4 NFL draftees NOLA Saints regret passing up for Zack Baun

Alex Highsmith is a tackling machine and was still available

With the No. 102 pick of the 2020 NFL Draft, the Pittsburgh Steelers took Alex Highsmith out of Charlotte. The defensive lineman was been one of the best players on Pittsburgh’s roster this year, totaling 58 tackles (12 for loss), 11 QB hits, and three sacks through 13 starts.

As mentioned in the Greenard section, New Orleans is in a much better spot on their defensive line now that both Davenport and Onyemata are back in the picture. Davenport has been injured throughout the season and Onyemata was serving a six-game suspension and those absences showed early on, especially in the pass-rushing department.

Highsmith has been a nice player for the Steelers, appearing in all 16 games last year and only missing one game so far in 2021. When he’s on the field, he makes a differene defensively and with how well this Saints defense is performing already, Highsmith would have only made them tougher.

But instead, NOLA took Zack Baun, who hasn’t recorded a single sack yet as a professional NFL linebacker.

Teams whiff on picks all the time but the 2020 draft was a really bad one for the New Orleans Saints. Ruiz, Baun, and Adam Trautman were their first three picks in that draft and they’ve all been disappointments.

Fortunately, the 2021 class already looks loads better.