Saints grab yet another different franchise QB in Todd McShay’s latest mock

Another day, another mock draft.

Another mock draft, another quarterback sent to the New Orleans Saints in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft.

In Todd McShay’s recent first round mock draft for ESPN (Insider required), the Saints grab their franchise quarterback with the 18th overall selection, and add a name many in Who Dat Nation have hoped the Saints will consider:

18. New Orleans Saints

Matt Corral, QB, Ole Miss

Despite a big contract, Taysom Hill isn’t the Saints’ answer at quarterback. Will they re-sign Jameis Winston? Could they find a way to make a big improvement via trade? New coach Dennis Allen will exhaust all options under center, though the team’s perpetual salary-cap concerns could limit them. New Orleans tied Carolina for a league-low 58.1% completion percentage in 2021, and their 187.4 passing yards per game were last in the NFL. Corral has a live arm, will lead receivers into extra yardage and can tuck-and-run when necessary. He’s tough in the pocket, but that has brought on some durability concerns that will need to be evaluated. Corral hurt his ankle in Ole Miss’ bowl game.

This is an interesting mock draft to say the least.

Pittsburgh quarterback Kenny Pickett, largely seen to be the number one quarterback in this year’s class, went 11th overall to the Washington Commanders. Knowing that the New Orleans Saints were likely to grab one of the top quarterbacks left with the 18th pick, McShay predicts the Pittsburgh Steelers jump ahead of the Saints to grab their preference of quarterback with the 17th overall pick. In this mock draft, the Steelers jumped to the 17th pick in a trade with the Los Angeles Chargers to select Liberty quarterback Malik Willis, a player who has shot up many draft boards after a strong Senior Bowl performance.

Those three were the only quarterbacks selected in the first round. For those curious, there were still plenty of wide receivers available for the Saints in McShay’s draft. Arkansas’s Treylon Burks (19th overall to the Philadelphia Eagles), Ohio State’s Chris Olave (22nd overall to the Las Vegas Raiders), Alabama’s Jameson Williams (27th overall to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers), and Penn State’s Jahan Dotson (30th overall to the Kansas City Chiefs) were all there for the taking for New Orleans.

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