New Orleans Saints Draft Choices: Akiem Hicks (2012)

The first round of the 2016 NFL Draft will be held on Thursday, April 28, in Chicago, Illinois.

Between now and then, we’ll be looking back at all of the drafts of the New Orleans Saints, from 1967-2015.

Yesterday, we looked back at 2011.

Today: 2012

The 2012 draft was the 46th draft in the history of the Saints.

The Saints had to wait awhile to draft in 2012, as they didn't have a pick in the first two rounds. So, they didn't pick until the third round.

The selection turned out to be a player who showed a tremendous amount of promise early on, before fading a little, and then was traded away.

The pick: Akiem Hicks, a defensive lineman from Sacramento City College in Canada.

A native of San Jose, California, Hicks, who was the 89th-overall pick of the 2012 NFL Draft, played three-plus years for the Saints, from 2012-2015.

The 6-foot-5, 318-pound Hicks played in 14 games at defensive end, all as a reserve, as a rookie in 2012, while compiling 10 tackles.

In 2013, Hicks began to show off his outstanding potential, generating 32 tackles, to go along with 4.5 sacks, while appearing in, and starting, all 16 games.

During 2014, a season in which Hicks took a step backwards, he dropped to 27 tackles and 2 sacks, while playing in 15 games, including 14 as a starter.

Hicks began the 2015 season with the Saints, playing in three games, before being traded to the New England Patriots for tight end Michael Hoomanawanui.

The Chicago Bears have since signed Hicks to a two-year contract.

In 4 seasons with the Saints, Hicks appeared in 48 games, including 33 as a starter, compiling 69 tackles and 6.5 sacks.

In 4 seasons in the NFL, Hicks has appeared in 61 games, including 33 as a starter, accumulating 78 tackles and 9.5 sacks.

There’s not much to talk about after the pick of Hicks in 2012, especially since the franchise didn't have a first or a second round pick that year.

The Saints picks Wisconsin receiver Nick Toon in the fourth round, prior to selecting Samford defensive back Corey white in the fifth round.