B-
New Orleans Saints
The Saints checked most of the boxes and earned a B-.
by Tony211 ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 8 picks
· 2 steals
· 2 reaches
The Saints spent real capital to be 23 picks early on Akheem Mesidor, and the board is going to hold them to it. The bottom line is a respectable B-.
The cornerback hole is the one line item this class does not answer. The Branch value carries more weight than any single miss elsewhere.
A workmanlike haul that should hold up just fine.
Pick-by-Pick
In the Round 1 slot they get a problem off the edge, though the board says they badly overpaid. The biggest hole, addressed.
They did well to land Dillon Thieneman in pick No. 42, just ahead of his grade. Useful depth more than a marquee fix.
Zachariah Branch in the 73rd pick is a bargain the rest of the room will envy. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Dontay Corleone slid further than he should have, and slot 80 is lovely value for the interior defensive lineman. The roster fit checks out.
Kaleb Proctor in No. 132 is fair value, right on his grade. It fills a real need, too.
Jude Bowry in the 136th overall pick lands just on the right side of the ledger. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
DeMonte Capehart at pick No. 140 is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. A need, and now a little less of one.
They liked Louis Moore enough to skip the value, taking him in the Round 5 slot. Stacking talent where they were already deep.