K Major

I think you missed the initial point our OP was making.

But to answer your question ... Mathieu, Eric Reid, La'el Collins, Jarvis Landry (we chose SJB instead ), & Jeremy Hill were on the board for us just to name a few. Pro bowlers &/or impact players who have serious value & who would fill a need in New Orleans.

I'm all for drafting players across the country regardless of the school, however it is a bit disappointing to see former Tigers making strides and having solid success for other teams when the opportunities were there to select them.

Carry on .

Utah_Saint

It does tug on the heart strings to see an LSU player, especially a Louisiana native go to another team but of the names you listed, with the exception of Reid, the Saints (at the time) had other needs or weren't ready to take a risk that nobody else was willing to take either.

Mathieu was a very high risk and nobody took him till the 3rd round. The Saints drafted Kenny Vacarro in the first and didn't have a draft pick in the second. By their pick in the 3rd, he was gone. (They took a little hyped player from Arkansas Pine Bluff in the 3rd that's worked out pretty well so far)

Eric Reid was considered by most at the time to be the second best safety in the draft to Kenny Vaccaro. The Saints went with Vaccaro because he was considered more versatile. He could cover in the slot, play punisher in the backfield and excelled against the run.

La'el Collins was involved in a murder investigation. Nobody risked a draft pick on him. After the draft, the Saints pursued him, along with at least 10 other teams but Collins decided the Cowboys were a better fit and that it was a business decision rather than an emotional one.

As Jarvis Landry goes, in the 2014 draft, the Saints took Brandon Cooks with their first pick. We all know Sean loves his burners. Two receivers in the first two rounds would've been excessive considering all the other needs the team had, especially in the defensive backfield so they went with SJB. That was just a bad pick all around.

When Jeremy Hill was drafted, also in the 2014, the Saints had Mark Ingram, Pierre Thomas, Kirby Robinson and Travis Cadet. Running back wasn't a need worthy of a first round pick and he was gone in the second before we picked again.

Hind site is 20/20 but with the exception of Reid, I think the Saints had very good reasons to choose the way they did. Certainly not some kind of bias against LSU.

The Dude

We didn't need Hill, and he isn't exactly lighting it up. Mathieu just wasn't a gamble Payton wanted to take. Yea SBJ was probably one of the worst picks they have made since Payton has been here. I am still scratching my head about that.

billyt81

Dude Hill is lighting it up. He ran for a ton vs us. OK bad example but didnt he run for 1300 yds rookie year?

K Major

2015 Co rushing TD leader. Not bad for the hometown product (Baton Rouge). Cincy gave him another chance and he is making the most of it. Good for Hill .