Draft class filled the NFL teams’ needs adequately

So much for selecting the “best athlete available.”

NFL teams, including the Saints, are filling needs, and, as Sean Payton would say, “paying close attention” to the matchups: Opponents have tall receivers, so we need tall cornerbacks. So said Payton after drafting Nebraska’s Stanley-Jean Baptiste in the second round.

Baptiste stands 6-foot-3. He was selected one day after Tampa Bay picked wide receiver Mike Evans (6-foot-5), and Carolina selected wide receiver Kelvin Benjamin (6-foot-5) in the first round.

Payton mentioned the size of Tampa Bay’s and Atlanta’s receivers: “Guys with real size now. Carolina (also) drafted a big receiver.”

The Saints needed a speedy wide receiver, and they paid a hefty price (a third-round pick) to move up seven spots in the first round. The Saints then selected Oregon State wide receiver Brandin Cooks. With Cooks stretching the field, the Saints hope to reverse an alarming road trend. In five of eight regular-season road games, the Saints scored 17 or fewer points.

The Saints’ draft was also about continuing to infuse the roster with young talent on defense. Seattle and Carolina both have outstanding young quarterbacks, but they won division championships because they have a host of outstanding young players on the defensive side of the ball.

The draft was also telling for colleges. Texas A&M had three of the top 22 picks (Evans, offensive tackle Jake Matthews and quarterback Johnny Manziel). The University of Texas had no draft picks for the first time since 1937.
 
Texas A&M’s move to the SEC is paying dividends.

LSU’s pitch for the great players in Louisiana is simple. Stay home and play in the best league in America. LSU led all colleges with nine drafted players, including one in the first round (Odell Beckham Jr.) and three in Round 2. Alabama was tied with Notre Dame with eight players.

Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly has proven his mettle as a recruiter. In 2011, the Irish had one player drafted (tight end Kyle Rudolph to Minnesota in the second round). In 2013, the Irish had six.

The 2014 NFL draft was where running backs took a pounding on the draft board. Washington running back Bishop Sankey was the first off the board at pick No. 54 to Tennessee. One pick later, LSU’s Jeremy Hill went to Cincinnati.

In 2013, the top five rushers in the NFL had something in common. None were on a team that won a playoff game. Only two, Philadelphia’s LeSean McCoy and Kansas City’s Jamaal Charles, made the playoffs.

Three years from now, barring injury, there will be at least one running back selected in the first round. You may have heard of him. He played at St. Augustine, and next season will play at LSU.

Leonard Fournette is that good.

He’ll give NFL commissioner Roger Goodell that big bear hug and be the first Tiger runner selected in the first round since Joseph Addai went to the Colts with the 30th pick in 2006.

Ed Daniels is sports director of ABC26 WGNO. He can be reached at [email protected].