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Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Bruce Arians said it so well before last week's NFL Draft: “You draft for need, you get fired. Draft the best player, and if you’ve got two of them now you’ve got three of them.”
This mantra especially helped the division rival New Orleans Saints this year, as they reportedly selected players ranked within the top 70 with their first three picks.
“I like that we got three guys that were graded in our top 70,” Saints general manager Mickey Loomis said via The Athletic.
In all, that's three players, picked at No. 48, 108, and 177, that Loomis and his staff had ranked much, much higher. Talk about value.
The process began with trading up for a center in Round 2, then trading up for a safety near the start of Round 4, followed by drafting another safety in Round 6 even though the Saints’ starting tandem of safeties seems to be set for 2019 could draw; moves that could draw the ire of some passionate followers of the team.
The selections:
- Eric McCoy (center) — will battle for the starting center job with newly signed Nick Easton. At worst, McCoy is a swing lineman early on and becomes the starter as early as next year.
- Chauncey Gardner-Johnson (Safety) — is a versatile defensive back capable of playing safety and nickel cornerback. At minimum, he backs up Marcus Williams and plays special teams.
- Saquan Hampton (safety) — the third top-70 player in the Saints’ eyes, might have a trickier time sticking with Vonn Bell and Chris Banjo lurking, but still provided great value.
Ultimately, this comes down to whether you trust the Saints' big board or not. Even though they didn't address some needs, I’d have a hard time panning the work that staff has produced.
