There's still plenty of playoff action ahead for the 2025 season, but the New Orleans Saints get another headstart on their offseason after a 6-11 season. But this one feels different.
With several key positions filled the Saints have a chance for some continuity and proactive roster building after years of change and scraping to make ends meet at key spots. That's the biggest reason for positivity with an eye on the future.
With all that in mind, here are what I see as the five biggest questions facing the Saints heading into the 2026 offseason.
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1. Run it back?
This might not be the biggest question, but it is the first in line: Exactly how much much of the current coaching staff will be back in 2026? My bet is ... most.
For the first time in a long time the Saints' coaching situations seems to be on calm seas. The last four seasons we've seen:
- 2022: Head coach change (Sean Payton to Dennis Allen)
- 2023: Rebuilt defensive staff
- 2024: Rebuilt offensive staff
- 2025: Head coach change, offensive/defensive overhaul (DA to Kellen Moore)
Continuity isn't a bad thing and I expect the Saints to lean into this season. No one on the Saints staff has been in conversations for head coaching jobs, and none of the position coaches jump out as being on shortlists for OC/DC gigs. There could potentially be assistants landing bigger roles elsewhere (say a Jahri Evans going from assistant OL coach to a full-fledged OL coach somewhere) but those are tough to predict. Teams can block lateral moves, but they cannot block promotions.
There are currently nine teams hiring new head coaches, so that could throw a wrench into the mix depending on who lands in those roles.
Still, when the Saints return from their programmed 10-day hiatus following the end of the season, I expect largely positive performance reviews, with room for growth.
The names I've seen brought up for suggested changes have been RBs coach Joel Thomas and OL coach Brendan Nugent. As far as JT, I'm not sure why. The RB room was devastated by injuries and we still saw positive production down the stretch from players who were third string or lower to start the year. The Saints were happy to get Joel back after a year with the Giants and made him assistant head coach for a reason. He'll be back.
OL is a tougher picture to figure out, but that group also had to navigate major injury absences while working in a rookie left tackle. I don't see an issue there.
The third name that's come up a ton is Phil Galiano, which I think has more merit. Galiano took over the lead special teams coordinator role for the first time at the NFL level and it was an up and down year, to say the least.
We saw the Saints have multiple punts blocked, a kicker change midseason, a punt return TD and frequent coverage issues, too many penalties. If there was something that could've gone wrong, it seemed to. I wouldn't be surprised at all if the Saints decided to make a change, but it's also worth noting what Moore said in his end-of-year presser.
“I think we had a lot of moving pieces there," Moore said, "and so I thought credit to Phil of kind of helping navigate that. ... I thought he did a really good job of helping a lot of young players get ready and prepared to contribute on our football team in the special teams that were a little bit new to that aspect of football, so are there areas that we want to improve on, get better, absolutely, and that’s something that we’ll do in all three phases.”
He's not wrong. There was near-constant change with that group, and it all kicked off with the decision to waive J.T. Gray prior to the season. It was a puzzling move at the time, but seems to be linked directly to the desire to see Jonas Sanker with a core special teams role. That idea lasted on week until Julian Blackmon got hurt, and suddenly Sanker's special teams role was cut drastically.
If the Saints do opt to bring Phil back for another go, that quote from Moore tells you why. And if they do, don't expect major changes elsewhere.
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2. Olave payday?
The biggest contract question of the season has changed.
We went into the 2025 season asking: Will the Saints pay Chris Olave?
We exit the 2025 season asking: How much will the Saints pay Chris Olave?
That's because, despite entering the year with major health questions, Olave appeared in 16 games and set career marks in every meaningful category. The blood clot issue that forced him to miss Week 18, while serious, isn't expected to be a long-term issue. The most important thing: Zero concussions.
Here's where Olave's numbers ranked among WRs this season:
- Targets: 156 (5th)
- Catches: 100 (5th)
- Yards: 1,163 (7th)
- TDs: 9 (T6)
The Saints had a top-10 receiver. They didn't pay him like one, but they'll have to soon. He's under contract for the 2026 season on a 5th year option that's set to pay out just under $15.5 million, but I think they'd be wise to get an extension nailed down prior to that kicking in.
The question will be what tier that contract lands in, and I think the most reasonable scenario would be to compare Olave and former Ohio State teammate Garrett Wilson from a production perspective (more on why below). Both players went 10 and 11 in the 2022 draft. Here are their numbers through 4 seasons:
OLAVE
- Games: 55
- Targets: 457 (8.3 per game)
- Catches: 291 (5.3 per game)
- Yards: 3,728 (67.8 per game)
- TDs: 19
WILSON
- Games: 58
- Targets: 528 (9.1 per game)
- Catches: 315 (5.4 per game)
- Yards: 3,644 (62.8 per game)
- TDs: 18
Nearly identical. Wilson has been a slightly higher usage player, while Olave has been a bit more explosive.
The biggest difference? The Jets have already locked Wilson into a 4-year, $130 million contract extension that's worth about $32.5 million annually. If I'm the Saints, my goal is to come a bit below that, but I'd also be fine matching it.
If and when a contract comes across the news ticker saying 32 million per year -- which would rank No. 7 in the NFL among WRs -- there might be spit takes happening. But if I'm the Saints I'm not concerned with the topline number as much as the contract language. If the Saints cave on the dollar amount to some degree, they'll have a lot more leverage to make sure clauses are included to protect the team from anything catastrophic in the long term. Whether it's done through availability incentives or some other levers, it's got to be in there and I don't think Olave and agent would balk at it, assuming their other asks get met. Anything shy of $32 million a year would probably be a win for the Saints FO. That's just the current state of the WR market.
Here's how it stacks up today by AAV:
- 1. Ja'Marr Chase, Bengals: $40.2M
- 2. Justin Jefferson, Vikings: $35M
- 3. CeeDee Lamb, Cowboys: $34M
- 4. DK Metcalf, Steelers: $33M
- 5. Garrett Wilson, Jets: $32.5M
- 6. Terry McLaurin, Commanders: $32.3M
- 7. AJ Brown, Eagles: $32M
- 8. Amon-Ra St. Brown, Lions: $30M
- 9. Brandon Aiyuk, 49ers: $30M
- 10. Tyreek Hill, Dolphins: $30M
Have a top-10 WR and want to keep him? It costs $30 million-plus. That's the reality. I also don't mind paying Olave top dollar as long as he's playing. I just need to make sure that if he's not, I can claw some of that back.
It's also worth noting that this is a perfect 3-year window to commit to a big contract at the WR position because the Saints are now about to enjoy the rookie QB cheat code. While many other teams will be shelling out $50 million or more per year at the QB position, Shough will be a cost-controlled option over the next 3 years. If an Olave contract blows up in the team's face, it can be mostly off the books by the time you might have to pay Shough on his own lucrative extension. Now is the time.
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3. Future for three legends?
Three names: Taysom Hill, Cam Jordan and Demario Davis
Three ages: 35, 36 and 37
Three expiring contracts.
So, among these three legends, who comes back?
Cam and Demario have made it clear they intend to play in 2026 and both would like it to be as a member of the New Orleans Saints. Taysom Hill was contemplative in his press conference after what could be his final home game, but he stopped short of any declarations about his career.
So what's the deal?
I feel certain that Demario will be back, considering he's coming off a career-high in tackles and doesn't look to be slowing down much, if at all. The only question is the numbers.
I'd be surprised if Cam isn't back, but it'll likely come down to his willingness to take a team-friendly deal with some incentives baked in. He's talked a big game about not playing at a discount again, which he believes he did this season, but at the end I think spending his whole career with one team is important to it. There's a compromise to be found.
As far as Taysom, it's a bummer to say, but it feels like he's played his final game -- at least in New Orleans. The production simply wasn't there and I just don't see the necessary value being added to the offense. Whether the team wants to state it publicly or not, many inside the building will have their fingers crossed that Taysom decides to call it a career. That would be the smoothest exit and it'd allow for a celebration rather than an awkward exit.
Time will tell.
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4. Rebuild the interior?
The edges of the offensive line seem locked in for the foreseeable future. The same can't be said for the interior. You should expect to see Erik McCoy and Cesar Ruiz back starting at center and right guard, respectively, but for how much longer can we say that?
Erik McCoy is 28 and entering the penultimate season of the 5-year, $60 million deal signed prior to the 2023 season. He's struggled to stay healthy with elbow injuries ending each of the last two seasons at 7 games played. He's still a high-level performer, but the 2026 season will be a big one to prove his body can continue to hold up to the rigors of the NFL. I might have to invest more heavily in a backup plan just in case that's not true.
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Ruiz is also entering the penultimate season of his contract, a 4-year, $44 million deal signed ahead of the 2023 season. His availability has been less of an issue as inconsistent performances, with GM Mickey Loomis stating openly that "we've got to get more out of [Ruiz]" in his season-end press conference.
The Saints got reasonably effective performances out of backups this season, and those players could return, but there's a clear need for at least one starting-caliber guard and I'd also like to see at least one developmental option that's on the higher end of the investment spectrum. The Saints will have multiple picks in the and 4th and 5th rounds of the upcoming draft, and that's typically a good range to find that type of player.
This is a clear area the Saints can improve and I'd hope to see some legitimate resources devoted there, whether that's in free agency or Day 2/early Day 3 of the draft.
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5: BPA, finally?
Every year you'll hear GMs and coaches talk about the draft and how it's a bad idea to make picks exclusively based on need. The goal is to add the best players, and it's a lot harder to do that if you're pigeonholing one position, regardless of your draft slot.
The only problem? It's a lot rarer than it sounds. There are premium positions in the NFL draft (quarterback, OT, edge rusher) and when you need them, well, your hands are tied. They're hard to find outside the first round.
Let's look at the Saints' last 10 drafts' worth of first round picks (or their first pick in that draft) and assess how many were made based on a clear need at the position:
- 2025, No. 9: Kelvin Banks, OT ... need
- 2024, No. 13: Taliese Fuaga, OT ... need
- 2023, No. 29: Bryan Bresee, DT ... need
- 2022, No. 11: Chris Olave, WR ... need
- 2022, No. 19: Trevor Penning, OT ... need
- 2021, No. 28: Payton Turner, DE ... need
- 2020, No. 24: Cesar Ruiz, G/C ... need
- 2019, No. 49: Erik McCoy, C ... need
- 2018, No. 14: Marcus Davenport, DE ... BPA
- 2017, No. 11: Marshon Lattimore, CB ... BPA
- 2017, No. 32: Ryan Ramczyk, OT ... need
- 2016, No. 12: Sheldon Rankins, DT ... BPA
Now, I wouldn't call this uncommon. You have a need, you fill it, but so many of these were either made to fill pretty desperate holes or because a previous attempt to do that failed. We haven't seen the Saints operate with the luxury of true BPA in quite some time, and definitely not since 2018 when they suddenly had to replace Max Unger due to a surprise retirement.
I bring this up to say: The Saints might finally have a chance to go BPA again this year.
- Quarterback: check (Tyler Shough)
- Offensive tackles: check (Kelvin Banks and Taliese Fuaga)
- Pass-rushers: check (Chase Young, Carl Granderson et al)
- Wide receivers: check (Chris Olave, Devaughn Vele, et al)
You could obviously stand to improve positions up and down your roster, but there's no desperation. No desperation means you have a board, and you can simply put in the name of the player at the top. Trust your scouting. Build the roster from the ground up. Develop players. Retain your talent. Supplement through free agency as necessary. This is the way.