We’ve reached the season of gift giving, so what’s on your New Orleans Saints wish list? How can this team get better in 2026? Each of our staff writers made their list of free agent targets, in-house names to keep, and potential draft picks who could get the Saints back to their winning ways next season. Let’s run through each list.
Bob Rose
The New Orleans Saints are having a nice late-season surge to provide optimism going into the offseason. However, that doesn’t change the fact that there are several glaring team needs that need addressed before the Saints can again be a legitimate contender. The Saints will spend more in free agency than we’ve seen in years past, but the help must mostly come through another good draft. In the spirit of Christmas, here’s my offseason Saints wish list.
Free Agency Wish List
▪︎ Guard (Zion Johnson or Jamaree Salyer)▪︎ Tight End (David Njoku or Dallas Goedert)▪︎ Running Back (Breece Hall if they don’t draft Jeremiyah Love, Kenneth Gainwell if they do)▪︎ Quay Walker
Since the Saints have on the good list to end the year, let’s make sure Demario Davis and Alontae Taylor remain with New Orleans. And wouldn’t it be fun to re-sign Cameron Jordan to a team-friendly deal for one more year?
Draft Wish List
▪︎ Edge Rusher▪︎ Bigger wide receiver▪︎ Run-stuffing nose tackle▪︎ Running Back (Love, Kaytron Allen, or Nick Singleton)▪︎ Interior offensive line
I don’t want to be completely greedy, so I’m also willing to donate Cesar Ruiz and Pete Werner to the charity pile. I’ll even gift wrap them, as long as they aren’t with the New Orleans Saints in 2026.
Luke Loffredo
The New Orleans Saints head into an offseason that’s only gotten more interesting for the team over the past few weeks. Rookie quarterback Tyler Shough has helped this team string together consecutive victories including a sweep over the division leader — the Carolina Panthers. With this success and the confidence the team has in their rookie quarterback can to lead them moving forward, the team’s front office could look to be more aggressive this offseason than previously expected. Knowing the history of making splash moves whether it makes sense or not, I foresee this team surprising many come March and into late April.
With Christmas finally here, this is my Saints offseason wish list:
Free Agency Wish List
Running back Rachaad WhiteDefensive tackle Devonte WyattGuard Wyatt TellerLinebacker Demario Davis (re-sign)Edge rusher Cameron Jordan (re-signCornerback Alontae Taylor (re-signCenter Luke Fortner (re-sign
Draft Wish List
Wide receiver Carnell TateGuard Emmanuel PregnonCornerback Davison IgbinosunJeremy Trottier
The way I want to format this wish list is to focus specifically on filling needs in free agency, and then building through the draft at any remaining needs, supplementing those needs, or adding for positions that may have retirees/departures in the near future. The hope is to get one premier free agent, as the New Orleans Saints tend to do, and then 2-3 notable complementary pieces as well. Here is how that shapes up for the 2026 offseason:
Free Agency Wish List
Guard Wyatt Teller: One of the most glaring needs for the Saints heading into next year is the guard position. Both tackle spots, while still developing, are locked up with Kelvin Banks Jr. and Taliese Fuaga for the foreseeable future, and hopefully, Erik McCoy can get healthy and lock down center once again. With this class having had many of the top options re-signed previously, Teller is one of the few remaining premier options available, and would be a strong compliment as an exceptional run-blocker who, while spotty in pass blocking at times, has minimized the damage with only three sacks allowed and four pressures. Signing him for two years on a deal around $19.5 million, potentially with a player option third year, would be a great pickup to protect Tyler Shough and start moving the run game back in the right direction.Interior defensive lineman D.J. Reader: For more of a middle-tier value option, D.J. Reader would be a strong pickup for the Saints. He is a good do-it-all defensive lineman, posting 19 pressures, 17 solo tackles, and 14 defensive stops. He is proving to be a valuable asset. More than that, he would be a great front man in a 3-4 defense, at 6-foot-3 and 335 pounds. With New Orleans needing some influx of pass rush in the interior, Reader could bring that, for between $3 million to $4 million a year, roughly.Tight end Dallas Goedert: After picking up two trench options, let’s look more at some offensive weapons to complement Shough and give him some options to throw to. While the Saints do already have Juwan Johnson, who has built a good rapport with Shough recently, adding another high-end tight end to start a good 12 personnel rotation would help a ton in this fast-paced offense. Goedert worked previously with Kellen Moore in 2024, and in 2025 has been exceptionally productive, posting 10 touchdowns and 583 receiving yards so far. He could likely be picked up on a pretty reasonable deal and give the Saints another big option for some plays near the endzone.Re-sign linebacker Demario Davis and defensive end Cameron Jordan: Finally, with the remaining cap space from any restructure moves, the Saints can bring back their two veteran pieces who have maintained a high level of play in 2025. While they may get priced out of Alontae Taylor, as they did with Paulson Adebo last offseason, they can work that out in the draft; the focus should be on providing some veteran insight to the young core. Jordan has picked things up a ton in the last few weeks, now up to 8.5 sacks on the season, and is crucial to the pass rush. Davis has been exactly what is needed from the linebacker core, and will be important to the continued development of the young second options.
Draft Wish List
Wide receiver Makai Lemon: With Devaughn Vele rapidly cementing himself as the vertical target for the Saints in 2026, the wide receiver room gets a bit more intriguing. If Vele is the X receiver, it lets the Saints choose between taking a flanker or a slot, utilizing Chris Olave in the other spot. With that in mind, Makai Lemon should be under consideration. While the speed and size are both less than optimal, he makes up for it in exceptional route-running and production via an innate ability to create separation laterally. In 12 games, he put up 79 receptions for 1,156 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns, which would complement Vele, Olave, Goedert, Johnson, and company very well, which is the goal in round one.Cornerback Brandon Cisse: Round 2 provides a more natural opportunity to select a cornerback, with not many top options being reasonable at pick No. 8. Cisse has been one of the best coverage corners in college football this year, allowing only 18 receptions on 38 targets, for 361 yards and a single touchdown, while only accruing three penalties. While not extremely versatile, playing 408 of his 491 reps at outside corner, he is an extremely valuable player there, and a great compliment to the group in place already.Running back Jadarian Price: While we opted to go wide receiver over one Notre Dame running back in the first round, getting his running mate in round three should provide some good results. Jadarian Price has been in the shadow of Jeremiyah Love for much of the year, but he has been enormously productive. He has 113 carries this year for 674 yards (6.0 average) and 11 touchdowns, along with six receptions for 87 yards (14.5 average) and two touchdowns. He has the versatility to play as a quality gap rusher while also being able to get out on screens and create yards after the catch, which would be a great compliment to Alvin Kamara, Devin Neal, and Kendre Miller.John Sigler
Free Agency Wish List
TE Isaiah Likely. Juwan Johnson is one of the most frustrating players to watch for New Orleans. Between bad blocking and mental mistakes with dropped passes and alignment penalties, the Saints need to get better at tight end. That won’t be easy with Johnson earning more than $10 million per year on a new extension but Likely could be just the guy for the job. The Saints tried to sign Noah Fant this year so they clearly have a vision for using multiple tight ends.RB Tyler Allgeier. Signs point to Alvin Kamara running it back one last time in 2026, but the Saints badly need a talent injection at running back. It’s hard to put too much trust in the Devin Neal-Kendre Moore combo when they’re both ending the year on injured reserve. Allgeier has been a strong change-of-pace back for Bijan Robinson on the Atlanta Falcons, and the Saints could offer him a larger role with Kamara’s contract drawing to a close without much young, healthy competition on the depth chart.QB Kenny Pickett. I don’t expect Spencer Rattler to be on the Saints next year (there are too many QB-needy teams and not enough highly-touted rookie prospects, meaning they can probably get something good by trading him), so Kellen Moore will need a new backup for Tyler Shough. I’d rather it be someone like Cooper Rush or Tanner McKee but they’re both under contract next year. Pickett was coached by Moore last year on the Philadelphia Eagles and knows his playbook, and he won’t break the bank. He can back up Shough for a year while the Saints determine whether or not No. 6 is the future under center.OG Teven Jenkins. The Saints have a big hole at left guard, and while Jenkins has mostly played on the right side in a handful of starts with the Cleveland Browns this year, he logged almost 1,200 snaps at left guard in his time with the Chicago Bears the past two seasons. He’s a high-end athlete and has looked like a tone-setting blocker when healthy. He’s been coming into games off the bench with the Browns but could compete for a starting job with the Saints. I’d like to see the Saints compete for starters in free agency but I just don’t think they’ll be willing to spend what it takes to get them with Cesar Ruiz under contract.WR Noah Brown. Like Brandin Cooks and Cedrick Wilson Jr., Brown has played for Kellen Moore before, and he’d be a nice addition to the receiving corps as an experienced pro backing up the guys on top of the depth chart. All respect to guys like Kevin Austin Jr. and Dante Pettis but I’d rather it be Brown running routes next December if injuries hit the receiving corps hard again. And with Chris Olave targeting a top-dollar contract extension, I’d rather draft a high-end receiver than sign one.
Draft Wish List
Interior offensive line. It’s beginning to look like this could be a good draft class at guard, but the only consensus first rounder is Olaivavega Ioane (Penn State). The Saints could find a starter in Round 2 like Emmanuel Pregnon (Oregon) or Chase Bisontis (Texas A&M) but Keylan Rutledge (Georgia Tech) is a popular mid-round option. Given Erik McCoy’s injury history, I’d make an effort to get an experienced center like Logan Jones (Iowa) or Parker Brailsford (Alabama) on Day 3 as an insurance policy. File this name away as a sleeper at left guard: Wes King (Wyoming).Defensive tackle. Did you know Bryan Bresee is the Saints’ only DT to play more than 40 snaps this year while being under 30 years old? And it’s unclear if they’ll pick up his fifth-year option this spring. This position needs a youth movement. Coaches have been reluctant to play young guys like Khristian Boyd or John Ridgeway, and we don’t know what Vernon Broughton will look like after returning from injury. Either target A’Mauri Washington (Oregon) or Christen Miller (Georgia), or Domonique Orange (Iowa State) on Day 2 or prioritize a run-stuffer like Tim Keenan III (Alabama) early on Day 3. Please don’t draft Peter Woods (Clemson) in the first round.Wide receiver. Tyler Shough needs more weapons. The Saints might be playing their way out of Carnell Tate (Ohio State) and Jordyn Tyson (Arizona State), but Makai Lemon (USC) is an option in the first round. After that, keep an eye on prospects like Elijah Sarratt (Indiana) and Germie Bernard (Alabama). We can’t rule out a reunion with his old teammate Chris Bell (Louisville) but a November ACL injury hurts his draft stock.Running back. No team has had fewer runs of 30-plus yards from their running backs than the Saints have over the last five years. That isn’t all on the offensive line; they’ve just had a group of too many slow, aging players. Getting younger, faster, and healthier must be a priority regardless of what happens with Alvin Kamara. A few names to watch: Jeremiyah Love (Notre Dame), Jadarian Price (Notre Dame), Justice Haynes (Michigan), Demond Claiborne (Wake Forest).Edge rusher. This one really hinges on whether or not Cameron Jordan comes back next year. If the Saints let him go chase a Super Bowl with a contender, they’ll need a third player in the rotation behind Chase Young and Carl Granderson. Some names to watch: Arvell Reese (Ohio State), Akheem Mesidor (Miami), Derrick Moore (Michigan).