It’s draft week, and we are just days away from the start of the 2023 NFL Draft. Multiple writers in Defiant Takes Football took part in a three-round mock draft as we acted as GMs for all 32 teams involved in this year’s NFL Draft. The New Orleans Saints held three total picks throughout the draft at picks 29, 40, and 71. The Saints decided to stay put in this rendition of the three-round mock draft and zoned in on filling some of the top priorities on the roster. Check out who New Orleans selected with their three overall picks in the DTF three-round mock draft:

Round 1, Pick 29: Lukas Van Ness, EDGE, Iowa

Lukas Van Ness on the line of scrimmage

Iowa EDGE Lukas Van Ness (91) – Charlie Neibergall/AP Photo

New Orleans was on the clock to kick off their 2023 NFL Draft in this three-round mock draft with the 29th overall pick. The consensus behind the pick was to add another body to the defensive line that is desperate for help after an up-and-down 2022 season. The two players that came to mind were Pittsburgh’s Calijah Kancey and Iowa’s Lukas Van Ness.

In the end, the Saints decided to go with Van Ness with the 29th overall pick to be able to add a top need for New Orleans. The Saints lost one of their key pass rushers in free agency in Marcus Davenport. Outside of Davenport, leaving, it would be beneficial for New Orleans to add another threat on the opposite side of Cam Jordan. Van Ness is a projected top-20 pick and he was hard to pass up on this late in the first round of the draft. The Iowa product is coming off a successful 2022 campaign with the Hawkeyes, as he posted 36 total tackles and 6.5 sacks.

Round 2, Pick 40: Zay Flowers, WR, Boston College

Zay Flowers steps onto the field for Boston College

Boston College WR Zay Flowers (4) – Don Juan Moore/Getty Images

The Saints were able to fill in one of their key needs in the first round of this mock draft, and the attention quickly turned to the offensive side of the ball. Tight end was certainly still an option, but Georgia’s Darnell Washington went a pick before New Orleans as the Carolina Panthers selected the monster tight end. Now that most of the top tight-end prospects were off the board, the attention shifted to the wide receiver position.

The Saints could use another weapon to add to what is already a talented wide receiver core, and New Orleans did just that with the 40th overall pick in the draft. New Orleans couldn’t let Zay Flowers drop any further as he is one of the top wide receivers prospects in this year’s draft class. Flowers has the ability to play slot receiver, as he will be able to mesh well with Michael Thomas, Chris Olave, and Rashid Shaheed.

Round 3, Pick 71: Drew Sanders, LB, Arkansas

New Orleans Saints Select... - Defiant Takes Football

Arkansas LB Drew Sanders (42) – Charlie Kaijo/WholeHogSports

The Saints had to wait for 31 picks for their next pick in DTF’s three-round mock draft, and it was an open book for New Orleans on who they would take next. I saw this player drop all the way to the third round and couldn’t pass him up. Arkansas’ Drew Sanders was just sitting there for the taking, and it was an easy choice. New Orleans lost one of their key contributors on last year’s defense, Kaden Elliss. Along with Elliss, Pete Werner dealt with injuries during the 2022 season that kept him out for most of the year.

Adding another linebacker would only elevate the outlook of the Saints’ defense heading into the 2023 season, and Sanders will be able to fit in well. Two linebackers flew off the board in the first two rounds of the draft, Washington State’s Daiyan Henley and Iowa’s Jack Campbell. During the 2022 season, Sanders showed that he was one of the nation’s top linebackers as he posted 103 total tackles, 9.5 sacks, three forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, and one interception.

The Three-Round DTF Staff Mock Draft:

    1. CAR: CJ Stroud, QB Ohio State (Film Breakdown)

    2. HOU: Bryce Young, QB Alabama (Film Breakdown)

    3. ARI: Will Anderson Jr., ED Alabama (Film Breakdown)

    4.  IND: Anthony Richardson, QB Florida (Film Breakdown)

    5. SEA: Jalen Carter, IDL Georgia (Film Breakdown)

    6. DET: Tyree Wilson, ED Texas Tech (Film Breakdown)

    7. LV: Christian Gonzalez, CB Oregon (Film Breakdown)

    8. ATL: Devon Witherspoon, CB Illinois

    9. CHI: Peter Skoronski, OT Northwestern

    10. PHI: Nolan Smith, ED Georgia (Film Breakdown)

    11. TEN: Broderick Jones, OT Georgia (Film Breakdown)

    12. HOU: Jaxon Smith-Njigba, WR Ohio State (Film Breakdown)

    13. LAC: Jordan Addison, WR USC (Film Breakdown)

    14. NE: Paris Johnson Jr., OT Ohio State (Film Breakdown)

    15. NYJ: Darnell Wright, OT Tennessee (Film Breakdown)

    16. WAS: Brian Branch, DB Alabama

    17. PIT: Dawand Jones, OT Ohio State (Film Breakdown)

    18. DET: Quentin Johnston, WR TCU (Film Breakdown)

    19. TB: O’Cyrus Torrence, G, Florida

    20. SEA: Michael Mayer, TE Notre Dame (Film Breakdown)

    21. GB: Myles Murphy, ED Clemson (Film Breakdown)

    22. BAL: Joey Porter Jr., CB Penn State

    23. MIN: Will Levis, QB, Kentucky (Film Breakdown)

    24. JAC: Kelee Ringo, CB Georgia

    25. NYG: Bijan Robinson, RB Texas (Film Breakdown)

    26. DAL: Steve Avila, G TCU

    27. BUF: Jack Campbell, LB Iowa (Film Breakdown)

    28. CIN: Dalton Kincaid, TE Utah

    29. NO: Lukas Van Ness, ED Iowa (Film Breakdown)

    30. PHI: Calijah Kancey, IDL Pitt

    31. KC: Anton Harrison, OT Oklahoma

    32. PIT: Mazi Smith, IDL Michigan

    33. HOU: Jahmyr Gibbs, RB Alabama

    34. ARI: Deonte Banks, CB Maryland

    35. IND: Cam Smith, CB South Carolina

    36. LAR: Emmanuel Forbes, CB Mississippi State

    37. SEA: Daiyan Henley, LB Washington State

    38. LV: Bryan Bresee, IDL Clemson (Film Breakdown)

    39. CAR: Darnell Washington, TE Georgia (Film Breakdown)

    40. NO: Zay Flowers, WR Boston College (Film Breakdown)

    41. TEN: Josh Downs, WR North Carolina (Film Breakdown)

    42. GB: Cedric Tillman, WR Tennessee

    43. CHI: Jalin Hyatt, WR Tennessee (Film Breakdown)

    44. ATL: Adetomiwa Adebawore, ED Northwestern

    45. GB: Cody Mauch, G North Dakota State

    46. NE: Tuli Tuipulotu, ED USC

    47. WAS: John Michael Schmitz, C Minnesota

    48. NYJ: Joe Tippmann, C Iowa

    49. ARI: Matthew Bergeron, OT Syracuse

    50. TB: Jaelyn Duncan, OT Maryland

    51. MIA: Sam LaPorta, TE Iowa

    52. SEA: Luke Wypler, C Ohio State

    53. DET: Julius Brents, CB Kansas State

    54. SF: Wanya Morris, OT Oklahoma

    55. DET: Keanu Benton, IDL Wisconsin

    56. JAC: Felix Anudike-Uzomah, ED Kansas State

    57. NYG: Andrew Vorhees, G USC

    58. DAL: Will McDonald, ED Iowa State

    59. BUF: Luke Musgrave, TE Oregon State

    60. CIN: Clark Phillips III, CB Utah

    61. CHI: Siaki Ika, IDL Baylor

    62. LV: Hendon Hooker, QB Tennessee

    63. KC: Marvin Mims Jr., WR Oklahoma

    64. CHI: BJ Ojulari, ED LSU (Film Breakdown)

    65. HOU: Derick Hall, ED Auburn

    66. ARI: Keion White, ED Georgia Tech

    67. DEN: Tyrique Stevenson, CB Miami

    68. CLE: Tyler Scott, WR Cincinnati

    69. LAR: Tyler Steen, OT Alabama

    70. PIT: DJ Turner, CB Michigan

    71. NO: Drew Sanders, LB Arkansas

    72. TEN: Michael Wilson, WR Stanford

    73. HOU: Jammie Robinson, S Florida State

    74. DEN: Jordan Battle, S Alabama

    75. ATL: Tank Dell, WR Houston

    76. ATL: Isaiah Foskey, ED Notre Dame

    77. LAR: Eli Ricks, CB Alabama

    78. GB: JL Skinner, S Boise State

    79. IND: Isaiah McGuire, ED Missouri

    80. PHI: Trenton Simpson, LB Clemson (Film Breakdown)

    81. DET: Dorian Williams, LB Tulane

    82. TB: Tank Bigsby, RB Auburn

    83. DEN: Rashee Rice, WR SMU

    84. PHI: Jartavius Martin, CB Illinois

    85. GB: Luke Schoonmaker, TE Michigan

    86. DEN: Zach Charbonnet, RB UCLA (Film Breakdown)

    87. MIN: Gervon Dexter, IDL Florida

    88. JAC: Chandler Zavala, G NC State

    89. DEN: Byron Young, ED Tennessee

    90. DAL: Tyjae Spears, RB Tulane

    91. BUF: Colby Wooden, ED Missouri

    92. CIN: Antonio Johnson, S Texas A&M

    93. CAR: Devon Achane, RB Texas A&M

    94. PHI: Moro Ojomo, IDL Texas

    95. KC: Blake Freeland, OT BYU

    96. Nick Herbig, ED Wisconsin

    97. WAS: Zach Harrison, ED Ohio State

    98. DEN: Kayshon Boutte, WR LSU

    99. LAC: DeWayne McBride, RB UAB

    100. LV: Zach Kuntz, TE Old Dominion

    101. SF: KJ Henry, ED Clemson

    102. SF: Ji’Ayir Brown, S Penn State