NFL.com

Sean Payton might no longer coach the Saints, but GM Mickey Loomis and new coach Dennis Allen continue to make aggressive moves with the team's draft picks. They pulled off the first big picks-only trade in this year's cycle, sending first- (18th overall), third- (101) and seventh-rounders (237) in 2022, as well as a 2023 first-round pick and 2024 second-rounder to Philadelphia for two of the Eagles' three first-round picks (Nos. 16, 19) this year, as well as a sixth-rounder (194). While the trade appears somewhat lop-sided in a vacuum, New Orleans might be banking on recouping some or all of that lost value via compensation from another franchise interested down the line in hiring Payton, who is still under contract with the Saints. This four-round mock draft rolls with the idea the Saints are packaging their newly acquired first-rounders to move into the top five for a future signal-caller. They could wait for a quarterback to fall to them at No. 16 or trade into a lower spot in the top 10 for the apple of their eye, but that approach invites competition from other teams looking at those same prospects.