Saints trade into seventh round to pick versatile Mississippi State QB Tommy Stevens

Just when you thought the Saints were going to sit out the final day of the 2020 NFL Draft, they had other plans. Sean Payton and Mickey Loomis could not resist making one last move.

New Orleans traded with the Texans into the seventh round to take Mississippi State quarterback Tommy Stevens with the 240th pick. Houston received the Saints’ 2021 sixth round pick in the deal.

Stevens started his college career at Penn State and then ended up at Mississippi state as a graduate transfer in 2019. The 6-foot-5, 235 pounder has been compared to current Saints quarterback Taysom Hill. Stevens is a thick-framed athlete who is willing and able to both evade and run through defenders.

As the backup to former Penn State quarterback Trace McSorely, Stevens saw many snaps as a Swiss Army Knife on offense, lining up as a wide receiver and as a tight end. While with the Nittany Lions, Stevens completed 24-of-41 passes for 304 yards and four touchdowns and rushed for 506 yards and eight touchdowns. As a receiver, he caught 14 passes for 62 yards and two touchdowns.

At Mississippi State, Stevens split time as a starting quarterback while struggles with consistency and injuries took him out of the lineup. He completed 97-of-161 passes for 1,155 yards with 11 touchdowns and five interceptions. Stevens also rushed 83 times for 384 yards and four touchdowns.

At one point, Stevens was benched by Moorhead, replaced by Garrett Shrader. Later, Stevens started the Music City Bowl after Shrader was hurt in a practice altercation with a teammate.

Stevens certainly fits the mold, from a scheme standpoint, for what the Saints would likely do with Taysom Hill, if and when he gets a shot to take over for Drew Brees at quarterback.

While the Saints may still invest in a veteran quarterback to caddy for Brees, the move to trade up for Stevens, the third time the Saints traded up in the 2020 draft, indicates a willingness to possibly adjust or change the offensive scheme to suit Hill with Stevens able to do similar things.

The four draft picks made in 2020 by the Saints are the fewest made by New Orleans in the draft since 2009.

New Orleans is now without a pair of picks in the 2021 draft, including their third-round pick (88th overall), dealt to Cleveland in the trade to obtain Zach Baun, along with the sixth-round pick given up to get Stevens.

7 TOMMY STEVENS
POSITION QB
HEIGHT 6‐5
WEIGHT 235
CLASS Senior
HOMETOWN Indianapolis, IN
HIGH SCHOOL/PREVIOUS SCHOOL Penn State

2020 East‐West Shrine Game Participant
2019 Team Captain
2019 Manning Passing Academy

CAREER: Graduate transfer quarterback from Penn State, who played his final season at Mississippi State …
Signed with MSU on May 17, 2019 and arrived on June 1 … Earned the starting quarterback role on Aug. 22,
2019 … Named a team captain on Aug. 25, 2019 … Graduated from Penn State in December 2018 with a degree
in telecommunications … Threw for 1,1155 yards and 11 touchdowns and rushed for 381 yards and four scores
in lone season with the Bulldogs … At Penn State, was 24‐for‐41 passing for 304 yards and four touchdowns,
rushed for 506 yards and eight touchdowns and caught 14 passes for 62 yards and two touchdowns in 23 career
games played … Left PSU ranked No. 8 on the school’s career quarterback rushing yardage list with 506 yards
and tied for eighth at PSU in career rushing touchdowns by a quarterback (8) … Was a high school standout at
Decatur Central in Indiana, before enrolling at Penn State.

2019 SEASON: Started all nine games played … Completed 60.2 percent (97‐of‐161) of his passes for 1,155 yards
and 11 touchdowns with five interceptions (136.9 rating) … Added 381 rushing yards and four touchdowns on 83
attempts (4.6 avg.) … Threw for 200‐plus yards twice and registered five multi‐passing touchdown games …
Completed 69 percent (80‐of‐116) of his passes on 126 dropbacks for 991 yards and 11 TDs when facing no
pressure … Made MSU debut and first start since Nov. 7, 2014 in high school (4 years, 9 months and 24 days) at
Louisiana (8/31) in New Orleans … Shined with three TDs accounted for (2 pass, 1 rush) and was 20‐of‐30 for 236
yards … According to PFF, completed 17 of 22 passes (77.3 percent) for 200 yards (9.1 yards/attempt) and 11
first downs when facing no pressure that game … In the first half, went 10‐of‐16 passing for 127 yards and
scored a TD both passing (31‐yard pass) and rushing (4‐yard run) … Threw TD passes of 31 yards (Osirus Mitchell)
and 12 yards (Austin Williams) … Had 13 completions for a first down, five completions for 15‐plus yards and a
pair of completions for 25‐plus yards … Improved to 2‐0 as a starter, including his first win at home inside Davis
Wade Stadium, vs. Southern Miss (9/7) … For the second straight game, connected with Osirus Mitchell for a TD
on MSU’s opening drive with a 28‐yard score … Went 7‐of‐7 passing for 84 yards and a TD in the first quarter,
and on the next play threw an 11‐yard TD strike to Stephen Guidry … Connected on his first nine passing
attempts (105 yards, two TDs) before an incompletion late in the second quarter (longest streak for a MSU
quarterback to start the game since Dak Prescott completed his first 12 passing attempts against Arkansas in
2015) … Left the game late in the second quarter with an injury and did not return … Went 7‐of‐15 passing for
one touchdown against two interceptions vs. Kansas State (9/21) … Found Osirus Mitchell for a then‐career long,
35‐yard touchdown pass … Left the game during the third quarter due to an upper body injury … Did not play vs.
Kentucky (9/21) … Started at No. 7 Auburn (9/28) but left the game in the first quarter due to a lower body
injury … Went 1‐of‐3 passing for seven yards … Started at Tennessee (10/12) and went 6‐of‐11 passing for 67
yards and rushed nine times for 26 yards in the first half … Spelled by freshman quarterback Garrett Shrader,
who started the second half and finished the game … Did not play vs. No. 2 LSU (10/19) … Did not play at Texas
A&M (10/26) … Earned his first SEC win as a starting quarterback at Arkansas (11/2) … Completed 12 of 18
passes for 172 yards and two TDs … Rushed for 74 yards on 15 attempts … Connected with nine different
receivers on the day … Threw a 33‐yard TD pass to Osirus Mitchell in the first quarter … Earned a team‐high 83.5
overall grade from PFF, which was the best in the SEC that week among quarterbacks … Rushed for 96 yards on
10 attempts and completed 12 of 21 passes for 82 yards against one interception at No. 4 Alabama (11/16) …
Responsible for three touchdowns (2 passing, 1 rushing) vs. Abilene Christian (11/23) … Threw a career‐long 88‐
yard TD pass in the second quarter to Kylin Hill … Scored on a 30‐yard run … Did not play vs. Ole Miss (11/28) …
Went 17‐of‐26 passing for 221 yards and two TDs in the Music City Bowl vs. Louisville (12/30) … Add 71 rushing
yards and one TD on 17 attempts.

2018 JUNIOR SEASON (AT PENN STATE): Appeared in seven games, seeing time at quarterback in four games …
Completed 8‐of‐11 passes for 304 yards and four touchdowns against one interception … Rushed 28 times for
118 yards and a pair of touchdowns … Made season debut in the “Lion” position vs. Ohio State (9/29) and had
three rushes … Tossed a 23‐yard touchdown in the second quarter at Indiana (10/20) and caught two passes for
two yards … Completed two passes for 27 yards and rushed for 18 yards on five carries, including a 3‐yard
touchdown run vs. Iowa (10/27) … Completed 3 of 4 passes for 35 yards and rushed for 52 yards on 10 carries,
including an 8‐yard touchdown run at Michigan (11/3) … Rushed for 25 yards on seven carries, including a 20‐
yard run in the second quarter vs. Wisconsin (11/10) … Completed both pass attempts for 25 yards, including a
20‐yard completion vs. Maryland (11/24), and rushed for 35 yards on three carries, including an 18‐yard run.

2017 SOPHOMORE SEASON (AT PENN STATE): Appeared in nine games … Saw time at quarterback, running back
and wide receiver … Rushed 27 times for 190 yards and four touchdowns … Caught 12 passes for 60 yards and
two scores … Went 14‐of‐27 passing for 158 yards and three TDs … Completed 3‐of‐6 passes for 42 yards vs.
Akron (9/2) … Also rushed four times for 16 yards and one touchdown … Scored on a 5‐yard touchdown run in
the fourth quarter … Caught his first career pass for 7 yards … Caught and threw a touchdown pass vs. Georgia
State (9/16) … Completed 2‐of‐4 passes for 43 yards and a touchdown … Rushed twice for two yards … Caught
two passes for 19 yards, including a 10‐yard touchdown grab … Caught his second career touchdown pass at
Northwestern (10/7), a 10‐yard pass from Trace McSorley … Made two catches in the game for eight yards …
Rushed three times for 17 yards … Set career highs in passing attempts (7) and completions (4) … Completed 2‐
of‐3 passes for 21 yards and one touchdown vs. Nebraska (11/18) … Connected with Nick Bowers for a
touchdown in the fourth quarter … Rushed five times for 31 yards … Caught two passes for 22 yards … Posted
career highs in rushes (12), rushing yards (113), rushing touchdowns (3) and touchdowns responsible for (4) at
Maryland (11/25) … Completed 3‐of‐7 passes for 11 yards, including a 4‐yard scoring strike in the fourth quarter
… Also made one reception for four yards … Owned a team‐best 117 all‐purpose yards (113 rushing, 4
receiving).

2016 REDSHIRT FRESHMAN SEASON (AT PENN STATE): Appeared in seven games … Made his collegiate debut vs.
Kent State (9/3) … Saw snaps at quarterback in the fourth quarter, but did not throw a pass vs. Maryland (10/1)
… Carried the ball four times for 36 yards … Attempted his first passes as a collegiate quarterback, completing
his first career pass for 26 yards at Purdue (10/29) … Was 1‐of‐2 passing … Rushed five times for 31 yards,
including an 18‐yard rush in the fourth quarter … Ran five times for 70 yards vs. Iowa (11/5) … Lined up at wide
receiver and took the handoff on the jet sweep, rumbling 13 yards for his first career touchdown in the fourth
quarter … Added a career‐long 45‐yard rush in the fourth quarter … Rushed six times for 62 yards at Rutgers
(11/19) … Scampered for a 12‐yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter … Had a long rush of 31 yards.

2015 TRUE FRESHMAN SEASON (AT PENN STATE): Redshirted his first year with the program.
HIGH SCHOOL: Played for head coach Justin Dixson at Decatur Central in Indiana … Finalist for Indiana Gatorade
Player of the Year … Two‐time all‐conference, all‐area and all‐county selection … Honored as a 2014 All‐State 5A
selection as a defensive back after making 25 tackles and recording two interceptions … Averaged 172 passing
yards and completed 60 percent of his attempts, while throwing 16 touchdown passes as a senior … A dualthreat
quarterback, rushed for 842 yards on 172 carries, averaging 4.9 yards per carry while scoring 10
touchdowns … Rated a three‐star prospect by all four major recruiting services – 247Sports, ESPN, Rivals and
Scout … Ranked as the No. 17 dual‐threat quarterback and the seventh‐best player in Indiana by 247Sports …
Rivals tabbed him as the 18th‐ranked dual‐threat quarterback and the No. 5 player in Indiana.
PERSONAL: Born December 15, 1996, in Indianapolis, Indiana … Full name is Thomas Mason Stevens … Son of
Tom and Misty Stevens … Has two sisters, Kayla and Livia, and two brothers, Cameron and Aycen … Listens to
Metallica to psyche himself up for games … Pursuing his master’s degree in community college education …
Twitter handle is @TMS_II.

CAREER HIGHS:
Completions: 20, at Louisiana (8‐31‐19)
Attempts: 30, at Louisiana (8‐31‐19)
Passing Yards: 236, at Louisiana (8‐31‐19)
Passing TDs: 2, (4x) last vs Abilene Christian (11‐23‐19)
Long Pass: 88, vs Abilene Christian (11‐23‐19)
Rushes: 15, at Arkansas (11‐2‐19)
Rushing Yards: 153, vs Abilene Christian (11‐23‐19)
Rushing TDs: 3, at Maryland (11‐25‐17)*
Long Rush: 46, vs. Alabama (11‐17‐19)
Receptions: 3, vs. Washington (12‐30‐17)*
Receiving Yards: 22, vs. Nebraska (11‐18‐17)*
Receiving TDs: 1, (twice) last at Northwestern (10‐7‐17)*
Long Reception: 13, vs. Nebraska (11‐18‐17)*
* achieved while playing at Penn State

New Orleans Saints Quarterback Tommy Stevens
Local Media Zoom Availability
Saturday, April 25, 2020

How does it feel to be a Saint?
“It’s unbelievable. I’m at a loss for words. I couldn’t be more thankful for Coach Payton (and) his staff. I’m just incredibly blessed, incredibly thankful for people I have in my life and the Saints for giving me this opportunity.”

How much contact did you have with them throughout the draft process?
I had a good bit of contact with them. I talked to them, I talked to a few different teams, but they were definitely in the top teams that I talked to. So it’s definitely refreshing to come to New Orleans.”

Is it surprising at all to see your phone ringing from them, especially since they had, as of yesterday, traded all their picks today?
“Yeah, a little bit. After seeing all their picks were gone, I guess it wasn’t completely out of the question, but a little bit was surprising yes. But again, I’m so happy that I’m going to end up in New Orleans and I can’t wait to get to work.”

As soon as you got picked, everybody was like Taysom (Hill) 2.0, do you think that’s a fair comparison?
“I think Taysom brings his own game to the table and I bring mine. But again, I’m glad that I’m going to be teammates with somebody like Taysom and the other quarterbacks in that room. I can’t wait to get to work with them. Like I keep saying, it’s such an unbelievable opportunity. I’m so thankful for it.”

Speaking of other quarterbacks in the room, one of them’s Drew Brees. What does it mean to you to be able to be in the same room as a guy like that and to be able to absorb as much as you can from him?
“I can’t think of a better role model. Drew’s always done things the right way and I’m going to absorb as much information as I possibly can from him. (He’s) One of the all-time greats. I can’t wait to learn as much as I possibly can from him.”

Do you think you’re someone that could contribute in more ways than just quarterback if they asked?

“I do. I am going to do whatever it takes, whatever the coaches ask me to do. I am willing to do anything. I am so happy, so blown away by this. I keep saying I could not be more thankful. I’m so happy to be a Saint.”

The saints asked you to send a video of you running routes. Is that right?

“Yes sir.”

What was that process like? Were there specific routes I asked for or how’d that come about?
I don’t necessarily know if the script came specifically from the Saints, but my agent and I put together a script that we thought was going to please the multiple teams asking me to run routes. We did that. It was not necessarily anything too foreign to me. I I did some of the similar things at Penn State in my time there and I’ve kind of grown up playing multiple positions. It wasn’t totally foreign to me, but obviously it’s going to need some fine tuning to have success in the NFL.”

I apologize if they’ve already asked this, but how often have you heard the Taysom Hill comparisons?
“I’ve heard it quite a bit and my response to that is Taysom obviously brings a unique skillset with his game. In order for me to I guess, gain a little bit, people saying that my game is similar to his, it’s an honor. I love the way that Taysom plays and if I can do similar things that he’s done for the Saints organization, I’ll be very happy. I’m going to do whatever I’m asked to do.”

When you were at Penn state, where all did you line up?
“There were certain game plans that had me lining up at a running back, h-back. I did some tight end stuff. Sometimes I went out wide and lined up as a receiver. I would line up in the backfield and motion in and end up being the quarterback. There were a lot of different things that I did. It could be beneficial for me in the future.”

What sort of sparked that? What made them decide to move you around like that up there?
“I kind of originally tell this story and it’s going to kind of come off as selfish in a way, but I was really bored with the first four weeks of our season. This is my redshirt freshman year at Penn State. I went to our quarterback’s coach, Coach (Joe) Moorhead, and was like, hey, coach is there anything I can do? I really want to do something, can I run down on kickoff? Can I be a gunner on punt, can I just do something? He immediately put the running down on kickoff to bed. He was like, yeah, you’re not going to do that, but we’ve got some things that we’re going to be able to use you and kind of create some pain for other defenses and that’s what we did.”

Did you expect to be in this position considering the way the season ended for you at Mississippi State?

“Yeah, in a sense I did, just based (things) off of knowing what I can bring to the table. Through everything, I have never lost faith in the player that I know that I am and obviously the Saints organization believes in me as well and it is really humbling to be drafted. This is a dream come true. I have dreamed of this day really for as long as I can remember. I was born and they (parents) put a football on my cribs. This day was eventually bound to happen and me and my family, we’re so unbelievable thankful for the Saints organization.”

Do you have any connections to New Orleans or the Saints in particular?
“My time when I was at Mississippi state, I met quite a few Saints fans. I’m sure they’re happy in Starkville.”

Your first game as a starting college quarterback was at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome when you played the (University of Louisiana Lafayette) Cajuns?

“Yes sir.”

You kind of had to wait a long time for that opportunity. What do you just remember going into that contest and the anticipation you felt wanting to play?
“Yeah, I remember a lot of emotion. A lot of emotion went into that game. I’ve waited, like you said, I’ve waited a long time to have that opportunity. It was really hard for me at times to wait like that. I remember going into the game, I was thankful for the opportunity because, obviously there’s a lot worse problems to have than waiting your time to play for a Division One school. I was very thankful for the opportunity to be a part of a place like Mississippi State and go into that first game. We were able to play very well and I’ll remember that for the rest of my life.”

I also apologize if this part is a repeat, but you did spend time with Joe Brady at Penn State, correct?

“I did.”

Were you working on any of that kind of stuff at all or at that time were you more quote unquote traditional quarterback play?
“Yeah, we had Joe Brady that season, the 2016 season, which was my redshirt freshman year and that was kind of when some of the stuff started, so yeah. I never necessarily knew whether or not it was true or not, but I mean, some of that stuff started to happen with Taysom (Hill) right around the same time. So that could have been something that Joe (Brady) maybe proposed to Coach (Sean) Payton and I mean, who knows, I’ll never really know, but yeah, Joe was with us.”

Where are you these days?

“I’m back at my hometown, Indianapolis, Indiana.”

I’ve got to ask, with all this stuff that you do, do you view yourself as a quarterback or just as a football player? How do you kind of see yourself?

“My dad and my uncle have always taught me that an early age for as long as I’ve been playing football, they taught me to play as many positions as possible. I do label myself as a quarterback first. I think that that’s my primary position, but I’m definitely a guy that can do multiple things I feel like.”

Where are you sort of healthwise, I know you battled some injuries throughout your career?
“I’m 100% healthy right now.”

This would be kind of a variation of maybe a similar question you got kind of got off the bat, but I always wonder what guys who get picked in some of those later rounds if they almost wonder if they would rather be in an undrafted free agent situation, just depending on what organizations you’d (like to go to), but obviously the Saints have been a contender the last couple of years. Was there a thankfulness that not only, I mean, I know that getting drafted is obviously cool, right, but going somewhere where it’s not somewhere where they’re still trying to figure it out and put it together, right? At least it’s an organization that is in a good spot.
“Yeah. I mean, definitely. I think that the Saints are definitely a contender this year and it’s awesome to be a part of that. I can’t explain how excited I am to get to work and to help in any way that I can with that. I think that this is the perfect spot for me. I couldn’t think of a better situation.”