Ross Jackson#21 of 87 NFL pundits · Jan 14, 2026

In a seven-round Saints mock draft for the 2026 NFL Draft, Ross Jackson has Ohio State safety Caleb Downs falling to New Orleans at No. 8 overall after two quarterbacks go 1-2, then lays out picks at 42, 73, round four, 137, 148, 170 and 189.

Said on air, transcribed by us · Locked On Saints (podcast)Hear the original

5 of 12picks landed5 hits · 2 close calls · 5 misses · 5 waiting

74.29The orderagainst a shuffled mock’s 50

+24.29Skillthe mock as a whole

57.6Per pickaverage, out of 100

#21Ross Jackson’s rankof 87 ranked NFL pundits

What Ross Jackson said

the decision right off the bat... is Caleb Downs, the Ohio State safety at an array overall

Ross Jackson, the lead quote

Where it was said: Locked On Saints (podcast)
The episode: MOCK DRAFT: New Orleans Saints Can Avoid DISASTER 2026 Draft With Caleb Downs First-Round Selection
The original: Hear the original
Read it wrong?: Tell us and we will look

SaidJan 14
GradedOct 1

Box score, round by round

HitCloseMissWaiting

Group	Hits	Close	Misses	Waiting
Round 1	1	0	0	0
Round 2	0	0	1	0
Round 3	0	1	0	0
Round 4	0	0	1	0
Round 5	0	0	2	0
Round 6	0	0	1	0
Picks 0–0	4	1	0	5
All	5	2	5	5

How the mock scored

17 checkable claims — 17 mock draft picks — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing call.

It names 20 players and teams, each linked to their own record.

12 of 17 have settled so far, averaging 57.6 out of 100, against 50 for a naive guess at the same calls.

Each call is scored 0 to 100 against what happened, on its own, by the published methodology. The naive guess is what knowing nothing would have scored on the same calls; the gap, weighted by how hard the call was, is the skill.

Mock against the draft

Across: where the mock put each player. Down: where the player went, with undrafted players (UDFA) on the bottom row. The shaded band is where a pick earns credit, within 32 picks. Squares landed, half-squares were close and slashes missed. Faint rules mark the rounds.

The mock as a whole

74.29this mock’s order50a shuffled mock24.29better than naive1difficulty+24.29skill

The skill comes from how well the whole mock ordered the draft, so it is not any one pick’s score minus 50.

Every pick’s score

0a pick’s naive guess: 50100

Think a pick here is graded wrong? Tell us which.

Draft board

HitCloseMissWaiting

Round 1 · picks 1–321 hitShow ▸

Pick	Team	Player	Pos	Went	Verdict	Score
8	NO	Caleb Downs	safety	11		88

Round 2 · picks 33–641 missShow ▸

Pick	Team	Player	Pos	Went	Verdict	Score
42	NO	Emmanuel Pregnon	offensive lineman	88		14

Round 3 · picks 65–1001 close callShow ▸

Pick	Team	Player	Pos	Went	Verdict	Score
73	NO	Zachariah Branch	wide receiver	79		77

Round 4 · picks 101–1401 missShow ▸

Pick	Team	Player	Pos	Went	Verdict	Score
137	NO	Kaytron Allen	running back	187		11

Round 5 · picks 141–1812 missesShow ▸

Pick	Team	Player	Pos	Went	Verdict	Score
148	NO	Nadame Tucker	edge rusher	UDFA		0
170	NO	Tacario Davis	cornerback	72		1

Round 6 · picks 182–2161 missShow ▸

Pick	Team	Player	Pos	Went	Verdict	Score
189	NO	Tanner Koziol	tight end	164		34

Picks 0–04 hits · 1 close call · 5 waitingShow ▸

Team	Player	Pos	Went	Score
—	Jeremiyah Love	running back	3	100
—	Arvell Reese	linebacker	5	100
—	Rueben Bain	edge rusher	15	71
—	Jordyn Tyson	wide receiver	8	96
—	David Bailey	defensive end	2	100
LV	Fernando Mendoza	quarterback	—	—
—	Chris Bell	wide receiver	—	—
—	Elijah Sarratt	wide receiver	—	—
NYJ	Dante Moore	quarterback	—	—
NO	Tim Keenan	defensive tackle	—	—

Who this take is about

Where do you stand on this one?Pick every open claim on Picks →

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