Saints Predicted To Make 'Risky Pick' At No. 9

The New Orleans Saints have a few weeks to prepare for one of the most exciting moments of the National Football League calendar.

The NFL Draft is coming up and will begin on April 24th. The draft will take place over three days and will plenty of young guys will have their dreams come true. New Orleans will have the chance to add some high-end talent early on as it has the No. 9 pick in the draft. Who will the Saints take?

It's going to be fun discussing this topic over the next few weeks. There are plenty of directions the Saints could go after a 5-12 season. Do the Saints add more offensive weapons for Kellen Moore's offense like Tyler Warren, Ashton Jeanty, or Tetairoa McMillan? What about defensive pieces like Shemar Stewart, Will Johnson, or Mykel Williams? What about the offensive line? Could New Orleans even make a surprise quarterback addition?

There are a lot of questions at this point in the year.

NFL analysts and fans alike attempt to predict what will happen as the draft nears. ESPN's Field Yates shared a two-round mock draft on Wednesday and predicted New Orleans will make a "risky pick" and select Stewart out of Texas A&M.

"No. 9. New Orleans Saints - Shemar Stewart, Edge, Texas A&M," Yates said. "I've said this about Stewart throughout the pre-draft process: The general manager who uses a high pick on him will need a lot of cachet. Stewart is a risky pick with exactly 1.5 sacks in each of his three collegiate seasons. Mickey Loomis fits that GM bill perfectly, though, and the Saints haven't been afraid of taking toolsy pass rushers in the first round in the past (including Payton Turner in 2021 and Marcus Davenport in 2018). This would be the ultimate big swing given Stewart's upside at the position. I see acceleration and power when I watch him play."

Stewart is just 21 years old and is ranked as the No. 20 prospect in this class by ESPN. Could New Orleans reach for him?

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