Saints Among Several Teams to Meet with Iowa Kicker Drew Stevens

The Saints should add competition at the kicker position

Feb 25, 2026; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Iowa place kicker Drew Stevens (PK04) speaks during the NFL Scouting Combine at the Indiana Convention Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The New Orleans Saints currently have one kicker under contract as the offseason programs approach.

That kicker, Charlie Smyth, played just six games for the Saints last season, making 12 of 16 field goals, including four from 50 yards or more. While New Orleans seems to believe that Smyth can be the long-term solution, they'd be wise to bring in a second kicker for added competition.

Enter Iowa kicker Drew Stevens, who told NFL Draft OnSI's Justin Melo that he had lunch with the Saints after Iowa's Pro Day. Stevens is said to have impressed at the Pro Day, just a few weeks after attending the 2026 NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis.

The Saints could consider bringing Stevens in

Stevens played four seasons with the Hawkeyes, maintaining an 80 percent field goal percentage, including 12 made from beyond 50 yards. In 2025, Stevens made four field goals from beyond 50 yards and his longest was 58 yards, earning an 87.3 PFF field goal grade, which ranked 26th out of 253 eligible college kickers.

The Saints are just one of many teams to meet with Stevens, who says he also had sit-down interviews with the Atlanta Falcons, Los Angeles Rams, and New York Jets, along with a private workout with the Tennessee Titans.

The former Iowa Hawkeye is PFF's third-highest-ranked kicker in the 2026 draft class, trailing Florida's Trey Smack and BYU's Will Ferrin. In past years, several kickers have been picked early in the draft (Jake Moody was selected No. 99 overall in 2023), but it seems unlikely that will happen this year. The most likely scenario is that one of the three kickers gets chosen in the later rounds, probably the sixth or seventh.

Saints general manager Mickey Loomis and the rest of the front office might consider using one of their final draft picks on Stevens or another kicker in the class. New Orleans has pick No. 190 in the sixth round, which would be an ideal spot. They could also wait until the draft concludes in hopes of using their draft capital on a higher-impact position, while still bringing in a player to compete with Smyth.