For the past two years, since starting with Canal Street Chronicles, I have chosen one rookie among the New Orleans Saints UDFA class that I believe can become a real impact player. I first selected CB Rico Payton, and he became one of the best special teams players on the team, and RB Marcus Yarns, but that one was a miss.
This process is always going to be a bit of a long shot, since UDFAs are UDFAs for a reason, but the Saints have a good history of finding gems after the draft. For me, this year’s
group has some real talent, and it was not easy to choose just one guy. Zxavian Harris was my #2 choice, and I felt like it was needed to still mention him, but for the bet I’m making, I have to choose EDGE Michael Heldman.
During the draft process, one stat that went viral on social media included Heldman alongside a number of very talented players who went high in the draft. Per Adam Carter, since 2015, looking at only G5 schools (AAC, CUSA, MAC, Sun Belt, and Mountain West conferences), only four players have had a RAS score more than 9.40 and a win rate on true pass sets more than 27.50%: Heldman, Maxx Crosby, Marcus Davenport, and Trey Hendrickson. That is a good group to be a part of, and although Davenport stands out for being nowhere near as good as Hendrickson and Crosby, a mix of injuries and way too high expectations ruined his potential. Also, Heldman has the highest true pass rush win rate (40.20%) among the group (2nd place is Davenport with 32.60%).
This exciting stat is nowhere near a guarantee of success in the NFL, but it is interesting enough to give some hope for Heldman’s potential. Looking at Heldman as a player, he is very productive and has shown great pass-rush ability. He’s nowhere near a perfect prospect, and with his age and level of competition in college, it makes sense why he was projected to be a late-round pick, but the Saints got a steal by picking him up as a UDFA.
What makes Heldman the best choice as a bet is the path to starting. EDGE was a need going into the offseason, and it still is after the draft. The additions of Anfernee Jennings and Tyree Wilson do help, but getting another guy who can make an impact in pass rush and against the run would go a long way, and that can be Heldman.
For his position, Heldman is not big enough to be a 3-4 DE, so I would expect his impact to be made as an OLB when the Saints go 3-4 and at EDGE when they go 4-3.
