New Orleans Saints Trade Up for Ole Miss QB Matt Corral in Latest Sports Illustrated Mock Draft

The New Orleans Saints go all-in on Ole Miss quarterback Matt Corral in the latest projection.

Author:
Ben King
Publish date:
Apr 19, 2022 12:14 PM EDT

In this story:

The mock drafts keep coming in, and Ole Miss quarterback Matt Corral's draft position is still a mystery with the 2022 NFL Draft almost a week away.

Monday, we looked at a mock draft from Sports Illustrated that had Corral being selected third overall by the Houston Texans, the highest Corral has been drafted in a mock all offseason.

In a new Sports Illustrated mock draft, Conor Orr predicts that the New Orleans Saints will trade into the top 10 to select Corral after swapping picks with the Philadelphia Eagles earlier in April.

Matt Corral

This is the reasoning behind the Saints trading up for Corral:

Projected trade: The Giants send pick No. 7 to the Saints. The Saints send pick No. 16, No. 19, No. 49 (a second-round pick) and a second-round pick in 2023 to the Giants.
7. New Orleans Saints (via Giants via Bears): Matt Corral, QB, Ole Miss
We’re assuming, perhaps incorrectly, that the Saints needed that trade with the Eagles to acquire first-round ammunition for a quarterback. We’re assuming, perhaps incorrectly, that longtime Saints offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael Jr. would lean toward the quickest release in the draft. Corral is not Drew Brees, but he gets rid of the ball and will pair nicely with the team’s fleet of playmakers. Here, the Giants would forgo the chance to draft Kyle Hamilton and instead add to their future trade stockpile. (Justin Fields, anyone?) In reality, the Giants might want to hang on to this pick, though having additional draft ammo they may use to someday replace Daniel Jones is intriguing.

New Orleans appears to be ready to move up the draft board after trading picks with Philadelphia, and the Saints do just that, giving the New York Giants both of their first-round picks for the chance to draft Corral.

The Ventura, Calif., native will likely not be ready to start by week one of the NFL season, but that will not be a problem if Corral is drafted by New Orleans. Quarterbacks Jameis Winston and Andy Dalton already occupy the quarterback room in New Orleans, so there would be no need to rush Corral to the field.

Corral is one of the most intriguing prospects in this year's draft. The tough playmaker has all the talent and traits to be a successful quarterback in the NFL, he just needs to be in the right system.