The 2025 Saints predictably resembled one of the worst teams in the NFL through the first two-plus months of the season. 2-10 by the end of November, it sure seemed like this squad was on its way to contending for the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 draft.

Then something funny happened: Tyler Shough started to look a lot like the Saints' potential quarterback of the present and future. While the Saints didn't exactly face a gauntlet down the stretch, Shough and company won four of their final five games and actually resembled a competent football team. Throw in a defense that wound up posting some surprisingly high-end ranks in various efficiency measures, and there's suddenly legit optimism for the future here.

• 2025: 6-11 (-77 point differential, preseason win total: 4.5)
• Points per game: 18 (28th)
• EPA per pass: -0.03 (27th)
• EPA per rush: -0.16 (31st)
• Points per game against: 22.5 (16th)
• EPA per pass against: +0.02 (12th)
• EPA per rush against: -0.14 (2nd)

Of course, the Saints are still rebounding from their, let's say, curious salary cap decisions over the years—this is one of eight rosters more than $20 million in the hole in terms of 2026 cap space. Accordingly, it'd make sense if the bulk of improvements are made through the draft: The Saints' most realistic path to competing at the top of the NFC South as soon as next season would involve making the most out of the No. 8, 42 and 73 picks.

What do the Saints Need to do Ahead of the 2026 NFL Season?

Need 1: Wide receiver

Chris Olave is a baller, shot-caller, and fully deserves to be treated as a legit high-end No. 1 wide receiver following his breakout 2025.

• Receiving yards: 1,163 (7th)
• Receiving touchdowns: 9 (tied for 6th)
• Yards per route run: 1.99 (19th)
• Targets per route run: 26.7% (9th)
• ESPN open rating: 81 (6th)

Devaughn Vele also did some good things down the stretch, but more firepower is needed after sending Rashid Shaheed to Seattle at the trade deadline. While a deserved long-term extension for Olave could change things, the Saints presently have the league's 12th-cheapest group of wide receivers entering 2026.

Premium

Go FantasyLife+

Your league is unique. Your advice should be too. Get personalized tools, rankings, and projections tailored to your fantasy football league settings.

Learn More

Need 2: Offensive line

Sometimes units are bad in large part because of a lack of resources devoted to the group. This is NOT one of those instances, as the Saints have taken an offensive lineman in the first round in four of the last six drafts.

And yet, the results simply haven't been great in recent years.

• 2025: PFF's 22nd-ranked offensive line
• 2024: 22nd
• 2023: 23rd
• 2022: 29th

Getting better injury luck could be enough for this group to take a step forward in Year 2 under head coach Kellen Moore, although at a minimum some depth is needed with Dillon Radunz (62.2% snap rate in 2025) and Luke Fortner (60.3%) hitting the open market.

Need 3: Cornerback

The Saints defense played surprisingly well down the stretch of 2025, but this cornerback room needs additional resources: Only the Dolphins and Raiders have fewer dollars devoted to their corners ahead of 2026. This is largely due to two factors:

• Starting CB Alontae Taylor is hitting free agency.
• The team never quite made a meaningful addition to replace longtime No. 1 cornerback Marshon Lattimore after trading him halfway through the 2024 season.

While using the team's No. 9 overall pick on offense makes sense, it'd be nice to see the Saints leave Day 2 of the draft with at least one new addition to their secondary.

Honorable mention

Alvin Kamara turns 31 in July and just posted career-worst efficiency numbers across the board. Backup Kendre Miller simply hasn't been able to stay healthy through three career seasons … Longtime front-seven stalwarts Cameron Jordan and Demario Davis will both be 37 by the time next season comes around. That said: This front seven is one of just seven groups with a nine-figure cap hit ahead of 2026, so expecting newfound big-time contracts here could be wishful thinking … Juwan Johnson is a perfectly solid TE1, but Taysom Hill and Foster Moreau are both hitting free agency.

If I were GM …

I would use the No. 9 overall pick on the best wide receiver available. With Ohio State WR Carnell Tate looking like a candidate to go inside the top 5, this could mean Arizona State WR Jordyn Tyson or USC's Makai Lemon. This roster is hardly one addition away from suddenly resembling a Super Bowl contender, so the more the team can do in the near term to find out for sure if Tyler Shough is their quarterback of the future, the better!

Join Our Newsletter

Trusted by 400,000+ fantasy football players. Get access to Fantasy Life's free award winning newsletter and tools, all in one step.

Email Address

Subscribe

By registering or logging in, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.