Saints undrafted free agents: How were they ranked before 2026 draft?

We saw the New Orleans Saintsadd nearly a dozen players as rookie free agents after the 2026 NFL Draft, but how do they stack up against each other? We checked in on the undrafted free agent rankings from NFL draft analyst Thor Nystrom as well as the consensus big board assembled by Arif Hasan for Wide Left. That gives us an idea of which prospects were rated highest going into the draft.

The two big gets, according to these evaluators, are defensive linemen Zxavian Harris (Ole Miss) and Michael Heldman (Central Michigan). They were both top-five prospects among the undrafted free agents on Nystrom's board, with Harris ranked at No. 1. Overall, Nystrom ranked Harris at No. 100 and Heldman at No. 141 in this draft class. On the consensus board Hasan put together they ranked No. 155 (Harris) and No. 289 (Heldman). Harris would have been drafted if not for March foot surgery and two arrests in college. Heldman's case was more of a coin flip after an unremarkable college career before his breakout season in 2025 (16.5 tackles for loss, 10.5 sacks).

It's a big jump between the two of them and the other players in the Saints' UDFA class. Just five other prospects made the cut for Nystrom's rankings, but none of them were in the top-300 consensus big board.

It's interesting that Herron ranks fifth in the group but receiving such high guarantees from New Orleans: $272,500 was locked in, more than they've given any rookie free agent in years. That suggests he had a more competitive market than other players the Saints added after the draft. We'll get a better idea of how their undrafted free agents were valued as contract details come in, but there are a couple of guys in this group with a real chance at making the team come September.

This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: Saints signed NFL's top-ranked undrafted free agent after 2026 draft