B-
New Orleans Saints
The Saints checked most of the boxes and earned a B-.
by Reheheheheh ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 7 picks
· 4 steals
· 2 reaches
Call it a hunch or call it a gamble, but the Saints spent pick 150 on Jalen Stroman, a name most had 47 spots down the list.
On value alone, Harris makes the weekend a net positive. A whole weekend of picks and wide receiver is somehow still a want.
They went 5 of 8 on their needs, which is most of what a draft is for. Building through the lines is a philosophy, and they stuck to it.
In sum, a sturdy weekend with one asterisk, the wide receiver spot they never got to.
Pick-by-Pick
In No. 8 they get a blindside protector, though the board says they badly overpaid. Exactly the need they had to hit.
Nothing to complain about; Akheem Mesidor went a shade earlier than his grade, which is fine. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
They stopped a slide they were happy to see, landing LT Overton in pick No. 73. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Chandler Rivers at pick 132 is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Jalen Stroman at the 150th pick is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. It thickens a room that could stand to be thicker.
A quarterback of that caliber at slot 172 is the definition of value, full stop. The roster fit checks out.
Zxavian Harris at pick 190 is a first-round grade at a bargain-bin price, no notes. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.