Experts Grades And Analysis On Saints Draft
 

Myself, I give a C+. I love the fact that Payton refuses to sit still on what was the best offense in the NFL last year. We definitely added a starter and some depth to the O.

Considering the offseason signings to the defensive side, I would say that we made some holes smaller (dunno about filled, yet) lol.

I still believe that we should have drafted a solid DT. Just me. I am happy with the overall draft.


Here's what the experts say: :rolleyes:


Charles Robinson, Yahoo Sports: Grade: B
Wideout Robert Meachem was a solid pick in the first round, but Greg
Olsen seemed to make more sense and still offered a good offensive
weapon. Cornerback Usama Young has a ton of experience and could
develop into a solid starter, which is good third-round value.
Offensive tackle Jermon Bushrod and cornerback David Jones were solid
small-school gambles. The fourth-round pick of Antonio Pittman is
fantastic value and might foreshadow the departure of Deuce McAllister
after the 2007 season. Basically, a good, solid draft for depth.
............
John Czarnecki / FOXSports.com: Grade: B-
I know the Saints lost Joe Horn, but they ignored several defensive
needs to take speedy Tennessee receiver Robert Meachem in the first
round. A dozen teams ranked Meachem only behind Calvin Johnson in this
draft, so that should make Drew Brees very happy. The other pick that
stood out was Ohio State RB Antonio Pittman in the fourth round.
Pittman started two consecutive seasons for the Buckeyes and only lost
the football twice on 557 rushing attempts. Pittman averaged 5.3 yards
a carry and is a physical inside runner. But how does he get on the
field with Deuce McAlister and Reggie Bush on your roster? After having
tremendous success with two small school players last season, the
Saints continued the trend by taking players from Kent State, Akron,
Towson and Wingate.
.........
Dr. Z/CNNSI Grade C
We are so sophisticated now that size and speed numbers, such as WR
Robert Meachem's 6-2, 215 and 4.39, which would have, at one time, left
us positively flabbergasted, are merely taken for granted. "Must be
able to shake the coverage," we murmur, and that's what I hear about
Meachem, their No. 1 pick. Of further interest is the choice of Ohio
State's premier runner, Antonio Pittman, in the fourth round.
Productive, but hardly dazzling. And how will he work into the
McAllister-Bush rotation?
.............
War Room scouts Grade B-
The Saints gambled on talented athletes who are not polished players,
including WR Robert Meachem, CB Usama Young and G Andy Alleman. The
best value pick, RB Antonio Pittman, will be stuck behind Deuce
McAllister and Reggie Bush.
...........
Pete Prisco, CBS Sportsline: Grade B
Best pick: Third-round pick Andy Alleman, a guard from Akron, is a
tough guy who will find a spot in the lineup in a year or two.

Questionable move: Not drafting a defensive tackle. They need help in
the middle.

Second-day gem: Running back Antonio Pittman. He wasn't a need pick,
but the value was too great in the fifth round.

Overall: I like Robert Meachem in the first round, but third-round
pick Usama Young might have been a reach in the third round.
....................

Mel Kiper,ESPN.com: GRADE: B-
New Orleans went with Robert Meachem, the best available player on the
board. The Saints weren't desperate for a wide receiver but this was
still a good pick. Cornerback Usama Young has a lot of physical talent,
but his play at Kent was up and down. Taking Young in the third round
could qualify as a reach. Young might have been a reach, but guard Andy
Alleman was a quality pick in the third round. Antonio Pittman will
give New Orleans more depth at running back; Jermon Bushrod is a
quality prospect at left tackle; and David Jones from Wingate was a
good sleeper pick. He had 15 career interceptions was real good
small-college defensive back. Marvin Mitchell will be a backup
linebacker.

..................
Tom Weir, USA Today (Two Stars out of Four)
The Saints were expected to emphasize defense, but couldn't pass up
getting another wideout for Drew Brees when Robert Meachem was
unexpectedly available at No. 27. Second-round DB Usama Young fills a
need.

B's... looks like the experts thought we had a solid draft. And if some of these unknowns are productive, it would be much higher.

Like I said before, solid but not spectacular draft class. I can dig it.

I think thats a very good point here. I think our draft was average to above average, but our division foes especially ATL and CAR stocked up in the draft. I think our draft certainly solidified depth at some positions. I think we came away with one guy that could be penciled in as a starter in Meachem. The others certainly have potential, provide depth, and could surprise people in camp. But our foes certainly improved their respective teams greatly.

Were you this negative after last years draft too??? If so I am sure you were upset with Jahari Evans and Marcus Colston. Maybe we should have passed on those guys and taken a couple of BIG school players. I think the staff knows just a "little" more than we do. I personally like the pics of Young and AA in the 3rd. The thing that we must remember is that our coachs have a chance to evaluate these players on a personal level. We build our mock drafts based on media info.

The only time you can REALLY get/give an accurate grade to this draft is 3-5 years from now.

"In Payton we trust!"


JMO

Yeah I think there isnt really a way to grade a draft today aside from potential. Its not being negative or unhappy with the draft but acknowledging and giving due credit to Carolina and Atlanta for what seems to be based on potential, exceptional drafts.

I agree with ya. I REALLY like Carolinas draft. Both Atlanta and Carolina have some "big name" players. So their drafts definately look better than ours on paper(if you believe that these so called "experts" know what they are talking about). The Falcons better hope that their new staff is more adept at evaluating talent than the previous group(Roddy White, Michal Jenkins, Brian Scott, etc....All bad 1st rounders)

"In Payton we trust"

Then I guess you would take EVERY one of these BIG school guys over the Colston(based on your Johnathan Wade logic):


Santonio Holmes WR OHIO STATE 1 25(25) Pittsburgh
Chad Jackson WR FLORIDA 2 4(36) New England
Sinorice Moss WR MIAMI (FLA.) 2 12(44) New York
Greg Jennings WR WESTERN MICHIGAN 2 20(52) Green Bay
Travis Wilson WR OKLAHOMA 3 14(78) Cleveland
Derek Hagan WR ARIZONA STATE 3 18(82) Miami
Brandon Williams WR WISCONSIN 3 20(84) San Francisco
Maurice Stovall WR NOTRE DAME 3 26(90) Tampa Bay
Michael Robinson WR PENN STATE 4 3(100) San Francisco
Brad Smith WR MISSOURI 4 6(103) New York
Cory Rodgers WR TCU 4 7(104) Green Bay
Jason Avant WR MICHIGAN 4 12(109) Philadelphia
Demetrius Williams WR OREGON 4 14(111) Baltimore
Will Blackmon WR BOSTON COLLEGE 4 18(115) Green Bay
Skyler Green WR LSU 4 28(125) Dallas
Marques Hagans WR VIRGINIA 5 11(144) St. Louis
Mike Hass WR OREGON STATE 6 2(171) New Orleans
Jonathan Orr WR WISCONSIN 6 3(172) Tennessee
Ethan Kilmer WR PENN STATE 7 1(209) Cincinnati
Todd Watkins WR BYU 7 10(218) Arizona
Bennie Brazell WR LSU 7 23(231) Cincinnati
Devin Aromashodu WR AUBURN 7 25(233) Miami
Ben Obomano WR AUBURN 7 41(249) Seattle

I am not saying that ALL small school players pan out, but your logic that "BIG is better" is flawed. I agree that we needed an upgrade at DT, but I think your "needs" should be filled via FA. That way you are getting a player that has NFL experience. I do think that W. Thomas was a GREAT pickup. I too wanted us to draft him, but it worked out better in the end.

I do agree we got lucky with Colston. I don't however think SP purposely drafts guys from smaller schools JUST because they are smaller. We did draft guys 2 guys from Tennessee and one from Ohio St.;) I just think that coach Payton is a tireless worker/scouter when it comes to the Draft. I agree that if you draft ALL of your players form D-1AA schools your team will go downhill in a hurry. But, I also believe that you must fill your TRUE need positions via FA.

I feel out needs this offseason were DT, ILB, CB, SS, TE, and K. After sigining Simmons, Kaesviharn, Eric Johnson, Jason David, and Mare the only TRUE hole we have is DT. Hopefully, Thomas or a post June 1st FA can take care of these. I truly believe that taking hte BPA is the best way to go about the draft. We FINALLY have the luxury and it feels good.

Man, I love to discuss Saints FB!!!:D

All offseason, all I heard on the Saints boards, was how the fans wanted a cornerback, in the draft or in FA. So what do the Saints do, they get a FA and two draft picks, who are CBs. Now all I hear is they should have gotten a DT. I realize now, that most people will not be happy, no matter what they do. Think about it, they want to win. So they are going to do their best, to get the players they think will help them do that. I think they did great, if they got the players they wanted, at the pick they wanted them.

no, most fans would have been happy had we gotten cb's and dt's. i am happy either way...i can just point out that we passed up an opportunity to fill a need.

I understand the sound of the arguement of "but they had a better draft than us!", but that isn't the biggest thing.

You can only grade your teams draft versus what your team needs and plays...and Meachem was the BPA at a position of need. We HAD to get a solid WR that didn't have to be the #1 and we got what many called the #2 guy overall, behind only a dude that breaks every physical mold ever created for the position...not too shabby. Besides, Branch was the DT left that would have been picked and he had questions that made him drop past a couple of other teams that could have used him.

I mean, comparing our draft this year versus another team's, to me, is like my friend that keeps harping about how the panthers beat us twice last year...who cares, cuz in the end we were in the NFCC and they were watching. Pyrrhic victory in my mind.

I think we drafted just fine...as long as most of those guys make it through camp.