Oct 17, 2025; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; Louisville Cardinals wide receiver Chris Bell (0) reacts after a carry against the Miami Hurricanes during the second quarter at Hard Rock Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

Saints Perfect WR Draft Target Played With Tyler Shough

Originally posted on New Orleans Saints on SI
By Patrick McAvoy | Last updated Mar 27, 2026 9:28 AM ET

The New Orleans Saints are going to have plenty of ammo in the upcoming 2026 National Football League Draft to plug the various roster holes still left.

New Orleans will start its draft with the No. 8 overall pick in the first round. Afterward, the Saints have a second-round pick, a third-round pick, two fourth-round picks, two fifth-round picks and will wrap up the show with a sixth-round pick. New Orleans doesn't currently have a seventh-round pick. By this point in the offseason, it has been talked about enough what the team's top two roster needs are right now: No. 2 wide receiver and a cornerback.

There will be options to help in both areas in the upcoming draft. On Friday, ESPN shared a column pinpointing the biggest draft needs for each team with players that could help outside of the first round. ESPN's Matt Miller pitched an idea the Saints should be all over: Chris Bell of Louisville.

"Prospect to fill a need outside Round 1: Chris Bell, WR, Louisville. Want to help Shough? Pair him with his former teammate," Miller wrote. "Bell is recovering from a torn ACL, but his tape shows examples of him running away from coverage after using his size (6-foot-2, 222 pounds) to body defenders and make tough catches."

The Saints need at WR badly

Bell and Tyler Shough were teammates at Louisville for the signal-caller's final year in college back in 2024. The young receiver has actually said already that Shough wants him in New Orleans.

“He said he wants me so bad, and he’s been pushing my name," Bell said of Shough.

If Bell could be had in the second round, the Saints could use the No. 8 elsewhere and not on a receiver. For example, former LSU cornerback Mansoor Delane, who has had a 30 visit with New Orleans, is going to come off the board at some point in the range around the Saints' first pick.

If the Saints come away from the first two rounds of the 2026 NFL Draft with an elite cornerback prospect in Delane and a receiver who has the potential to be the No. 2 option for New Orleans and has experience playing with Shough in Bell, that would be a dream scenario.

This is the NFL Draft we're talking about and it's almost impossible to predict fully. There's no guarantee the Saints will take Delane at No. 8 and there's no guarantee that Bell would even be on the board when the Saints are on the clock in the second round. But these are the types of prospects the Saints should be thinking about.

This article first appeared on New Orleans Saints on SI and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: