Saints coach Kellen Moore says his club has 'flexibility' in his second NFL draft with New Orleans

NEW ORLEANS — Saints coach Kellen Moore has been scouting a wider variety of prospects heading into his second NFL draft with rebuilding New Orleans.

A year on the job and a fruitful free agency period this offseason have given Moore the freedom to keep his options open when the Saints are on the clock.

“Free agency was a really good process,” Moore said. "We were able to add some really key pieces.

"Everyone hopes you can go into the draft saying, ‘Hey, kind of however this thing falls, we have some flexibility in this draft,’" Moore added. “There's always unpredictability of who's going to get drafted above you. And so I feel like we're in a healthy spot in that case."

A year ago, the Saints had apparent needs at offensive tackle because of the premature retirement of Ryan Ramczyk and at quarterback because of uncertainty surrounding Derek Carr, who was still on the roster during the draft but ultimately retired as well.

New Orleans wound up finding starters at both spots in the 2025 draft, selecting lineman Kelvin Banks Jr. in the first round and QB Tyler Shough in the second.

The Saints entered this offseason with uncertainty at running back, guard and linebacker. But those needs were filled with the signings of running back Travis Etienne, left guard David Edwards and linebacker Kaden Ellis.

That's not to say New Orleans couldn't use more depth at certain spots, but as Moore noted recently, "We’re not just chasing one particular position.”

Pick ’em

New Orleans has eight picks, including eighth overall in the first round, followed by the 42nd overall selection in the second round and the 73rd overall choice in Round 3. On the draft's final day, the Saints are scheduled to pick twice in the fourth round, twice in the fifth and once in the sixth. New Orleans does not have a seventh-rounder, having traded it to New England as part of a deal that brought defensive tackle Davon Godchaux to the Saints in 2025.

Needs

Edge rushers are always valuable whether incumbent starters are returning or not. Even more so in the Saints' case because Cameron Jordan, who had 10 1/2 last season as a regular reserve, is 36 years old and exploring free agency before deciding whether to come back to New Orleans for a 16th season.

New Orleans also lost a starting cornerback this offseason when Alontae Taylor decided to jump to Tennessee, returning to the state where he played in college.

Moore said replacing Taylor in the lineup is “obviously going to be a challenge.”

“We’ve got some guys in our building that obviously we feel like can make that transition,” Moore said. “We’ll go through the draft process, see what comes out of that experience and then we’ll continue to evaluate it.”

The Saints also appear thin at wide receiver.

They traded starter Rashid Shaheed to Seattle last season. They still have top receiver Chris Olave, but his concussion history has left his long-term availability uncertain. There are largely unproven players behind Olave, although the Saints landed a potential starter when they traded for New England rookie Ja'lynn Polk last season. Polk was hurt and unable to play at the time the trade was made, but New Orleans was willing to wait until 2026 for him to make his Saints debut.

In the meantime, it would not be surprising to see the Saints use their top pick on a receiver such as Ohio State's Carnell Tate or USC's Makai Lemon.

Don’t need

Even before Carr's sudden retirement because of a degenerative condition in his throwing shoulder, the Saints hoped they'd found their QB of the future when they took Shough out of Louisville. By midseason, he'd become the starter and went 5-4 for a team that finished 6-11.

That solidified Shough's status and greatly lessened the likelihood of the Saints using a high draft choice on a QB in 2026.

With Etienne joining a backfield that — at least for now — still includes veteran Alvin Kamara, the Saints have no pressing need at running back — not that they wouldn't take Notre Dame's Jeremiyah Love if they could.

“I feel like our running back room is just a really healthy room right now, just with the depth and experience and all the guys that are in there,” Moore said.

Meanwhile, the Saints have used first-round picks in 2024 and 2025 on offensive tackles. Banks and 2024 first-rounder Taliese Fuaga both started as rookies and appear to have bright futures on opposite ends of New Orleans' offensive line.