Saints 2021 NFL Draft Prospect Analysis: Terrace Marshall, Jr.

As we grow closer to the 2021 NFL Draft, we will start to analyze the options the Saints have at the picks they have in each round in our Saints’ Draft Prospects.

The Saints‘ wide receiver corps was dismal last year. When you finish a season and your running back has more catches than any single wide receiver on your team, you know something needs to be fixed to ensure that doesn’t happen again.

I don’t want to take anything away from Alvin Kamara’s great season, but he should not be leading the team in receptions. Michael Thomas, whether by injury or disciplinary action, missed over half of the season after a record-breaking season the year before.

The team brought in Emmanuel Sanders to help, which it did, but not like they wanted it to. Sanders is also a short-term option as he will likely either be released this offseason or leave in free agency the next offseason.

New Orleans is still looking for a long-term option. The best place to find a long-term option is the NFL Draft. You get a young player that will be around for a while and you get the opportunity to develop their NFL talent from the minute they get drafted.

If that’s the case, then the Saints need to be interested in Terrace Marshall, Jr. from Louisiana State University. Marshall played with Joe Burrow in 2019 and caught 46 passes for 671 yards and 13 touchdowns with Justin Jefferson and Ja’Marr Chase on their way to a National Championship.

This year, without Burrow, Chase, or Jefferson, Marshall still put up 48 receptions for 731 yards and 10 touchdowns. He is a big playmaker at 6-foot-3, 200 pounds. There are still things that Marshall needs to work on, but all-in-all he will be a quality receiver in the NFL.

The Saints’ coachings staff will bring around his dropped passes and blocking inconsistencies, but you can’t train size, and he also has tremendous agility, vertical, and hands. The Saints should reach and get him with their second round, No. 60 overall pick.