New Orleans Saints NFL Draft Selection Screams Perfect Fit In New Wide Zone System, Projects As Day One Starter

First round NFL Draft selection Taliese Fuaga sets the New Orleans Saints up to rebuild their offensive line if Ryan Ramczyk's health concerns keep him sidelined.

The board fell perfectly for the New Orleans Saints in the first round of the NFL Draft on Thursday. With six quarterbacks, three wide receivers and a star-caliber tight end flying off the board in the first 13 selections, the Saints were able to stand pat and land their guy. In doing so, they also landed a perfect fit for their upcoming offensive adjustments in Oregon State offensive tackle Taliese Fuaga.

"I think he's kind of a guy's guy," Saints head coach Dennis Allen said. "And I think he's got kind of a tough guy demeanor to him. I think that's something we can use up front. I think he was one of the more mature people that we talked to. I think he's a grown man and I think that's good for that position."

While his character was a big talking point for the Saints brass, so too was his play style. Allen consistently credited Fuaga for his temperment on the field. The former Beaver plays with a mean strong and is a strong player. But in addition to that play strength, he moves well and has experience in an offense that is similar to what the Saints are hoping to install in 2024.

That's probably Oregon State's bread and butter," Fuaga said in his introductory media availability. "I think we were kind of known for that. Hopefully. We did that basically every game, wide zone."

As Allen highlighted during his post-Day 1 availability, every team runs a different style of the offense, but some experience in the scheme definitely has value. Per Pro Football Focus (PFF) charting, Fuaga more than twice the amount of run plays in zone than in man last year with 214 snaps in zone run and just 94 in man/gap schemes.

Such a disparity was also present in 2022 with 305 snaps in zone run and just 86 in man/gap. No matter how you slice it, Fuaga is ready for wha tthe Saints are set to install.

Nov 19, 2022; Tempe, Arizona, USA; Oregon State Beavers offensive lineman Taliese Fuaga (75) against

Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

PFF's mock draft simulator also gives grades for zone and man run blocking performances. While these grades have taken a lot of heat over the years, particular with offensive line play, it is worth a look considering it is a scale on which all offensive lineman are graded. Therefore a good grade is just that, a good grade. Fuaga nears the top of the charts with his 91.3 zone blocking grade.

Running a wide zone offense though does not require just zone calls, but outside zone calls specifically. Examining the the Oregon State offense shows that they relied heavily on outside runs with 41.5% of rushing attempts (even including quarterback scrambles) were outside either the tackle or tight end in 2023. Fuaga was right; wide zone really was his alma mater's bread and butter.

But beyond all of the numbers, metrics and analytics, he simply passes the eye test. In a game against UCLA's Laiatu Latu, who was the first edge rusher off the board on Thursday, Fuaga held his own. Not only in pass protection, but he found ways to consistent pave the way for the run game as well.

He is quick to get to the second level, finishes plays with violence and has the athleticism to lead a runner downfield when the opportunity presents itself. He is indeed a perfect fit for what the Saints shoudl have been, and turns out absolutely were, looking for.

Even the knocks that have been shared about Fuaga throughout the draft process do not seem to cause much concern for the Saints. Coming in with an arm length measurement of 33 1/8 inches led many to assume the career right tackle might have to move inside at the next level. However, Allen did not see the slightly below-prototype arm length cause any issue for the talented lineman on film.

"When I'm watching players," Allen said. "and you see a lack of length show up, not this player in paritcular. I would say that I don't really see it show up as much on his tape."

Next, Fuaga will get the opportunity to compete for some serious playing time in New Orleans. With any concerns mitigated and his highly-praise character and skill, it is clear that he has the what is necessary to earn an immediate impact role.