The draft was a little weird, but ultimately New Orleans landed a top playmaker.
The prophecy of the mock drafts has come true. The New Orleans Saints selected Arizona State's Jordyn Tyson to pair with Chris Olave and Tyler Shough to form a formidable passing trio. The Saints passed on Caleb Downs and Rueben Bain, Jr. to select Tyson, meaning he was always the target for Mickey Loomis.
With the rumors swirling about possible trades in the first round for New Orleans, the Saints stayed put with five first-round trades on the night. Staying put at the eighth pick worked out beautifully. One can wonder whether Carnell Tate was the target, but Tennessee took that decision away from New Orleans and the rest of the draft order.
Here is what Tyson brings to the Saints:
- Able to play every receiver spot on the field.
- Plays with ideal suddenness and cut quickness underneath.
- Routes are smooth and manipulative to induce leverage.
- Stems routes suddenly, leaving man coverage temporarily stranded.
- Digs hard on posts to gain ground before looking for the ball.
- Uses off hand to maintain leads and landing zones down the sideline.
- Highly competitive to hog the catch space and win contested catches.
- Ball skills feature impeccable body control and high-point timing.
- Showed willingness in 2024 to put hat on hat as a run blocker.
- Coached by former NFL standout Hines Ward at Arizona State.
The Saints made the correct choice. It was hard to make a poor choice with the players left on the board, but Tyson is a phenomenal addition and makes the Saints offense formidable.
The concerns with Tyson are injury related. Tyson suffered knee (2022), collarbone (2024) and hamstring (2025) injuries during his college career.
Although an anonymous NFL scout says: “He injured both hamstrings in that Texas Tech game but still played through it and then single-handedly closed that game out for them. He wouldn’t check out.”
His toughness shouldn't be questioned. The Saints offense is now loaded with Tyson, Olave, Shough, Travis Etienne, Alvin Kamara, and Juwan Johnson. Kellen Moore must be excited to construct this offense with the growth from last year and the latest additions.
The Saints should be the favorites in the NFC South. Carolina added OT Monroe Freeling, Tampa Bay selected EDGE Rueben Bain, Jr. and Atlanta didn't have a first round pick due to their trade up in last season's draft.
New Orleans has a leg up on their division rivals after day one of the NFL draft.