No NFL team has given up more yards this season than the New Orleans Saints (2,375), and while much of that has been due to a surprisingly porous pass defense (1,573 yards allowed, third-most), plenty of blame should go to a run defense that’s been a weakness throughout the Dennis Allen era. The Saints are allowing 5.2 yards per carry, second-worst around the league.
So how do they fix it? This 2025 mock draft has a suggestion. Draft Wire’s Curt Popejoy has the Saints picking Michigan’s big defensive tackle Kenneth Grant at No. 9 overall. He may be just who they need next to Bryan Bresee.
Grant arrived on campus at an imposing 350 pounds and slimmed down to a more-manageable 339, and he’s one of the best all-around athletes in college football. Michigan has sent plenty of defensive linemen to the NFL but the 20-year-old has broken many of their weight room records while impressing the Wolverines’ strength and conditioning staff.
Whether or not it’s Allen conducting the Saints defense again in 2025, the interior line will need more attention. It’s mostly been a one-man show from Bresee outside of occasional stops by Nathan Shepherd, and Khalen Saunders’ impressive interception return (which really isn’t something we should expect from a nose tackle). Rookie draft pick Khristian Boyd has been benched in favor of John Ridgeway III, who the Saints traded for just before the season started.
Someone like Grant could absolutely be in play for next year’s draft. Beyond stopping the run, it’s impressive that he can get after the quarterback (5.5 career sacks) and disrupt passing lanes (9 balls batted down at the line of scrimmage) from a spot that those kind of numbers are hard to come by. But this team has a lot of problems to solve, and it’s too soon to say whether this is the direction they’ll move first.
