There are only four teams that have spent fewer selections in the NFL draft than the New Orleans Saints since they promoted Mickey Loomis to general manager back in 2003.
Those teams are the Minnesota Vikings (285), Los Angeles Chargers (282), Pittsburgh Steelers (268) and the league-low Green Bay Packers (267 players drafted), according to the data from Stathead and Pro Football Reference.
You could argue that the Saints have been successful despite owning so few draft picks through Loomis’ habit of trading them away. Over that same time period under Loomis, the Saints rank 10th-best in win percentage (going 199-157, or .558). And that’s the case for all five of these teams, which rank inside top-11.
That’s not to say the few draft picks are the exact reason for that, though. It is also important to consider stable quarterback play, what the coaching staff is doing and how that may hide any potential mistakes or misfortunate. Whether it’s Sean Payton and Drew Brees, Mike Tomlin and Ben Roethlisberger, Aaron Rodgers and Mike McCarthy or just going from Philip Rivers to Justin Herbert under center, getting the right people in the right positions (and keeping them there) has lifted each of these squads and made up for what they lacked on the depth chart.
But now Loomis doesn’t have Payton or Brees propping him up. Years of gambling on draft-day trades hasn’t paid off. His record without Payton leading the team is 49-66, a win percentage of just .426. That would be the seventh-worst win percentage in the league since 2003. If Loomis can’t get this head coach hire right, that’s going to be his legacy.
All things considered, it will be interesting to watch how the Saints make use of their opportunities in the 2025 NFL draft with a very important offseason ahead.
