taliese Fuaga or JC Latham? If not, then it'd make more sense to stay put. Either way, if the Saints got antsy, it'd be hard to complain about this path given the clear need at tackle.
━━
45. Saints: Braden Fiske, DT, Florida State
If the first pick was a need-based selection, that wouldn't be the way to describe this pick. This would be building on a strength, and the third defensive line prospect drafted in the top two rounds of the last two drafts. That said, teams that can't stop the run effectively find out quickly why that's a major problem.
The Saints have some need at the position with the departure of Malcolm Roach, and Fiske's elite athletic profile will feature nicely in a rotation with Brian Bresee, last year's first-round pick, and veterans Khalen Saunders and Nathan Shepherd. Bresee showed well as a rookie, and there will be hope that he'll take a big leap into Year 2. If the Saints can develop Fiske alongside him, that position could be set nicely for years to come.
I was certainly tempted to look at skill positions here, and a Mike Sainristil (who went off the board one pick later) would've been a nice addition to take over in the slot. That said, you'll never convince me that loading up on big guys in the draft is a bad decision.
━━
JEFF'S MOCK 3.0 (trade down)
The trade
Saints send: No. 14, 2025 4th rounder
Cowboys send: No. 24, No. 87, 2025 2nd rounder
Why: I went into this exercise with a few goals. I didn't want to trade out of the first round entirely, I wanted to add a third-rounder, and I wanted to upgrade a future asset. The trade above with the Cowboys did exactly that. I moved down 10 selections, but was able to add the No. 87 pick, and I effectively turned my 2025 4th rounder into a 2nd rounder. This would certainly go against everything we know about Mickey Loomis' draft day strategies, but man ... wouldn't it be nice to go into 2025 with three picks in the top 60? It'd be a white-knuckle wait until No. 24, but I think you'd still make out well enough to justify the move.
The board
1. Bears: Caleb Williams, QB, USC
2. Commanders: Jayden Daniels, QB, LSU
3. Patriots: Drake Maye, QB, N. Carolina
4. Cardinals: Marvin Harrison Jr., WR, Ohio State
5. Chargers: Rome Odunze, WR, Washington
6. Giants: J.J. McCarthy, QB, Michigan
7. Titans: Malik Nabers, WR, LSU
8. Falcons: Joe Alt, OT, Notre Dame
9. Olu Fashanu, OT, Penn State
10. Jets: JC Latham, OT, Alabama
11. Vikings: Dallas Turner, Edge, Alabama
12. Broncos: Jared Verse, Edge, Florida State
13. Raiders: Taliese Fuaga, OT, Oregon State
14. Cowboys: Terrion Arnold, CB, Alabama (from Saints)
15. Colts: Brian Thomas Jr., WR, LSU
16. Seahawks: Quinyon Mitchell, CB, Toledo
17. Jaguars: Brock Bowers, TE, Georgia
18. Bengals: Graham Barton, OT, Duke
19. Rams: Troy Fautanu, OT, Washington
20. Steelers: Byron Murphy II, DT, Texas
21. Dolphins: Amarius Mims, OT, Georgia
22. Eagles: Laiatu Latu, Edge, UCLA
23. Vikings: Nate Wiggins, CB, Clemson
24. Saints: Tyler Guyton, OT, Oklahoma
Well, that was close. This is a draft class loaded with, in my opinion, eight first-round talents at offensive tackle. Now, No. 1 is a long way from No. 8 in terms of upside, but there's a pretty significant dropoff after No. 8. With my trade down I had to white-knuckle my way through seven of those names going off the board, but in the end I landed the final one in Tyler Guyton, who I just happen to have ranked higher than the pair that went ahead of him. It wasn't a fun experience, but I do think this worked out for the best.
Guyton is massive, athletic and has a ton of upside. That said, unlike Steve's mock above, I'm not sure he's a guy that should be expected to slot in as a Week 1 starter. In a perfect world I'd have him sit behind Ryan Ramczyk for a season, or at least as much of that season that Ryan can get through. Guyton needs to get a bit stronger and clean up technique, which is certainly something Saints fans won't love to hear. But that's the deal when you trade down, you're not getting perfect prospects. That's the tradeoff when you go the value route, and it's not one the Saints have ever been keen on taking. The team views it like they would be passing on a top target to take a lesser player, and through that lens it's easy to understand why they never trade down.
━━
45. Saints: Braden Fiske, DT, Florida State
Steve and I are in agreement on this one, so no need to hash it out again. Beef up on the interior of the DL whenever you can, and you'll have a lot more fun days out there. That's what this pick is about, and it helps that Fiske was able to open eyes to his elite athleticism. He'd form a monster pairing with Brian Bresee for the next several years. No defensive-minded head coach would ever complain about that.
━━
87. Saints (from Cowboys): Johnny Wilson, WR, Florida State
This is the pick I added in the trade, and any time the Saints are dealing with an extra asset they seem to like to get aggressive at a skill position. In 2022 they had two firsts and brought in Chris Olave. In 2017 they had multiple firsts, then got aggressive to bring in Alvin Kamara. Way back in 2011 they had two firsts and went after Mark Ingram.
With this pick I'd throw down Johnny Wilson as a lottery ticket with a ton of upside. It's not difficult to see why. At 6-6, 231 pounds -- what CB is matching up with that guy? The only real question is whether he's actually a tight end at the NFL level, just look at how Juwan Johnson was converted. But I think his traits do profile at WR, and I'd love to see him go out there and compete with A.T. Perry for that big-body role.
Wilson showed well at the Senior Bowl, and genuinely the only players that could prevent him from catching the ball were the off-target QBs. Health could be a concern, but that's why depth behind Perry would also make sense.