Saints miss out on a top target in Peter Schrager’s 2024 NFL mock draft

Every year, there are a ton of mock drafts as analysts and fans try to predict or suggest what will happen in the actual draft. Also every year, Peter Schrager has one of the most accurate mock drafts. Instead of predicting or showing what he would do if he was a general manager, Schrager’s mock draft is all about what he’s hearing. He talks to a ton of sources around the league during the pre-draft process and then produces his mock draft.

On Tuesday, Schrager released that mock draft and it had some interesting picks. For the New Orleans Saints, who aren’t on the clock until pick 14, Schrager had them going a different direction than most other mock drafts. Penn State tackle Olumuyiwa Fashanu is usually the prospect selected by the Saints at 14, but Schrager has New Orleans drafting Oregon State tackle Taliese Fuaga.

Saints select Taliese Fuaga in Peter Schrager’s mock draft

It's important to note that Schrager didn’t have New Orleans drafting Fuaga over Fashanu. Olumuyiwa Fashanu was actually selected one spot ahead of the Saints by the Las Vegas Raiders in the mock draft. With Fashanu off the board, Schrager has New Orleans drafting Taliese Fuaga.

Schrager highlights that Fuaga is a tackle but can play any position across the offensive line. That bodes well for a Saints team that has question marks at both tackle positions and the left guard spot. Acknowledging that this selection may not generate a ton of excitement from fans, Schrager said he could see Fuaga being a franchise cornerstone for the Saints.

If that’s the case, the draft-day reception won’t even matter; everyone will come around once Fuaga is carving out run lanes for Alvin Kamara and keeping Derek Carr clean. Ultimately, Schrager’s mock draft reiterates what everyone believes to be true about New Orleans’ first round approach: the team is taking a tackle. We just have to wait to see which tackle.

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