New Orleans Saints GM hints at potential trade-up in draft
The New Orleans Saints have gained a reputation as one of the most aggressive teams in the NFL Draft. In 2022, the Saints traded up twice in the second round, once with Washington to acquire Ohio State WR Chris Olave and once with Philadelphia to acquire North Iowa OLTrevor Penning. One year later, the Saints may be looking to move and shake again.
On Wednesday, Saints general manager Mickey Loomis hinted multiple times that the team was interested in moving up in the draft. Loomis said that he will begin talking with more front offices in the coming hours to see who might be interested in working as a dance partner in trade.
The Saints over the winter acquired the 29th overall pick from the Denver Broncos as a part of the trade that landed head coach Sean Payton at the Denver lead. That pick, in turn, gives them a little range to move up even further should they need to make another jump.
New Orleans currently has three top-100 picks upcoming -- No. 29, No. 40 and No. 71 -- which could be enough ammunition to move almost anywhere they want, within reason.
If the Saints are looking to upgrade along the interior of the offensive line, they could try for trade with the Jacksonville Jaguars, who hold the No. 24 pick. This would maneuver New Orleans ahead of teams like the New York Giants, Dallas Cowboys and Cincinnati Bengals, who could be looking at players like Florida's O'Cyrus Torrence, TCU's Steve Avila and Minnesota's John Michael Schmitz.
Tight end, defensive line and safety are deeper draft position groups that the Jaguars could theoretically target in the first round -- position groups which might make a trade easier to pull off. Such a move would give Jacksonville a chance to acquire more assets to build around QB Trevor Lawrence.
Another option could be a trade with the Detroit Lions at pick No. 18. If the Saints are interested in acquiring a cornerback to pair alongside Marshon Lattimore, it could be imperative to jump teams like the Los Angeles Chargers, Baltimore Ravens and Minnesota Vikings, who would seem to be in the draft market for defensive upgrades. The Saints could potentially target prospects like Penn State's Joey Porter Jr. or Maryland's Deonte Banks, should they opt for a theoretical trade with Detroit.
New Orleans is keeping its options open, though -- Loomis believes the team has no musts, but rather just positions that they would like to have, according to Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.Football.
While the Saints might not have a specific player in mind, history tells us that they are willing to go get what they want come draft time.
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