Going into the 2024 NFL Draft, everyone knew the New Orleans Saints would select an offensive lineman. By the time the Saints were on the clock with the 14th-overall pick, Taliese Fuaga was the best available lineman. He quickly proved to be a great selection for New Orleans.
Fuaga was essentially the starting left tackle the second he got the call from the Saints on draft night, and it didn’t take long for him to prove that was the right decision. He impressed his teammates and coaches all offseason, and when the season arrived, everyone saw why.
He was a physical force in the run game, moving defenders down field, and he was solid in pass protection as well, doing his part in keeping the quarterback clean. While it wasn’t a great year for the Saints, Fuaga proved he was one of the best rookies in the league to anyone who was paying attention.
Despite that, he was ranked surprisingly low in NFL.com’s end-of-season rookie rankings. On the list of 25 first-year players, Fuaga was ranked at No. 23— six spots down from his mid season ranking of 17.
Taliese Fuaga ranked No. 23 amongst rookies
Gennaro Filice, who did the rankings and the write ups, praised Fuaga for excelling as a run blocker and in pass protection, and pointed out how he proved the scouts that wanted him to move to guard wrong. He quickly established that he has the tools to be an elite tackle in the league.
As for why he dropped, and just barely made the top 25, Filice said the rookie “struggled at times, particularly against speed rushers like Denver’s Nik Bonitto, who had the rookie grasping at air. But overall, it was a highly encouraging debut season.”
The 2024 class is undoubtedly an elite class, and Saints fans will certainly argue that Fuaga’s rank should be higher in the loaded class. Ultimately, what really matters is New Orleans having a left tackle it can build around in the coming years.