The talent and leadership has never been in question for Saints center Erik McCoy, but he hasn't been able to show it for the better part of the past two seasons.
That span has been more about frustration, with a pair of elbow injuries limiting the former 2nd round pick to 7 games in each of the past two seasons. The 2025 campaign ended early on during a Week 7 loss to the Bears in Chicago, and McCoy wasn't shy about the mental hurdles that prompted.
“I would say the last two years have took a toll, just to say the least," McCoy told WWL's Mike Hoss. "You put in all the work in the offseason, you work your tail off, you rehab, you spend time here rehabbing when you don’t have to just to try to get everything in shape and ready to go and then just for it to kind of get taken away, it’s hard.”
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McCoy described this year's injury as a "little traumatic," but he was back with the team to finish the season and is progressing well in his rehab. That process still had a few months ahead as the season came to an end earlier this month, and his expectation was to be at the facility working with trainers and medical staff for much of the offseason.
"That’s just the name of the game for me right now,” McCoy said.
Once that rehab is completed, the name of the game will be assessing the depth of the interior offensive line and any potential upgrades. The Saints went into last season with Trevor Penning transitioning from tackle, with mixed results. Veteran Dillon Radunz took over alongside backup center Luke Fortner and handled the latter half of the season well.
While McCoy and Cesar Ruiz figure to be back on the starting line for 2026, it's a group that could certainly be bolstered in from of Tyler Shough, who didn't take over at QB until a few weeks after McCoy was done for the year. William Sherman also logged key reps at guard as an injury replacement, while Asim Richards logged time at both right and left tackle due to injuries.
"Hopefully I don’t have to miss any more time, I’m going to do my best to not miss any more time," McCoy continued. "But when that happens you need to have guys that are fully and completely capable to step in and do a hell of a job, and I think those guys did it.”
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When McCoy does get back on the field he'll be entering Year 4 of a 5-year, $60 million extension signed prior to the 2022 season and he'll have to hit the ground running with Shough as the signal-caller. The pair does have reps together during the QB competition a year ago, but there's certainly more room for growth.
“There’s a lot of things to be excited about," McCoy said. "Obviously Tyler is a super talented guy, can make every throw in the book and then yea, I think the offense grew throughout the season, in terms of what we were able to handle, in terms of what we could run, in terms of just the overall efficiency and I think that when Tyler took the helm, that kind of took off after his first couple of starts, so I think that the organization and the fans have a lot to be excited about in him as a player and about how he continues to develop and about how we continue to develop alongside him, to protect him, to build him up and just get playmakers in here to make his job easier.”
The Saints' will have opportunities to add those playmakers in the upcoming draft, where they hold the No. 8 overall selection.