Going into the fourth round of the NFL Draft, the New Orleans Saints still had not added a cornerback, even with Kool-Aid McKinstry and Quincy Riley described as the team’s starting outside corners. That left Charles Demmings, the Stephen F. Austin prospect, in the mix as a possible Day 3 fit for a defense that could use help fast.
Gerald Huggins of FCS Football Central labeled the Saints one of the best schematic fits for Demmings, arguing that pattern-match defenses would let him use his solid mix of man and zone coverage while keeping him out of too many isolated snaps against quality separators. Huggins also described him as a boundary corner with flexibility in coverage, quality press-coverage ability and strong zone instincts, the kind of profile that could make him a solid pickup as Day 3 progressed.
The interest made sense because the Saints’ cornerback room had the potential to look very different very soon. The source framing Demmings as a target pointed to a thin depth chart behind McKinstry and Riley, and to a defense that could benefit from a player who might provide good depth and maybe climb the chart if the fit was right.
That urgency sits alongside a wider roster squeeze in New Orleans. The Saints’ receiver room had already been depleted after they traded Rashid Shaheed and cut Brandin Cooks, and Tyler Shough was throwing to players who were not on the main roster halfway through the year. In that context, adding help on the back end looked less like luxury and more like roster management.
There was still a catch. Jermod McCoy remained available on Day 3 because of medical concerns, and Keith Abney was another outside corner on the board, with both players likely to hear their names called before Demmings. A separate report later had the Vikings taking the Stephen F. Austin cornerback with the 163rd overall pick, underscoring how quickly the board could move once the fourth round gave way to the rest of Day 3.
