Saints Draft Position Right Where New Orleans Needs To Be

There are teams around the National Football League that surely could use some losses right now.

With just a few weeks to go until the 2025 regular season comes to an end, we're starting to get a much clearer playoff picture. Six teams have been eliminated from playoff contention in the AFC (Kansas City Chiefs, Cincinnati Bengals, New York Jets, Cleveland Browns, Las Vegas Raiders, and the Tennessee Titans). In the NFC, six teams have also been eliminated (Minnesota Vikings, Atlanta Falcons, New Orleans Saints, Washington Commanders, Arizona Cardinals, and the New York Giants).

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Of this group, there are surely teams that could use as high a draft pick as possible. If the season were to end today, the Giants would have the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft followed by the Raiders, Titans, Browns, Jets, Cardinals, and Saints as the top seven.

The Saints are trending upwards

Dec 14, 2025; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough (6) attempts to pass the football during the second quarter against the Carolina Panthers at Caesars Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images | Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

Arguably, the Saints aren't one of the teams that necessarily need one of the very top picks because of the performance of rookie Tyler Shough. The Saints don't need a new quarterback and should build around Shough. There are teams out there -- like the Jets or Raiders -- that don't have long-term quarterback plans and need a higher pick more.

For the Saints, the best path forward would arguably be selecting an offensive playmaker, an edge rusher, or someone to boost the secondary in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft. If the Saints end up with the No. 7 pick in the first round, they will have plenty of options at their disposal, especially if quarterbacks go earlier.

Right now, ESPN has Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love as the No. 1 overall prospect in the draft class, followed by linebacker Arvel Reese, defensive tackle Peter Woods, edge rusher Rueben Bain Jr., offensive tackle Spencer Fano, safety Caleb Downs, and quarterback Ty Simpson as the top seven prospects in the class. That doesn't even include Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza who just won the Heisman Trophy and very well could go No. 1 overall.

If the Saints stick around near the No. 7 pick by the time the season ends and could get Love, Reese, Woods, Bain, or Downs, that would be a phenomenal start to the draft. The fact that Shough looks like the guy New Orleans needs should open a lot of exciting doors this upcoming offseason.

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