The New Orleans Saints have had a very strong Day 3 of the 2025 NFL draft, making good value picks and bringing in players who were valued higher than where they were selected. They continued to do so into round six, drafting Kansas running back Devin Neal, an extremely productive player with high upside at the NFL level if he can tap into his positive traits.

Over the course of his collegiate career he accrued 4,343 rushing yards and 49 touchdowns, with 1,000-plus rushing yards per year over the course of the last three seasons. He was exceptional in 2024, putting up 219 rush attempts for 1,266 yards and 16 touchdowns, good for 105.5 yards per game. Additionally, he showed flashes of success in the receiving game as well, putting up 24 receptions for 254 yards and a touchdown.

His athletic testing is somewhat indicative of his play style, while he does not have the most exceptional raw straight line speed, he is extremely explosive and has quality lateral agility. Despite a 6.66 Relative Athletic Score, he had great performances in the vertical (37.5 inches) and broad jumps (10 feet). A 4.58-second time in the 40-yard dash is also not particularly bad by any means, and it shows that speed will not be something that holds him back at the next level either.

Neal was amazing value as a sixth-round pick, as many considered him a potential late Day 2 pick or, at worst, early Day 3. He has everything you would look for in a later-round pick, and should be someone the Saints utilize quite often over the course of his rookie contract.

Initial Grade: A

This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: Grading the Saints’ sixth round pick, Kansas running back Devin Neal