New Orleans Saints snag LSU star in 7-round 2020 NFL mock draft

The New Orleans Saints would undoubtedly love to find some depth at the cornerback position this offseason. Attacking the need with a solid veteran or two in free agency would be ideal, but I could also see them trying to find a late-round gem or two at the position in the draft. In the fifth round of this 2020 NFL mock draft, the Saints take a flyer on Stanford Samuels III, a long and relatively athletic cornerback out of Florida State.

Samuels uses his long arms well to attack receivers at the line of scrimmage. He also shows strong natural ball skills and solid deep speed on the outside. Samuels does lack ideal short-area quickness and his footwork is sloppy, which can quickly lead to him losing his man. If he can clean up his footwork a bit at the next level, Samuels shows plenty of upside as an outside cornerback. There are certainly parts of his game worth getting excited about.

With their fifth and final selection of this 2020 NFL mock draft, the New Orleans Saints go back to the cornerback well, bringing in A.J. Green out of Oklahoma State. Green is a quick and athletic cornerback prospect who shows smooth footwork on the outside. He can keep up with quicker players underneath and has some legitimate deep speed. Green also shows strong overall ball skills.

The main concern here is a lack of play strength. Green can get bullied by big and strong receivers on the outside and that is obviously a major concern at the next level. His raw speed and athleticism make him an intriguing target, but the lack of play strength may prove to be too much of an obstacle to overcome.