With just three games remaining, the New Orleans Saints' 2024 season is all but officially over.
There will be no postseason for the Saints as they get set to finish the home stretch, here, with games against the Packers, Raiders and Bucs. Instead, New Orleans will try to make something of the final trio of contests in hopes they can roll into the offseason with anything notable to build upon.
At the moment, the Saints hold the no. 10 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. What should their strategy be?
To be frank, the strategy should be to try and make the best pick or move possible with where they're at. While it might be a risk to move back considerably from pick no. 10, that's exactly what the Saints do here in our latest mock.
Why? Well, it's difficult to pass up an offer like the Saints are about to receive.
The Saints are offered a trade they simply can't pass up in this 3-Round 2025 NFL Mock Draft
To kick off the mock, Kansas City makes an offer the Saints can't refuse.
New Orleans comes away with a dream type of haul while moving back to the last pick in the first round. From there, they go to work.
After the trade with Kansas City, the Saints take the best player on the board with the final selection of Round 1. Arkansas standout pass rusher Landon Jackson comes in and helps shore up a major need for New Orleans.
Jackson is a monstrous 6-foot-7, 280 pounds with groom to grow, still. He plays with a nonstop motor and wins with a variety of moves. While he's not the fastest at his position, Jackson's strength and length allow him to be a force against the run and as a pass rusher. Over the last two seasons, Jackson has posted 13.0 sacks and 24 tackles for loss.
Is this a long-term solution? Maybe. Is Quinn Ewers well-worth the gamble? Absolutely. Right now, there is a significant question mark at quarterback. Derek Carr won't last much longer and hasn't worked out the way New Orleans originally planned.
Spencer Rattler and Jake Haener may not offer much of a long-term future as the team's could-be starter, and Ewers at least comes in with the college pedigree. He's got the big arm you like to see, but needs to work on the little things such as his footwork and post-snap processing.
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He'd be one to benefit from sitting a year and learning behind someone like Carr, and hopefully the Saints get the right staff in place to develop him.
This might seem misleading, but while Emery Jones played tackle at LSU, he very well could end up as an interior lineman at the NFL level. Fortunately for him, the Saints quite possibly may be able to use him at multiple positions depending on how the offseason goes for them.
Jones stands a towering 6-foot-6 and plays with a lot of aggression and strength, but at times can be too tall in his stance. This might lead him to get beaten on the outside, which is an area he'll have to shore up. But, Jones has the play strength, experience and demeanor to succeed in the NFL. It's just a matter of where he fits best.
For the second-straight pick, New Orleans stays close to home and snags another LSU product. Kyren Lacy is just one more LSU wide receiver in a long line of NFL talent and looks to continue the positive trend.
The 6-foot-2 Lacy possesses good size and can win at all three levels. He's solid after the catch but also runs crisp routes. With the Saints not necessariily knowing what the future holds for Chris Olave, Lacy is a phenomenal pick here. Even if Olave does end up being healthy and returns to the field, Lacy makes a heck of a one-two punch.
The tight end position has been a weird one for a while in New Orleans, as they haven't had a true difference-maker who can absorb the majority of targets here. At 6-foot-5, 230 pounds, Nesbit is your prototypical, athletic, pass-catching tight end. He has the potential to be a legitimate threat in the passing game. While he doesn't offer much in terms of blocking, that's not why the Saints drafted him.
With their second pick in the third round, and sixth overall selection inside the top 87 picks, New Orleans adds to the defensive line by picking Dontay Corleone out of Cincinnati. He will immediately help shore up the Saints' run defense as a big and powerful, gap-stuffing defensive lineman.