1.27 Sam Hubbard, DE Ohio St 6'5" 270

Let's face it, elite edge players do not drop to 27, so sometimes you must improvise. While Hubbard wasn't a bad player at Ohio St, he wasn't exactly Lawrence Taylor. In 40 games he had 17 sacks & 29. TFL. Where he stands out is with his athleticism, specifically his 6.84 3 cone mark. Hubbard has long been lauded by Urban Meyer for his athleticism, having played S & LB in high school. The hope with him is his best days are ahead much like Alvin Kamara.

Other thoughts

If we go offense:

Targets:

-Isaiah Wynn, OL UGA
-DJ Moore, WR Maryland
-Calvin Ridley, WR Alabama
-Will Hernandez, OL UTEP
-Dallas Goedert, TE South Dakota St

The Saints offense as it stands is well equipped to enter the 2018 season without much movement, but should they want to address offense, they would look to fill holes at WR, TE & along the offensive line. I think if a player like OL Isaiah Wynn drops, the Saints would look hard at the UGA product who can play both G/T, filling into Kelemete's role. At WR, they could look to 6'0' 210 WR DJ Moore out of Maryland. He is what they thought Brandin Cooks could be; a WR who turns into a RB after the catch. Dont be surprised if Calvin Ridley falls after a rough combine. Goedert's pro day is coming up, & with a strong showing could solidify himself as a 1st Rd pick. Mike Gesicki is a long shot pick. Athleticism is intriguing, but plays soft.

If we go defense:

Targets:

-Da'Ron Payne, ALA DT
- Sam Hubbard, DE OSU
-Harrison Phillips, DT Stanford
-Maurice Hurst, DL Michigan
-Jessie Bates, S Wake Forest
-Taven Bryan, DL Florida

Free agency has made the Saints defensive needs a little less cloudy, with the additions of Kurt Coleman, Demarrio Davis and Patrick Robinson. The focus has to turn to front 7 on defense. A pass rusher would be nice, but may have to settle for guys like Bryan & Hurst, who are built more like DTs, but could give us some flexibility at in sub packages. Hurst, though a lot like Rankins, could be very interesting should he drop because of heart conditions. Phillps and Payne are your more traditional fire hydrant DTs, Phillps being compared to disruptive Kyle Williams. Jessie Bates at S is my wildcard at 27. Play making DB hybrid with great instincts that could provide us depth at multiple positions.

3.91 Genard Avery, LB Memphis 6'0" 248
-Avery played somewhat of a hybrid LB at Memphis, playing some as an on ball edge rusher as well as an off the ball LB. Great reactionary quickness, ball pursuit, and angle calculation. His athleticism matches up as he had a great combine. 21 sacks 44 TFL in his career. He would bring versatility to our front 7.

4.127 Alex Cappa, T Humboldt State 6'6" 305
-Cappa is a RT, possible Guard target. Has the size and toughness to be an NFL player, just needs the reps. Could learn for a year or 2 as a backup player along the Saints line.

5.147 Justin Watson WR Penn 6'2" 215
-Watson is a white, small school WR. Throw the cliches out the window. Ran 4.4's at pro day today. Slot/outside versatility. Good hands, excellent college production.

5.164 Troy Fumagalli TE Wisconsin 6'6" 248
-Has kind of slipped down boards after combine. Ugly looking athlete but gets it done when the tape comes on. Not much of a blocker, but gives good effort. Good enough pass catcher when he can get open. Would depend on Brees to throw him open, but we must add another guy to our rotation.

6.189 Maea Teuhuma G/T SELU 6'4" 315
-Teuhuma if you might remember was kicked out of LSU for undisclosed reasons. Having played primarily G, he has played a little bit of tackle in his career. If he has over come his immaturities, he'd could out play his draft position much like Carl Nicks did. You could do worse for a 6th Rd pick.

6.201 Bo Scarbrough RB Alabama 6'1" 228
-Scarbrough would add another dimension to our RB corp. Great in short yardage, has burst to break long runs. A hammer to put away games, as well as injury insurance should one of our guys get hurt.

7.245 Ola Adeniyi Edge Toledo 6'2" 248
-Decent college production (8 sacks as JR, 20 TFL) but just an average athletic showing at the combine. Was once poised to move up boards but combine showing could hold him back. Lacks size, length & bend but plays with great effort. Enough there to become a project player