A-
New Orleans Saints
The Saints won the weekend at the trade table. Grade: A-.
by bleach51 ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 8 picks
· 5 steals
· 2 reaches
The move everyone will second-guess came early. The Saints reached some 75 spots for Patrick Payton, and value like that does not grow back. Add it all up and it grades out a clean A-.
However the rest shakes out, Lane at that price is a win they earned. Every deal seemed to tilt their way, which is not luck. The cornerback hole is the one line item this class does not answer.
Bottom line, with Makai Lemon leading the way, this is a class that should pay off fast and rarely be regretted.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 18th pick they get a No. 1 receiver at a price that makes it sweeter. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
Value with a capital V on Caleb Banks in No. 49, a genuine coup. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
They read the board right and Jake Golday was the payoff at slot 73. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
Lee Hunter in the 74th overall pick should not have been possible, and that is the whole point. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
The board fumbled Ja'Kobi Lane all the way to the Round 4 slot, and they scooped it up. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Fair-plus on Parker Brailsford, a quiet win that adds up over a draft. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Taylen Green in pick No. 150 is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
Patrick Payton at the Round 5 slot is the kind of overdraft that needs everything to break right. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.