There's a lot of good reasons to be excited about new Saints rookie Taliese Fuaga, and that goes both for Saints fans and a newly retired podcast host.
Speaking on his podcast New Heights with his brother Travis Kelce, former Eagles star center Jason Kelce -- who retired after the 2023 season -- went off on an unprompted rant about one of his favorite players in the recent NFL draft. That player was Taliese Fuaga, whom the Saints selected No. 14 overall out of Oregon State.
“There’s like, some guys that even when they’re playing the highlight on draft day, you can be like, 'oh, yea,' " Jason Kelce said. "There was a tackle that got picked early out of Oregon State and I saw one pass set and I was like, 'yep, oh yea.' And then I saw him just completely demoralizing people after that, and I was like, 'goddamn, this dude is a f****** beast. Taliese Fuaga, holy s***."
And Jason Kelce would know a thing or two about OL talent as a Super Bowl champion, 7-time Pro Bowler, and 6-time All-Pro prior to calling it a career after his 13th season. Kelce was a 6th round pick of the Eagles out of Cincinnati in 2011.
Travis Kelce, fresh off a second consecutive Super Bowl victory, reiterated that sentiment, though neither player actually seemed aware that he had gone to the Saints in the draft. Jason Kelce even added that he watched zero tape on the player, but some guys you can just tell immediately how that player is going to do at the pro level, and Fuaga is one of them.
“I think the majority of the guys that go high, you do watch and you’re like, yea, you think it looks right. But there’s some guys where it’s just like, right away, you think 'yea ... I have seen that before,' those exact movements and the way it anatomically looks," Kelce continued, "and for some reason he was one guy where I had watched zero tape and I only saw the highlight tapes on draft day and I was like, damn, I like the way that pass set looks, I like the way he’s redirecting, I like the way he’s finishing, I mean, very limited sample size, but I feel pretty confident, that’s dude is going to be beast. I’m going on record right now.”
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The Saints are certainly hoping the assessment of the Kelce brothers is correct as they look to rebuild an offensive line that currently features more questions than answers. Fuaga profiles as a right tackle, which could be where he's starting in Week 1 if Ryan Ramczyk's knee keeps him off the field. There's been little to no update on the veteran RT's status, and the state of his knee health will be a significant question entering camp this year.
The Saints also have a question at left tackle, where former first-round pick Trevor Penning is likely to compete for the starting role again, along with veterans like Oli Udoh and Justin Herron. The Saints also don't have any player established who could step in as starter at left guard with the retirement of James Hurst, though last year's 4th round pick Nick Saldiveri and veteran Shane Lemieux could be in the mix. The Saints also selected Eastern Kentucky's Josiah Ezirim in the 7th round.
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Fuaga, the rest of his 7-man draft class and a host of UDFAs and tryout players are expected to be on the field next week at Saints rookie minicamp, scheduled for May 10-12.
Listen to WWL's exclusive interview with Taliese Fuaga in the player above. Can't see the embed? Click here.