The New Orleans Saints will host the New York Jets this Sunday in a Week 16 matchup. It is the last home game of the year for the 4-10 Saints, who are going for three consecutive wins for the first time since late in the 2022 season. They’ll try to do it against a 3-11 Jets squad that has lost two straight and four of their last five.

As the Saints have started to play better, most of the attention has gone to rookie quarterback Tyler Shough. New Orleans has also played extremely well defensively, rising to a ranking of 11th overall. They square off against a putrid Jets offense averaging less than 20 points per game and ranked 29th in total yardage. New York is down to their third quarterback of the year in undrafted rookie Brady Cook, as he faces one of the better pass defenses in the league.

Jets Passing Offense147 yards per game (32nd)60.8% completion percentage14 touchdowns (29th)11 interceptions (20th)50 sacks (30th)

New York hasn’t done many things right offensively in 2025, but Justin Fields at least did a decent job of avoiding interceptions early in the year. That’s changed drastically since Tyrod Taylor and now Brady Cook took over at quarterback. Taylor threw 5 interceptions against just 5 touchdowns, while Cook had thrown 5 interceptions and 1 touchdown in the last two games. An undrafted rookie out of Missouri, Cook has a 57% completion percentage and only 339 passing yards in the last two contests. He’s not even the dynamic scrambling threat of Fields or even Taylor, leaving the complete onus on New York pass catchers to get separation before a poor offensive line inevitably breaks down.

Brady Cook will have only a skeleton crew of receivers to target. Leading pass catchers Garrett Wilson (knee, IR) and tight end Mason Taylor (neck) are both out. The explosive pair of John Metchie and Adonai Mitchell are the remaining top options at wide receiver. While dangerous, this pair only has a combined 40 receptions and 427 yards. Isaiah Williams, with 13 catches and 114 yards, will be the third wideout. Former Tampa Bay receiver Tyler Johnson (10 catches, 187 yards) can also be a dangerous downfield threat.

At tight end, Jeremy Ruckert will see more targets with Taylor sidelined. While not as athletic as Taylor, Ruckert is an underrated intermediate target and has a career-best 20 receptions for 163 yards. Don’t overlook the explosiveness of running back Breece Hall as a pass catcher. Hall has 32 catches for 323 yards, second on the Jets in both categories and most of any New York player that will be in action on Sunday.

Saints Pass Defense180.6 yards (6th)65.4% completion percentage22 touchdowns (14th)8 interceptions (20th)28 sacks58 QB hits

The Saints don’t get as many sacks as they should. However, Chase Young and Cameron Jordan have provided good disruption off the edge while Bryan Bresee and Nathan Shepherd have gotten some decent pressure inside. These four have combined for 16.5 of the team’s sacks, with Jordan (6.5) and Young (6) leading the way. More impressive is the 38 QB hits and 60 pressures from this foursome. Young especially has played the most disruptive football of his career, while Jordan has shown he’s got plenty of good football left. Carl Granderson has been extremely quiet after a great start, but is also capable of producing pressure off the edge.

Demario Davis is best known for his leadership and elite run defense, but he’s also outstanding in both coverage and as a blitzer who is capable of making plays in space. The same cannot be said of fellow linebacker Pete Werner, who gets repeatedly beat in coverage responsibilities. However, second year linebacker Isaiah Stalbird has often taken Werner’s place in obvious passing situations. A former collegiate safety, Stalbird is a good athlete in coverage and has created chaos when he’s been used on blitzes.

New Orleans has a young secondary that has made some mistakes due to inexperience, but has also shown outstanding ability. Second-year Kool-Aid McKinstry and rookie Quincy Riley have formed a terrific duo at cornerback. McKinstry leads the team in interceptions (3) and passes broken up (10) while Riley has 8 pass breakups and an interception. Even when allowing completions, each player is often in good position to break up the throw, which will improve with continued experience. Alontae Taylor is the third corner and nickelback. He can be inconsistent in coverage but is also the best playmaker in the secondary. Veteran safety Justin Reid should be back in the lineup on Sunday and teams with rookie Jonas Sanker to give the Saints a promising safety tandem. Sanker has been prone to lapses, but has shown excellent range.

New Orleans faces a Jets offense that has passed for over 200 net yards just five times this season and once in the last six games. They are now a team down to their third quarterback and without their top two receivers. The Saints would have to have a major letdown for the Jets to have any success through the air. A young New Orleans defense must take the next step in their development by avoiding such a letdown and capitalizing on their advantage in this area.