Jan. 24, 2026, 3:31 p.m. CT
NFL conference championship games this weekend bring us a step closer to the end of the season. The New Orleans Saints just went their fifth consecutive year without a playoff berth, finishing 6-11 in 2025. However, the Saints also gave several reasons to be optimistic heading into this offseason.
New Orleans won four of their last five games. Rookie second round pick Tyler Shough flashed signs of being the franchise quarterback the team desperately needs to move into the future. Offensive-minded head coach Kellen Moore and his unit came together down the stretch, despite a rash of crippling injuries that stripped the team at both running back and wide receiver.
Shough leads a potentially exciting offense into 2026 with a few other young cornerstones like wide receiver Chris Olave and rookie offensive tackle Kelvin Banks Jr. Banks, Olave, and Shough earned our offensive game balls for the 2025 season. Here’s a general look at the year’s good, bad, and ugly on offense outside of those three players.
The Good: Shough, Olave, and Devaughn Vele
It took way too long for Moore to get him involved, but Vele showed he was a valuable weapon once he did. Vele had 25 receptions for 293 yards in 13 games. He had 19 catches and 239 yards in a four-game stretch before an injury ended his season. Vele is the biggest target the team has at wideout, is a valuable intermediate weapon, and had an instant chemistry with Shough.
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Olave had the best year of his four-year career, catching 100 balls for 1,163 yards and 9 touchdowns. A large part of that production was as the receiving corps was stripped down by injury, as he emerged as the type of player who could be a featured weapon for Moore’s offense.
Shough averaged an impressive 250 passing yards per game, 10.8 yards per completion, and a 67.8% completion percentage. He did it without nearly enough weapons around him. The Saints will add more pass catchers for Shough this offseason, but the young quarterback has good rapport with two good returning receivers.
The Good: Offensive Tackles
Banks, the ninth overall choice in the first round, was an outstanding addition at left tackle. His arrival caused the Saints to move Taliese Fuaga from left to right tackle. Fuaga was the 14th pick in the first round of the 2024 draft. As not exciting as those picks were to Saints fans, both players filled glaring needs for a struggling offense.
Fuaga dealt with some injuries, but still managed to play in 13 games. He’s solid in pass protection and has shown dominance as a run blocker. Banks is even more advanced as a pass blocker and is every bit as dominating for the rushing attack. Fuaga turns 24 this offseason, while Banks will turn only 22. The Saints potentially have their bookend tackles for the next decade, a vital key to a still rebuilding offense.
The Bad: Interior Offensive Line
As good as Banks and Fuaga are and will be, that’s as bad as the guards and center positions have been. Center Erik McCoy was lost for the year after seven games, the second straight campaign he was lost for the year before mid-season. Left guard Trevor Penning was traded because he was ineffective, but replacement Dillon Radunz was only good for costly penalties. Right guard Cesar Ruiz was abysmal, a human turnstile for defenders into the New Orleans backfield.
A major need for the Saints will be both guard spots. McCoy is still a very good player, but his durability is an obvious concern. Guard probably won’t be addressed in the first round, but expect New Orleans to go after a top-tier free agent and fortify the interior further in the later rounds of the draft.
The Ugly: Alvin Kamara
Kamara led the Saints in rushing, but with only 471 yards in 11 games before knee and ankle injuries ended his year. He was fourth on the team in receptions, but resulting in only 186 yards. He had only 1 touchdown, perhaps the most disturbing of his lowly production. Kamara averaged only 42.8 rushing yards and 48.4 total yards per game, 3.6 per carry, and 5.6 per reception. All were the lowest of his otherwise productive career by a very wide margin.It was clear that Kellen Moore didn’t use Kamara’s best attributes, and it was just as obvious that putrid interior blocking hampered his effectiveness. This is also on Kamara though, who needed to be the best weapon for his offense and wasn’t.
Even with the late-season production of Audric Estime and flashes from rookie Devin Neal, New Orleans will almost certainly add a running back this offseason. And they should. Perhaps Jeremiyah Love of Notre Dame with their eighth overall draft choice or one of the Penn State duo of Kaytron Allen or Nick Singleton later in the draft. Maybe a top-level free agent such as Breece Hall or Kenneth Walker III. No matter how it comes, it’s a major need. And also the time to openly wonder what role Alvin Kamara will have with the Saints in 2026.