Saints trade up for Chauncey Gardner-Johnson in 4th round

The New Orleans Saints have selected safety Chauncey Gardner-Johnson out of Florida in the 4th round of the 2019 NFL Draft, 105th overall.

The pick marks the Saints' second in the draft, after taking offensive lineman Erik McCoy from Texas A&M in the second round Friday.

New Orleans traded the 116th overall (fourth round) and 168th pick (fifth round) to the Jets in order to pick Gardner-Johnson in the fourth round.

School: Florida
Height: 5-11
Weight: 210 lbs

Strengths

• Strong athletic profile with impressive traits across the board
• Fantastic speed and range as deep coverage safety
• Ball skills to make plays on passes up for grabs
• Will dish out some violent hits coming downhill
• Has ability to rotate down and match up with receivers out of slot
• Short-area quickness to mirror opponent at top of routes

Weaknesses

• Won't fight through traffic to find ball carrier
• Needs to wrap up more consistently in open field

Bottom line

Gardner-Johnson would be a fantastic prospect in any era, but particularly so for today's game. Having played, and thrived, as both a single-high safety and a nickel corner, he brings the versatility to move around and contribute in a number of ways. The Florida standout will be a major chess piece for any defense in pass coverage.

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