‘It’s a very beautiful time, just a rush of emotions. Even if Bryan Bresee wanted to forget, the recollection is too vivid for him to do so.
But the New Orleans Saints’ first-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft (No. 29 overall) cannot erase the memories from April 27 of last year.
“When our season (at Clemson) ended in December, right to January, going out and training and prepping for the draft, (NFL) Combine, pro day and all that other stuff was definitely kind of a sprint getting through everything,” the defensive lineman said. “And then draft day comes along, which is obviously a difficult day. Not only for me, but for my entire family.
“But I think toward the end, it was one of the best days of my life – just knowing what team I was going to play for, and coming to a team like the Saints, it was just super, super exciting for me and my family.”
“For me, draft day consisted of just hanging out with my family and doing normal things. I guess we went for a walk, got some lunch somewhere – anything to take your mind off it, because that’s a long day right there, waiting for the draft to start, and then another three or four hours of sitting there waiting. So my family absolutely helped me get through that and tried to take my mind off it.”
Twenty-eight players were taken before Bresee was chosen by the Saints, who gained a great talent to their interior defensive line. And the wait for Bresee, who recorded 4.5 sacks, nine quarterback hits, seven tackles for loss, six passes defensed, and 24 tackles while appearing in all 17 games as a rookie, was a test of patience.
