New Orleans Saints way-too-early 2023 three-round mock draft

The New Orleans Saints don’t have a first-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft. This would give them just two picks in the first three rounds. What could those picks look like? 

The 2022 NFL Draft wrapped up two months ago but it’s never too early to start thinking about the next year’s draft. While the New Orleans Saints punted on their first-round pick in 2023 in order to add a second first-rounder in this year’s draft, we can still look ahead to next year’s event and do a way-too-early mock draft.

Rather than do an entire seven-round mock, I went with just a three-round mock. New Orleans had just two picks during this time so they have to make them count.

One pick in particular might seem surprising but hey — This isn’t a real draft and that’s why these mock drafts are so fun to do. You can make these picks for your team and there are no consequences for it.

So, with all of that said, let’s dive into this 2023 mock and see what two players join NOLA.

Mock draft conducted on Pro Football Network 

All stats courtesy of ESPN

Round 2: Pick 44 – Calijah Kancey, DT (Pittsburgh)

With Marcus Davenport, David Onyemata, and Shy Tuttle both set to hit free agency when the 2022 season comes to an end, the Saints have to add a defensive tackle in the early rounds of the draft. Sure they have a lot of depth along their d-line but Calijah Kancey just screams “Future New Orleans Saint”, doesn’t he?

The Pittsburgh product put together an impressive 2021 campaign, totaling 23 tackles with 13 of those coming for lost yardage. He also had 7.0 sacks on the year. He’s exactly what the Saints need to replace two of their potential departing defensive linemen.