A significant presence will be missing from the war room at 5800 Airline Drive when the New Orleans Saints settle in for the NFL draft on Thursday night.
For the first time in decades, Tom Benson won't be present on draft night, a fact that hasn't been lost on Saints general manager Mickey Loomis.
Loomis has planned a quiet tribute to Benson, who died in March at the age of 90.
"We'll have an empty chair for him, and we'll be thinking about him for sure," Loomis said.