The New Orleans Saints addressed a crucial need with their first-round pick in the NFL draft. Afterward, they traded up in the second round to acquire a player they had their eye on for a position where they already had some depth.
By selecting Taliese Fuaga from Oregon State with the No. 14 overall pick, coach Dennis Allen believed the Saints made a logical decision.
“There’s no need to complicate things,” he said. “We found the player we like, and it fills a position we need. Let’s not overthink it. Let’s just take the player.”
Fuaga primarily played right tackle at Oregon State, but with potential openings at both tackle positions for the Saints, he’s open to playing on either side. Trevor Penning, their second first-round pick in 2022, lost his starting spot at left tackle early last season.
His replacement, Andrus Peat, is currently a free agent. Meanwhile, starting right tackle Ryan Ramczyk underwent knee surgery in the offseason, raising questions about his availability.
Fuaga was one of seven offensive tackles selected in the first round of a draft that was rich in highly-rated tackles.
“It was a fortunate situation for us,” Allen remarked. “It’s not often that the depth of talent at a position of need lines up perfectly, but it did for us this year.”
The Saints moved up four spots to pick Alabama cornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry, trading picks No. 45, 168, and 190 to Green Bay for the 41st pick. McKinstry earned first-team All-America honors in his senior year.
“You can never have too many quality cornerbacks in this league,” Allen noted. “It’s a crucial position. Over the past few years, we’ve seen our third and fourth corners play a significant number of snaps.”
On the final day of the draft, the Saints added five more players, starting with South Carolina quarterback Spencer Rattler in the fifth round at No. 150.
Rattler was once projected as a potential No. 1 overall pick during his sophomore year at Oklahoma in 2021. However, he lost his starting position to Caleb Williams and transferred to South Carolina, where he started for the past two years.
He became the first quarterback selected since the flurry of six quarterbacks taken in the first 12 picks on Thursday night.
