Saints make surprise pick on defense in new PFF mock draft — and more

What are the New Orleans Saints going to do in the 2026 NFL Draft? Mock drafts are all the rage in the months leading up to the event, and many of them have the Saints working to get another weapon for Tyler Shough. But some others are leaning defense. Pro Football Focus NFL analyst Gordon McGuinness has them taking Texas A&M Aggies defensive end Cashius Howell. The 6-foot-2, 248-pound edge rusher graded well in PFF's advanced stats:

The Saints could go in several directions here, but Howell makes sense because of the class' drop-off at edge defender after him. He earned a 90.3 PFF overall grade and produced a 19.9% PFF pass-rush win rate in 2025, and he could form a formidable duo with Chase Young in New Orleans.

What about his raw numbers? Howell had 15.5 sacks and 22.5 tackles for loss in 26 games at Texas A&M, after he totaled 11.5 sacks and 13 tackles for loss in 30 games at Bowling Green. Like his Miami counterpart Rueben Bain, he needs to pass some important measurement thresholds at the NFL Scouting Combine to prove he's got the physical tools to compete with pro-quality blockers. He couldn't get past Miami Hurricanes right tackle Francis Mauigoa when they played in 2025, who McGuinness took off the board two picks later in this mock draft.

Frankly, there are other players available here who could do more to help the Saints in 2026. It's a shame they missed out on wide receiver Carnell Tate (the sixth pick) running back Jeremiyah Love (No. 7) but USC wide receiver Makai Lemon (No. 9) would give them another weapon who can win on contested catches. Arizona State wideout Jordyn Tyson (No. 11) would be a target, too. It's tough to believe the Saints would reach on Howell with those players availlable.

But this was a three-round mock draft, and McGuinness won us over with his second pick for the Saints. He had them double-dipping at Texas A&M by picking offensive lineman Chase Bisontis at 42nd overall. The two-year starter at left guard is arguably the best pass protector in the draft regardless of position. He would immediately start for the Saints between Kelvin Banks Jr. and Erik McCoy. His run blocking isn't as strong as his pass protection but if he can help keep Tyler Shough clean, we'll take it.

McGuinness rounded out his mock draft by linking the Saints to Indiana wide receiver Elijah Sarratt at No. 73, which would be a steal. Sarratt led the nation with 15 touchdown catches and would give the Saints a real playmaker in the receiving corps. And he's a bigger target than some guys already on the roster at a listed 6-foot-2, 213 pounds. We'll take the picks on Rounds 2 and 3 in this mock draft. Let's just really consider the options in ROund 1.

This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: 2026 NFL Draft: Saints pick Texas A&M star Cashius Howell in PFF mock

Western Michigan University Athletics announced that the men's basketball team will face Akron on Tuesday evening. The game is scheduled to take place at home.

Liverpool head coach Gareth Taylor had mixed emotions after watching his side go down 2-0 to Chelsea at Kingsmeadow on Sunday afternoon.

Sjoeke Nüsken and Lauren James got the goals as the hosts continued their push for European qualification.

Despite the 2-0 defeat to the reigning Barclays Women’s Super League champions, Liverpool boss Taylor praised his players for their efforts.

“Going into this game, we understood the category of game that we put it in,” Taylor said when speaking to the media after the match. “I think [Manchester] United, Man City, Arsenal and Chelsea; I think that’s a category where you know that you’re going to have to be really at it to get things right, to get something from the game.

“I thought there were a lot of positives today and I feel better than I did after the Man United game. I felt we tried to play them at their game a little bit more and come up short whereas today, we played the way we wanted to play, I thought we had control of large parts of the game.

“The message at half-time – we were disappointed to give the goal away because I think that’s on us a little bit.”

Commenting on his side’s performance further, Taylor highlighted Liverpool’s missed opportunities, however, he saw positives to take back to Merseyside.

He said “Even though Chelsea do have the quality and they always seem to like force the ball into the goal, we just felt that was on us a little bit more and we could also be better in the final action.

“We just didn’t work [Hannah] Hampton enough in the first half, we were better in that sense in the second. We certainly had some good moments in the first half, we could have exploited that a little bit more.

“For me, it’s disappointing, but I think that’s a mark of progress for us; that you come here and to a team that’s been really dominant here for many, many years and to be disappointed.”

“I’m sure the players will be disappointed today, but they also would have enjoyed going toe-to-toe with Chelsea and at times, holding their own. It’s just that more of those duels, more of those outcomes, we need to come out on the right side of.”

Liverpool are back in action when they take on Everton in the Adobe Women’s FA Cup at BrewDog Stadium on Sunday.

The question of whether there is water in Python Pool is often asked around the pubs and message boards of WA's Pilbara. For the moment, the answer is very much yes.