Ross Jackson· Apr 23, 2026
Jackson predicts the Saints will stay put and pick at No. 8 overall rather than trading up, and after Mickey Loomis' press conference he now leans toward New Orleans taking a defensive back there — either LSU cornerback Mansoor Delaine or Ohio State safety Caleb Downs — while still viewing Miami edge rusher Ruben Bain Jr. as a likely selection.
“I wouldn't be super surprised if it's Mansoor Delaine out of LSU or Caleb Downs out of Ohio State that ends up being the selection later on today for the New Orleans Saints.”
said on air, transcribed by us · Locked On Saints (podcast) · read the original →
4 checkable claims — 3 mock draft picks and 1 team draft slot call — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing bet.
It names 4 players and teams, each linked to their own record.
3 of 4 have settled so far, averaging 84.5 out of 100, against 50 for a naive guess at the same calls.
Of the 1 unsettled call enough other pundits have weighed in on, this one lands above the rest of the room.
Where this call stands in the room
Rueben Bain · 2026 season · overall pick10 calls from 10 pundits between 8 overall pick and 15 overall pick. Ross Jackson said 8 overall pick. the room's median is 8 overall pick. what happened: 15 overall pick
Every dot is a call somebody published on the same question, before the answer existed. The bar is what actually happened. Hover a dot for the name and number; click it to read that take.
Their call against what happened
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Who this take is about
4 checkable claims in this take
Each one is scored on its own against the published methodology. A pundit naming several outcomes is graded on each, not on all-or-nothing.
- Mock Draft PicksCaleb DownsNew Orleans SaintsApr 23, 2026
Caleb Downs to be picked at number 8
“I'm starting to lean towards the idea of the Saints potentially walking away with either LSU cornerback Mansour Delaine or Ohio State safety Caleb Downs in the first round... at this point, I wouldn't be super surprised if it's Mansoor Delaine out of LSU or Caleb Downs out of Ohio State that ends up being the selection”
Hit · 88Scored 87.81 on this pickthis mock ordered the draft 75 against a shuffle’s 50+25 skillHow this was scored
- draft:
- 2026
- naive:
- a shuffled mock scores 50
- skill:
- 25
- player:
- Caleb Downs
- season:
- 2026
- zero at:
- 32
- accuracy:
- 87.81
- baseline:
- 50
- actual pick:
- 11
- difficulty:
- 1
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- pick accuracy:
- 87.81
- predicted pick:
- 8
- weeks left when called:
- 0
- mock ordering score:
- 75
- Mock Draft PicksMansoor DelaneNew Orleans SaintsApr 23, 2026
Mansoor Delane to be picked at number 8
“I wouldn't be super surprised if it's Mansoor Delaine out of LSU or Caleb Downs out of Ohio State that ends up being the selection later on today for the New Orleans Saints.”
Hit · 92Scored 91.7 on this pickthis mock ordered the draft 75 against a shuffle’s 50+25 skillHow this was scored
- draft:
- 2026
- naive:
- a shuffled mock scores 50
- skill:
- 25
- player:
- Mansoor Delane
- season:
- 2026
- zero at:
- 32
- accuracy:
- 91.7
- baseline:
- 50
- actual pick:
- 6
- difficulty:
- 1
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- pick accuracy:
- 91.7
- predicted pick:
- 8
- weeks left when called:
- 0
- mock ordering score:
- 75
- Mock Draft PicksRueben BainNew Orleans SaintsApr 23, 2026
Rueben Bain to be picked at number 8
“Well, I do think that Ruben Bayne Junior out of Miami, the edge rusher is a likely selection... I feel like I should have stuck with my prediction of Ruben Bayne Junior”
Close · 74Scored 73.84 on this pickthis mock ordered the draft 75 against a shuffle’s 50+25 skillHow this was scored
- draft:
- 2026
- naive:
- a shuffled mock scores 50
- skill:
- 25
- player:
- Rueben Bain
- season:
- 2026
- zero at:
- 32
- accuracy:
- 73.84
- baseline:
- 50
- actual pick:
- 15
- difficulty:
- 1
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- pick accuracy:
- 73.84
- predicted pick:
- 8
- weeks left when called:
- 0
- mock ordering score:
- 75
- Team Draft Slot CallsNew Orleans SaintsApr 23, 2026
New Orleans Saints to pick at number 8
“I do believe the Saints will select at number eight overall, meaning that the idea of a trade up, I'm still not fully buying it.”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
What others said about the same people
- Nick WrightScore Predictions · New Orleans SaintsMiss · 33On his Week 3 pick show, Nick Wright gave straight-up final-score predictions for five games, calling blowouts by Seattle over Washington and Kansas City over Miami, a Jacksonville home win over New England, a narrow New Orleans win over the Raiders and a low-scoring Baltimore win over Dallas in Brazil. He also called Seattle the best team in the NFL with the league's best defense.
- Dan BeyerGame Outcome Picks · New Orleans SaintsMiss · 0For his Week 3 survivor pick, he took the Saints to beat the Raiders at home, saying he doesn't see Las Vegas staying unbeaten.
- Darrion GrayScore Predictions · New Orleans SaintsClose · 45Predicted the Saints beat the Raiders 27-17 at home.
- John HendricksScore Predictions · New Orleans SaintsClose · 43Predicted a lower-scoring Saints win over the Raiders, 24-19, with the defense carrying them.
- Lance MooreScore Predictions · New Orleans SaintsClose · 48Called for a Saints victory over the Raiders by a score of 27-20.
- Dylan SandersScore Predictions · New Orleans SaintsMiss · 36Picked the Saints to beat the Raiders at home in Week 3 by a score of 31-17, with New Orleans getting off to a fast start.
More mock draft picks
The same kind of call, about other players and teams.
- Lance ZierleinMock Draft Picks · Jeremiyah LoveHit · 100Zierlein laid out his final mock draft: Jeremiah Love at No. 3 to Arizona, Sonny Styles at No. 4 to Robert Saleh's team, and Caleb Downs to the Giants at No. 5. He also called Styles the only first-round linebacker in the class and said Ty Simpson is a lock to be a first-round pick, most likely to Arizona.
- Nick ShookMock Draft Picks · Max IheanachorHit · 88Shook walks through his full first-round mock draft, assigning a prospect to every pick from No. 1 to No. 32, headlined by Fernando Mendoza to the Raiders, David Bailey to the Jets and Jeremiah Love to the Cardinals in the top three.
- Gregg RosenthalMock Draft Picks · K.C. ConcepcionClose · 68Rosenthal disagrees most with Casey Concepcion being left out of the first round, arguing he could go as high as the top 15 and certainly won't last past receiver-needy teams in the late twenties.
- Daniel JeremiahMock Draft Picks · Keyron CrawfordHit · 81In discussing teams without first-round picks, Jeremiah projected specific Day 2 picks: Clemson WR Antonio Williams to the Falcons at 48, Texas Tech LB Jacob Rodriguez to the Colts in the second round, Oklahoma edge R Mason Thomas to the Packers at 52, and Auburn edge Keiroon Crawford to the Broncos at 62. He also expects Riley Leonard to open as the Colts' starting QB and Travis Hunter to play cornerback full time in Jacksonville.
- Daniel JeremiahMock Draft Picks · Carnell TateHit · 92Jeremiah says Denver, not Kansas City, will be the clear favorite in the AFC West this season; he also puts Carnell Tate sixth and Monroe Freeling twentieth on his prospect board, mocks Tate to Cleveland at No. 6, and expects Georgia receiver Branch to be a Day 2 pick after a strong pro day.
- Bucky BrooksMock Draft Picks · Carnell TateHit · 81In a mock draft covering the first 14 picks, Brooks made the odd-numbered selections: Fernando Mendoza to the Raiders at No. 1, a Miami offensive lineman to Arizona at No. 3, Caleb Downs to the Giants at No. 5, Ohio State's Arvell Reese to Washington at No. 7, Carnell Tate to Kansas City at No. 9, tight end Kenyon Sadiq to Miami at No. 11, and Spencer Fano to the Rams at No. 13.