It sure feels like we’re playing a waiting game until the New Orleans Saints make a trade in the 2023 NFL draft. Their decision makers are notoriously impatient and aggressive in drafting, always looking for advancement and the best prospects available. Sometimes it works (as with Alvin Kamara). Sometimes it isn’t (as with Marcus Davenport). But it shouldn’t come as a shock to anyone if Mickey Loomis starts working on the phones sooner rather than later.
A trade proposal comes from Pro Football Focus analyst Brad Spielberger, who is leading the Saints to acquire the No. 20 and a seventh-round pick at No. 237 from the Seattle Seahawks in exchange for the Nos. 29, 71 and fifth-round pick next year. And their target in this trade is Clemson Tigers defensive end Myles Murphy. Spielberger wrote:
If there’s one thing we can expect from the New Orleans Saints, it’s to trade for their favorite at all costs in the first round. The Saints earned the No. 29 overall ranking in their job from former Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton, and now it burns a hole in their pocket. Overall, the Saints enter the draft with a total of eight draft picks; You haven’t made eight selections in a class in the past seven years.
Murphy couldn’t compete in athletic tests at the NFL Scouting Combine or Clemson’s Pro Day, but he did impress teams at his April 4 individual practice; ESPN’s Jordan Reid reports that Murphy weighed 6-foot-4, 268 pounds and stopped the 40-yard dash in a staggering 4.51 seconds (with a 10-yard split of 1.59 seconds). Reid adds that Murphy completed the three-cone drill in 7.22 seconds and the pro-shuttle in 4.28 seconds. He also did 25 reps on the bench press.
The Saints will get an opportunity to verify those numbers when he makes his own formal visit to the team facility. Those are all impressive stats, and they’ve each surpassed the Saints defensive end average since 2018. Over the past five years, the average Saints defensive end has stood at 6-foot-4 and 269 pounds while throwing the 40-yard dash in 4.78 seconds (with a 1.67 second 10 yard split) and completing the three-pin drill in 7.31 seconds and the pro shuttle in 4.45 seconds. Those are high standards that must be met even by NFL standards, and Murphy appears to have passed with flying colors.
The story goes on
But getting back to football, and that’s where Murphy really shines. He has appeared in 35 games for Clemson over the past three years, totaling 36 tackles for loss and 18.5 sacks with 5 pass breakups and 6 forced fumbles. He’s a disruptive, active force up front who knows how to throw his weight around to make a play. He would probably fit in well in New Orleans.
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Story originally appeared on Saints Wire
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