It's never too soon for a mock draft, right?

With the start of college football literally right around the corner, Field Yates with ESPN has just released his 1st mock and with an early round pick, he has the New Orleans Saints selecting a very familiar name.

Will Campbell, OT, LSU

If the Saints are picking 10th, I get that the quarterback position will probably be under the microscope. However, while New Orleans doesn't come across many salary cap predicaments that it can't work out of, releasing Derek Carr would incur nearly $50 million in dead money. So, I'd watch for the Saints to instead address the O-line, staying local by nabbing Campbell, a native of Monroe, Louisiana.

Campbell became a Day 1 starter at LSU at left tackle and may well end up on the left side in the NFL, but this pick would allow the Saints optionality. (Taliese Fuaga, their 2024 first-round pick, has moved from right tackle to left tackle already.) Campbell has great length and quick feet, but he must improve his power and finishing ability.

This is an interesting pick for a few reasons. It's no secret New Orleans' offensive line has had some struggles the past few seasons but IF the Saints were to draft Campbell, it would be the 3rd time in four years that they drafted a tackle.

Taking into consideration several other key positions and players that will need to be re-signed by the Saints after this year and of course, depending on how this season actually plays out, tackle may not be that high on the priority list.

Also, Campbell may not even be available at No. 10.

The Louisiana native came to LSU as a four-star recruit, one of the nation’s top offensive tackle prospects and the highest-rated high school player in the state. Campbell was named a starter entering his freshman season and has not allowed a sack in 15 straight starts. In 2022, he was named a freshman All-American by the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) and second team All-SEC. In 2023, he was named first team All-SEC and a finalist for the Joe Moore Award.

Just recently, Campbell was named first team preseason All-American by the Associated Press as well as ESPN and Sporting News.

Some mock drafts have Campbell listed as their top-ranked offensive player, being selected in the top 5.

But of course, a lot can happen in 8 months, so this is all just hypothetical talk which is always fun because that means it's finally football season.