Sportsvival continues its team-by-team draft series with the New Orleans Saints, and this is a team whose first wave of offseason moves clearly showed its direction. New Orleans officially holds the No. 8 pick and eight total selections, and the early focus has been on helping second-year quarterback Tyler Shough while reshaping parts of the roster around him.
The Saints’ main offseason additions so far are guard David Edwards, running back Travis Etienne Jr., linebacker Kaden Elliss, defensive tackle John Ridgeway III, punter Ryan Wright, tight end Noah Fant, offensive lineman Dillon Radunz, and, as of March 17, running back Ty Chandler. The pattern is obvious: New Orleans wanted to get sturdier in the trenches, add playmakers, and clean up special teams while still giving itself flexibility heading into the draft.
The departures matter, too. Linebacker Demario Davis left for the Jets, cornerback Alontae Taylor signed with the Titans, center Luke Fortner signed with the Panthers, tight end Foster Moreau signed with the Texans, tight end Jack Stoll signed with the Browns, and punter Kai Kroeger was traded to Houston. So even after a productive first wave, this is still a roster with real holes to fill.
Top 3 Saints needs
1. Wide receiver
This still looks like the biggest need. The Saints entered the offseason needing more pass catchers for Shough, and while Etienne and Fant help the offense overall, the receiver room still needs another true weapon next to Chris Olave. New Orleans’ own draft coverage has repeatedly pointed to wide receiver as a deep and useful position for this team, and one recent mock roundup showed wide receiver tied with edge as the most commonly projected first-round position for the Saints.
2. Cornerback
Corner was already on the radar before free agency, and losing Taylor only made it more pressing. New Orleans had already been identified as a team that could use slot-corner help, and now the secondary needs another dependable starter-level piece.
3. Edge / defensive front
Even after adding Elliss, the front seven still feels like a spot the Saints can attack. Their own pre-draft coverage has emphasized the depth of this defensive line class and the fact that Brandon Staley’s system is looking for a slightly different type of edge player. That lines up with how often edge shows up in Saints mock-draft projections.
The pick at No. 8: WR Makai Lemon, USC
This is where Sportsvival would have New Orleans go with USC wide receiver Makai Lemon. It fits the biggest remaining offensive need, and it fits the broader point of the Saints’ offseason: make life easier on Tyler Shough. New Orleans’ own draft coverage has already highlighted Lemon as a fit because of what he can do working the middle of the field and creating easy completions, and he has been one of the more common first-round names tied to the Saints in their mock roundup.
Lemon also brings proven production. He posted 79 catches for 1,156 yards and 11 touchdowns for USC in 2025, giving the Saints a polished receiver with real first-round value instead of a projection-based swing.
Put it all together and the Saints’ offseason says the same thing over and over: they are building around Shough, but they are not done. Edwards, Etienne, Fant, Wright and Elliss were good starts, yet wide receiver, corner and edge still stand out as the three biggest needs. If New Orleans stays at No. 8, Makai Lemon feels like the cleanest fit and the move that best matches everything this offseason has pointed