The New Orleans Saints got a week off after a 2-8 start to their 2025 season, and now they get a chance to finish things off the right way. Can they do it?
Let's start by saying, OK, this should've been written a few weeks ago. The second half of the Saints' season truly began in Week 10, and the Saints got off to a roaring start in a win over the Panthers. But I didn't have time to write this then, and just be cool. OK?
The only way forward for the Saints is to forget about the record (difficult, I know) and stack positives. Build toward the team you want to be, brick by brick. I won't be talking about draft picks. Wherever you draft is wherever you draft. Winning in the draft is a question for the offseason. At this point, learning how to win games and figuring out what you have in the process has to the priority.
The first opportunity will come against a depleted Atlanta Falcons squad at the Caesars Superdome, with a rested Saints team that should be feeling as positive as it has all year. Simple enough, right?
With all that in mind, here are my five biggest questions the Saints must answer the rest of the way:
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1. Can Tyler Shough be the guy?
Finding the quarterback is the most important question for every team to answer. It always has been and always will be.
For the teams that get it right, it's the most obvious thing in the world. Of course that was the guy. Every other team was foolish for not realizing it.
And for the teams that just can't seem to get it right, well, let's just say it's not so obvious. Some teams try to get it done through the draft, some try to get it done through the free agent or trade markets. It's anything but an exact science. Just ask the Browns, who have seemingly tried every possible way and seem no closer to having a franchise QB than they were a decade ago.
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The Saints, at least the current iteration, has been pretty steadfast up until this past season that the free agent route was the way to go. It worked until it didn't. That's what makes the Tyler Shough question so fascinating, because I can point to a lot of highly drafted quarterbacks that got plenty of opportunities and never put up the type of performance that Shough had against the Panthers. Whatever you want to take away from the scoreline, your eyes didn't deceive you.
A player proving that type of performance is in there at all is the first step in solidifying that a team should be behind you, as opposed to be actively looking to supplant you. Spencer Rattler had 15 starting opportunities and never once put together a complete day that forced the Saints' hand in that way. That's just reality.
The next step is proving that it wasn't a mirage. Perfection isn't the standard. Rookies make mistake and Shough will be given grace for a dud of a performance or two, but can he continue to elevate and offense and playmakers that have always seemed capable of a lot more than we were seeing? All a fanbase needs to get excited is a bit of hope for the future. That's how you build it.
Seven games. Shough it, let's see what the kid has.
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2. Can you beat the bad teams?
The first half of the Saints' season was brutal in more ways than one. It was disastrous on the record line, but it also turned out to be a lot more difficult than anyone realized going in.
The Saints had eight losses in their first nine game, only one of which came to a team that's outside the playoff picture right now in the Arizona Cardinals, who have since dealt with injuries to several key players, including QB Kyler Murray. The other seven came against these teams, with their current record in parentheses:
- vs 49ers (7-4)
- at Seahawks (7-3)
- at Bills (7-3)
- vs Patriots (9-2)
- at Bears (7-3)
- vs Bucs (6-4)
- at Rams (8-2)
That's a combined winning percentage of .708. All seven of those teams will likely make the postseason. It truly is one of the biggest reasons I'm empathetic with Spencer Rattler's situation. He truly was tossed into a buzzsaw.
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That said, one of my long-held takes is that the most important part of being a perennial playoff team isn't finding a way against the good teams, it's taking care of business against the bad teams. If you can do that and knock off a few playoff contenders along the way, that's the recipe for sustained success.
Kellen Moore's group wasn't able to do that second part. Can they do the first? Because the second half of the schedule is starkly different in that regard.
- vs Falcons (3-7)
- at Dolphins (4-7)
- at Bucs (6-4)
- vs Panthers (6-5)
- vs Jets (2-8)
- at Titans (1-9)
- at Falcons (3-7)
That's a combined winning percentage of .347. The only teams left with a winning record are the Bucs and the Panthers, a team the Saints just took apart on the road.
People will disagree with me because they want a higher draft pick, but I think this Saints group would benefit from developing a winning formula in these winning matchups. If they can't, there's not much a top pick is going to be able to do for me in terms of confidence for next year.
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YAC attack?
Over the bye week I took some time and put together a statistics packet to identify two things: What do the top teams consistently do well, and where do the Saints stand relative to it.
I'll lay the fuller results out later on, but let's just say they weren't great for the Saints as would be expected in a 2-8 season. Still, one number stood out. Of the top 10 teams in yards after catch on the season, nine were teams among the top 15 records in the NFL this season.
To state that more simply: The teams that excelled in generating yards after catch tend to excel in the standings. It's a thing good teams do ... and something the Saints don't, or at least didn't for a large chunk of the first half of the schedule. Heading into Week 12 the Saints are ranked 25th in that category (908 yards). The Lions lead the NFC with 1,293.
That stat alone is what made the win over the Panthers encouraging. After averaging 86 YAC yards over the first nine games, they exploded for 134, with two of those catch-and-run situations going for long touchdowns.
Accuracy and delivering the ball on time and on target doesn't get nearly enough credit when it comes to generating big plays, and that's what I saw in Week 10. Was that a mirage, or can running with the ball be a part of the Saints offense again? Time will tell.
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Who are we building around?
One thing that's made this season a bit more palatable is the team's clear willingness to put a lot on young players. After years of watching a team so reluctant to throw a player into the fire before they're ready -- particular with mid to late rounders -- this season has been jarring in terms of how frequently it's happened.
Here's the list of first- and second-year players getting significant run right now:
- QB Tyler Shough
- RB Devin Neal
- WR Devaughn Vele
- LT Kelvin Banks Jr.
- RT Taliese Fuaga
- CB Kool-Aid McKinstry
- CB Quincy Riley
- S Jonas Sanker
- LB Danny Stutsman
- LB Isaiah Stalbird
Every single one of those players is either starting at a premium position or getting regular reps in the offense or defense. How many of them are actually core pieces?
It's likely we see significant turnover this offseason with the departure of some key players. The names above are the ones I have the sharpest eyes on in terms of their development.
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Big-boy contracts?
The Saints will have some money to throw around this offseason, despite what some talking heads might lead you to believe.
Don't expect a team in the Saints' situation won't be swimming in the deep end of the free agency pool, but I do expect them to be aggressive in terms of re-signing their own players. The key will be the evaluations from this year, and whether they fit the new schemes on offense and defense.
The only two players, really, worth talking about on that front are WR Chris Olave and CB Alontae Taylor, both members of the 2022 draft class. The other premium pick that year was Trevor Penning, who has already been traded.
The Saints will have a more flexible timeline as it pertains to Olave having already picked up his 5th-year option. With his injury history it'd be stunning to see any deal struck until the offseason, but I've learned never to assume things will go logically. I do expect a strong second half to the season and there's been nothing from an injury perspective that would give me qualms about handing out a bigger contract, the question will be just how costly will that be in a WR that's exploded in recent years. There are now nine different WRs, including Olave's former college teammate Garrett Wilson, making over $30 million per year.
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Would Olave really put his flag in the ground demanding that type of deal? If he has a strong second half and shows elite chemistry with Shough, he just might -- and the Saints might give it.
The other question will be for Taylor, who will be a free agent this offseason and has had highs and lows in Brandon Staley's scheme. At times I wonder whether a safety would be better suited for the star role, but he has improved as a tackler and the defensive coordinator has spoke glowingly about his young DB. If they can, I think the Saints would probably try to bring Alontae back.
The bigger question might be what type of contract he's demanding. The Saints are utilizing Taylor as a slot cornerback, though he'd be the first to tell you he's an outside corner at heart. The difference is significant in the salary rankings. Derek Stingley is the highest paid outside cornerback at $30 million a season, and there are six others making north of $20 million a season. It can be more difficult to track the slot corner market, but it appears that Kyler Gordon is the highest paid at that position with an average of $13.3 million per season.
Staley calls his slot corner the "star" position and frequently talks about how vital it is to his scheme's success. Is that really where you want to get cheap?
At the end of the day the best way for both players to get paid is to ball out over the final seven games. Let's see what happens.
The Saints (2-8) are next on the field in Week 12 when they host the Atlanta Falcons (3-7) at the Caesars Superdome. Catch all the action on WWL and Audacy.