K. C. kept QB out of N. O.
Saints might have taken Mahomes had Chiefs not traded up before them
NEW ORLEANS — Saints coach Sean Payton seriously considered drafting Patrick Mahomes in 2017.
But the Saints were slated to pick 11th overall and Kansas City traded up to snag Mahomes at pick No. 10.
Record- setting quarterback Drew Brees was 38 years old then but had no intention of retiring. And as it turned out, the Saints wound up with one of the greatest drafts in franchise history that year anyway.
It began with the 2017 Defensive Rookie of the Year, cornerback Marshon Lattimore, who’ll get his first chance to see how he fares against Mahomes and Co. on Sunday, when the Saints host the defending NFL champion Chiefs in a potential Super Bowl preview.
“Everything worked out for the best,” Lattimore said. “He’s over there doing his thing. I’m over here doing my thing. So, everybody won.
“And, yeah, I’m excited to play him because he’s one of the great up- and- coming quarterbacks. So you know our game is going to be way up, and you know we’re going to be ready for him.”
With help from playmakers such as receiver Tyreek Hill and tight end Travis Kelce, Mahomes leads the NFL in yards passing with 4,208 and has his team in position to defend its Super Bowl title.
“To be that young and to be as talented as he is is rare,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said. “For him to have excelled the way he has is a real tribute to the kid and the genes that his parents gave him, too, is part of it — and how hard he works.”
The Chiefs have the best record in the AFC. But ensuring that it stays that way another week requires a victory against a contending Saints squad looking to bounce back from a stunning loss in Philadelphia. The Saints can win the NFC South for a fourth straight season with a victory ( or a Buccaneers loss).
“It’s going to be a great battle,” Lattimore said. “I feel like we’re stacked, just like they’re stacked. So, we’re going to go out there and play and the best man wins.”
Payton has said Mahomes and Lattimore were the two prospects left under consideration for the Saints at No. 11 in 2017, when the Chiefs traded up and made the decision easy.
Mahomes recalled having a good workout for the Saints, “but I didn’t sense they were going to pick me with Drew still there. . . . They got a great player with Marshon, so I’m sure they’re still happy with that.”
Not to mention the rest of that draft class. The Saints picked current starting right tackle Ryan Ramczyk later in the first round and current starting safety Marcus Williams in the second. They traded up to take 2017 Offensive Rookie of the Year Alvin Kamara in the third round — the same round they also drafted defensive end Trey Hendrickson, who this season has blossomed into one of the NFL’s sack leaders.
Saints put WR Thomas on IR
The Saints put receiver Michael Thomas on injured reserve Saturday, allowing them to give a healthy player his roster spot for their final three regular- season games while resting him for the playoffs.
Thomas, the 2019 AP Offensive Player of the Year, has been bothered by an ankle injury since Week 1 and already had been ruled out for Sunday. It will be his seventh scratch this season.
Thomas will finish the regular season having played in seven games, catching 40 passes for 438 yards and no touchdowns. That comes one season after his NFL- record 149 catches for 1,725 yards and nine touchdowns.
The roster move involving Thomas came as the Saints activated quarterback Drew Brees from his stint on injured reserve because of fractured ribs and a punctured lung. Payton already had announced he intended to start Brees, who missed four games, against the Chiefs.