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USATSI

The Saints may or may not be set at quarterback for 2022. After failing to land the embattled Deshaun Watson via trade, the NFC South contenders re-signed Jameis Winston to a short-term deal, then added Andy Dalton as the new No. 2. Now, there's reason to believe Pittsburgh's Kenny Pickett could be a top candidate to join their team on draft day. Not only because the Saints own two first-round picks, both in the top 20, but because Pickett fits the front office's preferred mold under center.

Saints assistant general manager and scouting director Jeff Ireland "always has been a prototype guy" when evaluating QBs, according to NOLA.com/The Times-Picayune. There is a pattern to his QB investments: often, they are "big guys (and) multiyear starters (from a) Power Five program."

The one quarterback in this draft that checks all of Ireland's boxes is Kenny Pickett, writes Jeff Duncan, "which might explain all of the pre-draft work the Saints have done on the former Pitt star."

That doesn't mean New Orleans is entering the draft with QB as its top priority, but it does mean that, should Pickett be available when the Saints pick, there is a precedent for the team targeting such a signal-caller. And considering the assets at their disposal, and the long-term need at the position, the groundwork is there for a potential team-up.

The Saints have also conducted pre-draft meetings with other QB prospects, including North Carolina's Sam Howell and Mississippi's Matt Corral, who could also be first-round targets.