Quinn Ewers took the Texas Longhorns into a deep playoff run past opponents like Clemson and ASU. While their hopes ended in the semifinals at the hands of Ohio State, the quarterback from notched up some big numbers– 3,500 passing yards for 31 touchdowns. And this was despite his injury. His rushing ability did falter throughout the season, but his hand was just a thing of beauty, giving hope to Arch Manning to carry forward the momentum.

Still, the draft prospects haven’t seen an upward trend for Ewers. He is still touted to be an 8 or 9th-ranked quarterback and a 142nd-ranked player overall, according to Pro Football Focus. A lot is to blame on his ability as a runner and injury concerns. But, still, in a recent revelation, a few teams are eyeing the QB as one of the best dark horse prospects in the draft and with some predicting that he might target a veteran play caller to be a starter soon.

According to the latest tweet by the Longhorns source Orangebloods.com, “Ewers met with the Jets, Steelers, and Saints the night before Texas held its Pro Day. Also: Ewers is scheduled to visit/work out for the Cowboys, Raiders, and Colts. Visits will begin next week.”

The visits are scheduled to begin next week, and from then on, we could see a serious draft stock building in favor of the former Texas QB, who will be eyeing to impress and deliver during the visits. Interestingly, if a recent mock draft by ESPN by Matt Miller is to be believed, New Orleans Saints might be his home. Miller even placed the QB as the 40th overall pick with a decent reason.

“Ewers has injury concerns, but he did lead the Longhorns to the College Football Playoff semifinals in back-to-back seasons. He’s a touch-and-timing passer who would fit new coach Kellen Moore’s offense (Saints’ head coach). Ewers doesn’t add value as a runner and must work at seeing the field faster, but his arm talent and mechanics are fitting for a future NFL starter,” Matt said.

As is often the case, the player will likely sit on the bench for a couple of seasons before featuring for the Saints. Still, he can develop an immense ceiling during that time, and under a player like Derek Carr, who has 4 Pro Bowls on his resume in a career spanning 11 years.

Carr, who has been quite decent for the Saints till now, surely will complete his remaining tenure of the $150 million/ 4-year contract that will see him dress up for New Orleans through 2026. In the past two seasons he played, he garnered a total of 6,023 yards and 40 touchdowns and completing 564 of 827 passes, giving just 13 interceptions in 27 starts. However, replacing Derek won’t come as easily. In fact, is Ewers traveling to New Orleans even in the cards?

Is Quinn Ewers going to the New Orleans Saints a real possibility?

Ewers’ draft stocks seem to be rising steadily with immense interest from franchises. Still, there are some concerns about the player’s weaknesses, too, like the player’s ability to falter under pressure. Moreover, when you watch his tape, small mistakes like abandoning clean pockets and susceptibility to sacks turn out to be the deal breaker.

His shaky pressure-to-sack rate is also quite pronounced, as he stood at a meager 23.2% in that area. Kellen Moore, a former offensive coordinator at the Eagles who has just become the Saints’ head coach, has a lot to offer offensively. A coach who would still be basking in his Super Bowl success, as his offense was a treat to watch.

They were ranked 7 in the NFL in points per game with 27.2 points. Again, it was an improvement on their last season when they averaged 25.5 points per game. Then their passing offense with Jalen Hurts wasn’t that great, as they stood second last with 17.5 pass completions per game, a huge contrast from 2023’s 21.9 completions average. However, as RPO rushing plays dominated the Eagles’ offense with Jalen Hurts to perfectly execute them, it is quite understandable.

They were ranked 2nd in rushing yards per game (184.1), which explains the drop in the passing offense. Overall, it was an incredible season for the Eagles and Moore, who would be eyeing the same glories for the New Orleans Saints.

The trajectory for Ewers won’t be straightforward, as he would need to incorporate and improve on his rushing abilities over the years with the Saints. That being said, it is quite likely that Moore’s offense would change since Derek Carr is a different QB than Jalen Hurts and only the latter offers the rushing prowess to back Moore’s intricate RPO concepts.

In just the last season, Carr ran for only 71 yards, whereas you know the story about Hurts and his heroics of 630 yards. In that sense, Quinn Ewers could see himself transitioning into a top QB with his incredible arm talent throughout the season as Derek Carr inches toward his last days for the Saints.