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Sean Payton reviews the New Orleans Saints 2014 NFL Draft

New Orleans Saints Head Coach Sean Payton
Post-Draft Media Availability
Saturday, May 10, 2014

Opening Statement: “Let me just kind of hit on these last four picks and give you an idea of where we see these players playing positionaly. I think that will help and then we can open it up to questions. First off, Khairi Fortt we just drafted from Cal. We see him as an inside linebacker candidate. We felt like he was a good player; not (just) on a good defense but you see his speed, (and) athleticism. We also feel like he would be someone that should be able to play special teams. He is the player that transferred from Penn State to Cal, so we see him playing an inside linebacker at that weakside position, the Will. Vinnie Sunseri is a safety from Alabama who is coming off an ACL surgery. That procedure went real well. He will be able to participate in the drills we have during the OTAs and minicamp and certainly without the contact. That shouldn’t be a problem. He is a player that should also excel on special teams and he did at Alabama. Ronald Powell is the outside linebacker, Sam linebacker, we drafted from (the University of) Florida. We see him as a Sam playing outside. And then lastly, Tavon Rooks, the tackle from Kansas State, we see him as an offensive tackle.”

How do you juggle guys that are coming off of injuries?
“Typically we have a meeting during the process and we go through every player that has an injury grade. We did that two weeks ago. Specifically, for instance, Khairi (Fortt), that took place two years ago really from his transfer season to when he got to Cal. He had a knee procedure done. He has a clean bill of health. (Vinnie) Sunseri was more recent, that procedure, and he even had a pro day where it was limited and yet it was far ahead of schedule. With when that injury occurred we felt pretty good about the medical grade on him. Ronald Powell, again he has played a year and a half since his injury and the last player, Tavon Rooks was pretty clean medically. All of those things are taken into account and are a part of the process. We felt pretty good about where these guys are at and yet recognize the rehab they have gone through. All but Vinnie have played a full season at least, if not two.”

Were any of these defensive players drafted primarily because of how good they are on special teams?
“I would say it factored in certainly with, for instance, Vinnie Sunseri it factored in. Because initially what is he competing for? A roster spot and a chance to get to the 53, be a fourth safety, play special teams, and be a core special teams player, in Khairi’s (Fortt) case, the same way. We felt like added depth inside. It was something we wanted to do. And anytime you bring in a young linebacker you hope and count on those guys to be able to run and be a four core teams player. It factors into it.”

What did you like about Ronald Powell and Tavon Rooks?
“(Tavon) Rooks played right tackle at Kansas State the last two years. (Ronald) Powell was a guy who plays that outside linebacker position. He is pretty strong. He has heavy hands. We felt like he is a guy that has some versatility. We felt like his measurables were good. He plays outside linebacker. I would definitely see him playing that for us, that Sam position, not so much in a stack or off the ball but more on the line of scrimmage. And then with Rooks, you see him at right tackle exclusively. I would say he is a player that is right at 300 pounds and you see his athleticism. He will have to continue to work and keep his weight and even add weight, but he played just under 300 lbs. He has real good feet and athleticism.”

Can you discuss any centers that you looked at and what factored into the decision to not draft a center?
“It wasn’t a deep draft at that position and certainly we had a few players on the board. We had a handful of centers on the board and just never, really never matched. There was never really a time where we sat with one of these selections and discussed that position although we certainly would have and maybe would have liked to. We are finishing up in this seventh round and we will continue to look in the post draft process for guys that we feel like fit that role as someone that can come in. But an interior lineman was something that we had discussed that just never came to where all of a sudden we were comparing a center versus another player. It just seemed to be a round or two off.”

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