Possible players the Saints could trade on draft night

Let’s look at some hypothetical trades that could be made.

Not having a third or fourth round pick increases the odds of the New Orleans Saints trading up in this year’s NFL Draft. The Saints do not like to sit and wait till a player drops to them, and this year should not be any different. They could use their copious amounts of day three picks to trade up, but there is another way to acquire earlier picks. On draft night, we have seen some trades over the years that include players for picks, but not too many. I wanted to see what players could be traded away from the Saints and what they would get in return.

James Hurst

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Although this might not be the most exciting trade, there is a high potential for it to happen. James Hurst has been a pure backup offensive lineman for the Saints and never made the important impact that fans hoped for. Hurst was supposed to be a backup who could play all positions on the offensive line. This flexibility is why he can still sustain value, but the Saints could be looking to trade him, even with the current offensive line woes. Hurst will not be a good fit in the new offensive scheme, and there is a good chance that a team will take him as a depth piece. Understandably, this trade could be risky, but if the Saints use at least two picks on the offensive line and use post-draft free agency to sign at least one more, then the risk could be worth it. A trade will save some cap space with a small dead cap hit. Two teams that I like for trade partners are the Jacksonville Jaguars and the New York Jets. These teams have arguably had worse offensive line play in 2024 than the Saints. This would cause the Jets and the Jaguars to be in the market for more depth on that side of the offense. Both teams have two 4th round picks in this year’s draft, which would allow the Saints to trade Hurst for one of them. There would probably be some draft capital attached to Hurst for the trade to go through.

Saints: James Hurst & 6th round-#190 < ------ > Jets: 4th round-#134

OR

Saints: James Hurst & 5th round-#175 < ------ > Jaguars: 4th round-#116

Pete Werner

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This transaction would hit the fan base much harder than the Hurst trade. Pete Werner is a well-liked player who has made an impact on defense. The Saints and fans have hoped that Werner would be the successor for Demario Davis, and before last season, that looked to be true. In the 2023 NFL Season, Werner did not take the next expected step and took a step back. The linebacker out of Ohio State always struggled with pass protection, but that was fine because of his tackling and blitzing ability. Last season, Werner struggled overall, and it was a worrying sight. Having a good linebacker in the current NFL is tough, but Werner has potential. He is still relatively young and has shown flashes of greatness. There is a good chance that another team will see this and decide to trade for Werner. One team that I see targeting Pete Werner in a trade is the Green Bay Packers. The Packers are in need of a linebacker and could draft one in the first three rounds, but they might want to go with the less risky choice and trade for one. Now the question is, why would the Saints do it?

One of the main reasons the Saints could make this move is that Pete Werner is entering a contract year. There are two questions created because of Pete Werner’s contract year: How much will his next contract be? Will the Saints even want to bring him back? If Werner has a good year, his next contract could be decently expensive. The Saints are trying to chip away at the cap and will not want to spend much on another linebacker. That means even if Werner does play well, he will probably walk in free agency. If Werner disappoints next season, the Saints probably won’t bring him back, and his trade value will drastically drop. Now might be the perfect time to trade him and not risk the large chance you won’t get anything for him in the long run. Going off of the cap management, the Saints would rather draft more prospects so they can have a good number of players on cheap rookie deals.

Saints: Pete Werner & 7th round-#239 < ------ > Packers: 3rd round-#88

Marshon Lattimore

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This is the one trade in this article that has already been discussed extensively. Marshon Lattimore and trade rumors have been going hand in hand since the end of the 2023 season. The difference with this trade compared to the other two I talked about is that there is a rocky relationship between the player and the front office. Every single person who is involved with the Saints in any way wants this situation to be fixed. The Saints front office wants this fixed; the Saints media wants this fixed, and the Saints fans want this fixed. If it comes to the point that there is just no way for this to happen, then a trade will happen. The question then becomes, when? The issue with trading Lattimore on draft night is a massive dead cap hit that comes with the trade. As I mentioned, the Saints are focused on fixing the cap issue, and this trade won’t follow that thinking. The only way a trade would happen is if a first-round pick is on the table and a prospect is there that the Saints value highly. There is a much better chance of a trade happening post-June 1st for a pick in 2025. Because of this trade, the Saints would need to draft or sign a slot corner. Alontae Taylor and Paulson Adebo will be your boundary corners, and they would still be a fairly strong position group.

If this trade does happen in the 2024 NFL Draft, who will send a first for Lattimore? Two suitors I see being interested are the Detroit Lions and the Baltimore Ravens. Both teams need a cornerback and are in win-now positions. There are also a lot of New Orleans Saints links on the Lions, and for the Ravens, the Saints would want to send Lattimore to an AFC team. The Lions and the Ravens have back-to-back picks at 29 and 30, so the trade from each team would look virtually the same. There is the potential for this trade to happen, but the difference between the James Hurst and Pete Werner trade is that the Lattimore trade does not make sense financially. That would be the biggest reason this trade does not occur on draft night.

Saints: Marshon Lattimore & 5th round-#175 < ------ > Lions: #29 or Ravens: #30