Rating: (0 votes - average)

The New Orleans Saints traded back into the seventh round of the NFL draft, picking Mississippi State quarterback Tommy Stevens at No. 240.

Stevens, a 6-foot-5, 235-pound senior transferred to Mississippi State from Penn State for the 2019 season and led the Bulldogs to a 6-7 record.

To draft Stevens, the Saints dealt their 2021 sixth-round pick to the Houston Texans.

As a fifth-year senior at Mississippi State, Stevens played in nine games and completed 60.2% of his passes for 1,155 yards with 11 touchdowns and five interceptions.



Stevens, who has been compared to Saints quarterback Taysom Hill on occasion, added 381 yards rushing with four ground scores for the Bulldogs in 2019.

While a backup at Penn State, he completed 58.5% of his passes for 304 yards with four touchdowns and one interception. He added 76 rushes for 506 yards in three years for the Nittany Lions with eight rushing touchdowns and 14 receptions for 62 yards with two receiving scores.

Stevens is the first quarterback drafted by the Saints since 2015 when they picked Garrett Grayson. The last Mississippi State Bulldog the Saints drafted was defensive end Herman Carroll in the fifth round of the 1994 draft.

The Saints ended up drafting four players in the 2020 NFL draft, picking center/guard Cesar Ruiz from Michigan in the first round at No. 24, linebacker Zack Baun from Wisconsin in the third round at No. 74 and tight end Adam Trautman from Dayton in third round at No. 105.

The Stevens trade marked the 20th time the Saints traded up in the last 14 years.

NOLA

SmashMouth

SmashMouth

hitta

I really really like this pick. I think we may have actually found our QB of the future in the 7th round. A few years under Payton and I think he's going to blossom into something great.

Mr.Riaton

That's what I thought about garret Grayson lol

hitta

Yea, I know any QB you draft, especially if it's in the 7th round is like a shot in the dark. Something about this dude though I really like. He has incredibly high upside for a 7th round pick. If he reaches his potential, I really think he has franchise QB potential. Now whether he does that is another question. entirely. He ran a 4.49 40. He also isn't a horrible passer(I think Payton and Brees will help him out quite a bit.). In a few years we may look back at this and realize it was the best pick of the draft.

frydaddy

I highly doubt that. I'd say the odds are just as strong of winning the lottery as this guy ever becoming anything more than camp fodder. Don't know why he's compared to Taysom, he doesn't possess nearly the same level of athleticism as Taysom. And despite that elite athleticism, Taysom will never be a starter either. So yeah, this guy might stick around for a camp or two, then he'll have to get a real job like the rest of us.

K Major

Tommy has a decent arm. Played injured at MSU. Some accuracy concerns.

Long term project.

SmashMouth

Yes... but was it worthy of a trade back into the 7th just so some other team couldn't sign him as an UDFA?

saintsfan1976

3 seasons, max.