NFL free agency is the next stop on the Saints' offseason roadmap, but that won't stop us from looking ahead to the NFL draft -- all the way to the third round, in fact.
Because that's where, if he got there, standout Tulane RB Tyjae Spears would be a steal for the Saints when they got on the clock at No. 71. That's according to WWL's Mike Detillier and Charlie Long as they responded to a texter on SportsTalk this week.
“I know, Mike, you like him," Long said. "I really like him. I think he’d be a slam-dunk pick at 71 if he makes it that far.”
Listen to the full conversation in the player above. Can't see the embed? Click here.
But will he still be on the board at that point? Detillier says it's possible, even if he's more talented than that might indicate, and it's because of something that seems to happen every year.
“I always put a little asterisk next to a running back, because I think they lose value and they get devalued come draft time," he said. "They always get picked a little bit lower than you might think."
Detillier said he only has one first-round-graded running back, and that's Bijan Robinson out of Texas. Alabama's Jahmyr Gibbs, UCLA's Zach Charbonnet, Texas A&M's Devin Achane, Ole Miss's Zach Evans and Spears are all graded in a range from early first to late second/early third.
In Spears' Green Wave career, which finished with a monster day in a Cotton Bowl upset of USC, he tallied 1,581 yards and 19 touchdowns on 229 carries, while pitching in another 256 yards and 2 TDs as a receiver. Spears showed off his all-around ability during an impressive week of practices at the Senior Bowl, where he was named practice player of the week.
The Saints also have picks at No. 29 and No. 40, but that's likely too early for the former Green Wave running back. It's not dissimilar to 2018, when the Saints traded up to the top of third round to select Kamara, a running back then-head coach Sean Payton had worked out at Tennessee. That decision worked out, of course. Could that be the case again this year? If so, it'd be a dream come true for Spears, who grew up idolizing Reggie Bush as his favorite player.
“If he’s there, it would be really, really tough for me to say ‘nah, I’m not gonna pick him,’ " Detillier continued. "I think he’s that good of a player and I think he would certainly fit a need for this football team.”
The NFL draft kicks off in Kansas City, Missouri, on April 27.
