The New Orleans Saints spent money in NFL free agency this offseason, signaling their intention to contend in 2025, adding veterans Justin Reid and Brandin Cooks while re-signing Chase Young and Juwan Johnson. While the free-agency signings signal the club’s short-term plans, bigger moves for the future could come in the 2025 NFL Draft.
New Orleans holds the 9th overall pick in the first round, putting the club in an excellent position to potentially snag a consensus top-seven prospect who falls with Cam Ward and Shedeur Sanders. In all likelihood, the tea will be drafting a top defensive prospect.
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What happens after that is where things get interesting. There are needs across the Saints roster and long-term cap issues make it more challenging to address holes at some of the most important positions in football. That’s part of the reason why New Orleans could take a gamble early in the 2025 NFL Draft.
Sports Illustrated‘s Albert Breer shared that despite the restructured contract Derek Carr agreed to this offseason, there remains a very real chance of New Orleans taking a young quarterback early in the upcoming NFL Draft.
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The Saints have been doing extensive work on the 2025 quarterback class. Not only did first-year head coach Kellen Moore attend Ole Miss’s Pro Day to watch Jaxson Dart, but he’s also been on-hand for private workouts with Ward, Quinn Ewers and Will Howard. Furthermore, Saints’ quarterbacks coach Scott Tolzien worked out Tyler Shough and Kyle McCord at their pro days.
Unless Sanders falls to the ninth overall pick, New Orleans would likely wait until Day 2 to take a quarterback. However, they do have a pair of third-round picks (71st and 93rd overall) and fourth-round picks (112th and 131st overall) that would allow them to move up into the end of Round 1 to take Dart.
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Even if New Orleans lands Dart or Shough, Carr will open the season as the starting quarterback. However, given his recent durability woes and his low ceiling, a rookie may take over as the Saints starting quarterback by December.