Kool-Aid McKinstry the Lone Selection for the Saints on Day 2 + Day 3 Prospects to Watch
The Saints indeed made a trade on the second day of the NFL Draft, moving up four spots to take Alabama cornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry with the 41st overall pick.
Although maybe not the biggest need for the Saints, McKinstry is a surefire first round talent that was an absolute steal outside of the top 40 – as he was in my “should be gone tier” of players still available after day one. At 6’0, 200 lbs, Kool-Aid is pretty much a perfect scheme fit in what has worked for Dennis Allen in the past. He is a long, physical corner who played field corner for Nick Saban – barely getting targeted in his two years as a full time starter at Alabama. It was a head scratcher to why he was still available after 32 picks, and the Saints did not let him continue to slide – as they hopped from pick 45 to 41 to select the Alabama corner.
When thinking of the ideal prototype at cornerback in Dennis Allen’s system, McKinstry is a seem-less fit because of his size, physicality and prowess in press-man coverage. In my opinion, Kool-Aid is the best pure corner in the draft – I believed he would be a surefire first round pick. However, a historic run on offense in the first round led to the board being stacked defensively going into round two. The Saints took major advantage of this, grabbing a player of this caliber in the second round.
When watching his highlight tape, maybe the best part of is it’s not very long because there were not many teams that tried his side of the field. His ability combined with Allen’s proficiency at developing secondary pieces makes this as close to a sure thing as you can get in the second round.
You will be hard-pressed to find a more refined player at this position coming out of college. Although corner was not at the top of the team’s biggest needs, they landed an absolute steal at this slot. With the uncertainty surrounding the future of Marshon Lattimore, as well as Paulson Adebo being in a contract year, the Saints gave themselves a ton of security in landing one of the top cornerbacks in the draft without giving up much capital.
The Saints have made two pretty strong selections thus far, but the issue is that they have only been on the clock two times in the first 100 picks. With the amount of needs still unaddressed, there is still a lot of work to do for Mickey Loomis and Co. Here are some players that could be enticing options with the litany of selections that the Saints have on day three.
Day 3 Watch
Pass Catchers:
- Troy Franklin, WR, Oregon
- Theo Johnson, TE, Penn State
- Brenden Rice, WR, USC
- Malik Washington, WR, UVA
- Javon Baker, WR, UCF
- Cade Stoever, TE, Ohio State
Addressing pass catcher in some sort of capacity is still paramount for the Saints. Lucky for them, this receiver class will continue to show its depth with the still quality names on the board. Franklin and Rice both are incredible value at this point in the draft, and the Saints should easily be making calls this morning to grab one of the two. Johnson and Stoever are also very strong options to upgrade their fairly thin tight end room, however, receiver should be at the top of the list of priorities for the Saints.
Defensive Lineman:
- Mehki Wingo, DL, LSU
- Justin Eboigbe, DL, Alabama
- Mohammad Kamara, EDGE, Colorado State
Another area of concern for the Saints lies along the defensive line, where their lack of athleticism continuously got exposed time and again last season. These three players all give a burst that will improve the team when facing quarterbacks with duel-threat ability. Going into the draft, pass rush was clearly one of the teams biggest areas of need, all three options above all possess unique speed and quickness that has been missing the past few years. As quarterbacks continuously get faster, the Saints must finally adapt to make sure they don’t sit amongst the league’s worst in sacks again next year.
Others:
- Jaden Hicks, S, Washington State
- Jaylen Wright, RB, Tennessee
- Christian Mahogany, OL, Boston College
- Javon Foster, OT, Missouri
- Spencer Rattler, QB, South Carolina
- Kitan Oladapo, S, Oregon State
These are another few players that are intriguing options for the Saints. The are in a position where there is no position group that is off limits to add a player to. Adding another offensive lineman (any position really) and another box safety feels very necessary at this point, but quarterback and running back may be possibilities as well. Any of the six listed above would be very good value as the draft continues to move on, but possibilities are endless here.
100 picks in and only two selections made for the Saints so far. Fuaga and McKinstry are both very safe prospects that should be very impactful players quickly, however, there are still many areas of need on the team and that should make for a fascinating final four rounds for the Saints. You will hear a lot today about the percentage of 53-man rosters that are made up from day three selections, and although this is mostly so people don’t change the channel, it is a very real stat. There are still plenty of good players left on the board, and the Saints are slated to make five selections today – although we know that often changes for Mickey Loomis.
