If you ever wondered what sport rules the hearts and minds of the American culture you can stop your search at the NFL. This is the only sport in the nation where the discussion about the league knows no season.

It's always football season in Louisiana. College football is a passion but professional football is where the conversation really gets heated.

Tonight it's the first round of the NFL's annual selection meeting. That's where the teams make their selection of available eligible players to add to and bolster their current roster. The NFL Draft is like a soap opera. There is drama, there is uncertainty, and there is a lot of "what were they thinking".

While we can't tell you exactly what the New Orleans Saints are thinking we were able to find someone who might have a pretty good idea about where the Saints might be looking when it comes to tonight's selection show.

Right now we probably have more defensive players on our board than offensive and yet the strength of the draft is going to be determined two and three years from now when we look back as opposed to today, just looking at the numbers on the board. Look, it's going to be a different viewpoint for every team.

Those are the comments of Saints GM Mickey Loomis. He spoke to the Louisiana Radio Network about what the team may or may not do beginning tonight. You have to remember this little nugget, the NFL Draft is a lot like a high stakes poker game too. There is a lot of bluffing to keep other teams off balance or to keep player's agents from thinking their clients can demand big paydays.

One of the burning questions many Saints fans have been asking is what about the heir apparent to Drew Brees. We all know how good Drew has been over the years. He is getting up there in NFL years and the Saints will eventually have to cultivate a new quarterback.

I think we look into the quarterbacks every year. We have for the last few years. We've got to have an eye toward the future and yet we're happy with our quarterback situation as well so I think that it is just part of the process every year.

The first round of the NFL Draft will be televised live on ESPN beginning tonight at 7 PM. The Saints will have the 12th pick in tonight's first round.

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