Every year, we say that Mickey Loomis can’t keep getting away with this about his salary cap shenanigans, and yet every year Loomis does exactly that. The Saints somehow manage to avoid paying for their past follies until the next year. Somehow they traded for Derek Carr despite being in cap hell for the 200th year in a row. With the change at quarterback and the looming suspension of Alvin Kamara, it will be fascinating to see what kind of impact the Saints’ 2023 rookie class has before the salary cap at long last catches up to them and they face their just deserts!
FULL NEW ORLEANS DRAFT RESULTS
| Rd. | Pick | Player | Pos. | College |
| 1 | 29 | Bryan Bresee | DT | Clemson |
| 2 | 9 | Isaiah Foskey | EDGE | Notre Dame |
| 3 | 8 | Kendre Miller | RB | TCU |
| 4 | 1 | Nick Saldiveri | G | Old Dominion |
| 4 | 25 | Jake Haener | QB | Fresno State |
| 5 | 11 | Jordan Howden | SAF | Minnesota |
| 6 | 18 | A.T. Perry | WR | Wake Forest |
Round 3, Pick 71 Overall: Kendre Miller, Running Back, TCU (5’11” 215 lbs)
Depth Chart:
RB1: Alvin Kamara
RB2: Jamaal Williams
RB3: Kendre Miller
RB4: Dwayne Washington
TALENT
Kendre Miller is a guy who is getting a lot of love from fantasy Twitter, but I honestly don’t see it. That isn’t to say I don’t think Miller is a good prospect: He is. Miller is a big guy with quick feet. He’s a strong and fluid runner. I always saw him pushing the pile forward when someone tried to tackle him.
What I didn’t really see from Kendre Miller was a guy with game-breaking ability. He just doesn’t look very fast on tape. He’s a decent blocker, but as a runner, there wasn’t really anything that stood out to me about him. I honestly can’t tell you if Miller is a good receiver because I don’t think I ever saw his quarterback throw him a catchable ball.
At the NFL, Miller is going to need strong blocking to succeed. He doesn’t look like a guy who can create space on his own. When he has good blocking he shows good vision and has the ability to make himself small in rushing lanes. Kendre Miller has the tools to be a successful running back in the NFL, but he doesn’t look like he’ll be a guy who carries your team to wins on his shoulders.
2023 OPPORTUNITY
I like Kendre Miller, but I think he is currently being overvalued by people because of his situation. People are looking at the looming Alvin Kamara suspension and projecting a lot more opportunities onto Miller than he will likely receive. Even if Kamara misses a lot of time, he will still have to fight Jamaal Williams for these opportunities. Throughout his career, Williams has shown he is a very durable running back. There is a path for opportunities in the New Orleans Saints offense, but it is not as clear a path as some people are making it out to be.
2023 FANTASY FOOTBALL OUTLOOK
Having said all that, Kendre Miller will be fantasy relevant this year. Alvin Kamara is likely to miss at least 6 games this season and most NFL teams like to divide carries between their backs. All Miller has to do is beat out Dwayne Washington to see some touches early, which should not be difficult for him to do. The issue will be in the second half of the season when Kamara returns from his suspension, Miller will find himself with very limited touches right as your fantasy team is fighting for the playoffs. When a player gets his opportunities is just as important to winning as getting opportunities and I’m not convinced Kendre Miller will be a viable fantasy option in the second half of the season.
TALENT
2023 OPPORTUNITY
2023 FANTASY FOOTBALL OUTLOOK
Round 4, Pick 127 Overall: Jake Haener, Quarterback, Fresno State (6’0” 207 lbs)
Depth Chart:
QB1: Derek Carr
QB2: Jameis WInston
QB3: Jake Haener
TALENT
Jake Haener is fine if the Saints’ goal is to develop a backup quarterback. Haener reads defenses well and has good ball placement. He can move around a bit and has nice short and intermediate accuracy. Having said that, Haener isn’t likely to have long-term success for the franchise. When his mechanics are clean, his passes have some zip to them. However, a lot of the time his mechanics get sloppy. Sometimes, he just doesn’t always step into his throws. When his mechanics break down, he loses accuracy and velocity on his throws. Haener has a long wind-up and an average arm, so he really needs to do everything right to maximize his ability. Too much has to go right for him to have long-term success. For all his flaws, I can definitely see him living the Chase Daniel dream of being a backup for the next ten years.
2023 OPPORTUNITY
Jake Haener is a rookie quarterback taken in the fourth round of the 2023 NFL draft. The Saints just traded for Derek Carr. The Saints also have Jameis Winston on the roster. Unless giant undead crabs come back to life seeking retribution for the crimes of Jameis ,and Derek Carr somehow ends up getting caught in the crossfire, resulting in both quarterbacks being killed instantly, Jake Haener has no path to playing in 2023.
2023 FANTASY FOOTBALL OUTLOOK
Dire. Jake Haener’s fantasy football outlook is dire.
TALENT
2023 OPPORTUNITY
2023 FANTASY FOOTBALL OUTLOOK
Round 6, Pick 195 Overall: A.T. Perry, Wide Receiver, Wake Forest (6’3” 198 lbs)
Depth Chart:
WR1: Chris Olave
WR2: Rashid Shaheed
WR3: Michael Thomas
WR4: A.T. Perry
TALENT
The first thing I noticed while watching A.T. Perry’s college film was just how athletic he is. His talent just popped off the screen. Perry is a big boy who moves very well for his size. His feet should not be as fast as they are for a man that big. Perry just explodes out of his breaks. He has good speed off the line of scrimmage.
For as athletic as he is, Perry is also incredibly raw. He’s fast, but he rounds off his routes. While he catches the ball with his hands, Perry doesn’t make tough catches. For a man as big as he is, I wanted Perry to show more physicality. He is a terrible blocker, which is troubling considering how big he is. All he does on run plays is put his body in front of people without actually engaging. This is a serious problem if he wants to see the field at the NFL level.
2023 OPPORTUNITY
A.T. Perry is in as good of a situation as a 6th round rookie can possibly be. Chris Olave is the clear-cut number-one receiver in New Orleans. After that, you have an argument over whether Michael Thomas or Rashid Shaheed is the number two receiver in New Orleans. Thomas has played 8 games in the last 3 years. Shaheed was an undrafted rookie who happened to be the number two receiver on the Saints last year. This is more a statement on the Saints’ receivers than his ability, as his production was pretty pedestrian. There is a role to be carved out in this offense if A.T. Perry can put his considerable physical tools together.
2023 FANTASY FOOTBALL OUTLOOK
The Saints’ passing game is in a much better position than it was last year by virtue of upgrading from Andy Dalton to Derek Carr. Last year, Carr only threw for 3522 yards, but in his previous four seasons Carr cracked 4000 yards passing. I’m willing to blame Josh McDaniels for Carr’s regression because he is a terrible head coach. The problem I have with giving A.T. Perry a good fantasy football outlook for the 2023 season is that, for all his physical tools, he isn’t a very good wide receiver. I can see why he was drafted: Perry has the type of traits a coach can fall in love with. If he were able to put it all together, Perry could be dominant. The problem is if he couldn’t be dominant at Wake Forest, why would he be dominant in the NFL?
TALENT
2023 OPPORTUNITY
2023 FANTASY FOOTBALL OUTLOOK
