Heading into the 2025 NFL offseason, the New Orleans Saints are $51 million over the salary cap, which is the worst cap situation in the league by more than $20 million. This cap quagmire will affect every aspect of the Saints offseason, including the 2025 NFL Draft. So, let’s get into it by looking at a Saints three-round 2025 NFL Mock Draft with trades, according to the Pro Football Network simulator.
With new head coach Kellen Moore now in charge, the smartest thing for the Saints to do this offseason would be to purge the roster of its bloated contracts to aging veterans and start over for real in 2026.
While punting to the season after next makes the most sense, that starts with the 2025 NFL Draft. If New Orleans does it right, these picks will become the foundation of their rebuild.
What does that mean?
For starters, even though this is the Saints’ three-round 2025 NFL Mock Draft with trades, the team should absolutely not trade up for any reason. If they want to trade back, that’s fine (and even recommended), but they simply need more warm bodies with upside in the building this year.
Secondly, it means that there is no such thing as positional need for the Saints. They should take the best player available at all times, laying the foundation for years to come.
With all that in mind, here is the Saints’ three-round 2025 NFL Mock Draft with trades, according to the PFN simulator.
Round 1, Pick 9 — EDGE James Pearce Jr., Tennessee
This first pick that the PFN 2025 NFL Mock Draft simulator spits out is exactly what we’re talking about here as the Saints grab Volunteers’ pass-rusher James Pearce Jr.
Pearce is a little undersized at 6-foot-5 and just 243 pounds and needs to improve strength and add mass if he can. Still, in college, he was an explosive, productive edge rusher who had 17.5 sacks in his last two seasons in Knoxville.
He is a bit of a boom-or-bust prospect, but his upside is a double-digit-sack dominator who you can build an entire defense around. With that as the best outcome, the Saints can afford to take that chance as they rebuild from the ground up.
Round 2, Pick 40 — OG Wyatt Milum, West Virginia
New Orleans actually had a pretty solid offensive line last year. The group finished 22nd in PFF’s final O-line grades, but when center Eric McCoy was not injured, they were much better than that.
Young tackles (and recent first-round picks) Trevor Penning and Taliese Fuaga showed signs of development and veteran guards Cesar Ruiz and Lucas Patrick were both among the top half of starting players at the position.
Still, Moore comes from the Dallas Cowboys and, most recently, the Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles, two offenses whose success comes (or has come in the past) from having dominant O-lines.
Wyatt Milum is a 6-foot-6, 315-pound tackle with short arms who projects as a guard in the NFL. He is tough, smart, and strong, which could make him a stalwart interior offensive lineman for years to come as the next level.
This would be another smart building block pick for the Saints.
Round 3, Pick 71 — QB Jaxson Dart, Ole Miss
One of the biggest burning questions of the 2025 NFL Draft is, after Cam Ward and Shedeur Sanders, who will be the third quarterback off the board?
Jalen Milroe and Will Howard are both candidates, but the leading theory in the days before the NFL Scouting Combine is that Ole Miss signal-caller Jaxson Dart will be that guy.
In this three-round 2025 NFL Mock Draft with trades, the PFN simulator has Milroe going No. 52 in the second round to the Pittsburgh Steelers and Howard at No. 84 in the third to the Cleveland Browns. In between, the Saints take Dart at No. 71.
NFL comps for Dart range from Gardner Minshew to Bo Nix to Brock Purdy or even Jalen Hurts (although a less dynamic runner). If Moore can get something closer out of the high-end comp out of Dart, picking him here is a steal. And if not, a third-round swing on a QB with upside is a smart, low-risk one to take.
Round 3, Pick 93 — OT Ajani Cornelius, Oregon
Like Milum, Ajani Cornelius is an experienced college offensive tackle whose chance at an NFL career is likely reliant on a move inside. In Cornelius’ case, he has the long arms you’d want in an OT but lacks the foot quickness to stop pro edge rushers.
This pick does make sense if Moore wants to build a young offensive line with the potential to get and become an Eagles-like unit in the future. That said, Cornelius could be solid but offers limited upside, which is what we really want to see from the Saints’ picks here.
Players who are available in this Saints mock draft and fit this bill include Pearce’s Tennessee teammate, DT Omarr Norman-Lott, or Colorado State WR Tory Horton.
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