The New Orleans Saints have moved fast from afterthought to buzz team, and the Week 3 power rankings reflect it. After knocking off the Baltimore Ravens, New Orleans is suddenly showing up in the top half of the league in almost every major ranking, with several outlets slotting the Saints in the top 15.
That rise comes after plenty of early skepticism, but the Saints have answered with a pair of performances that made people take notice. They pushed the Lions to overtime, then went on the road and beat the Ravens.
Now they head back home to face the 2-0 Las Vegas Raiders, coached by former Saints offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak. It’s already being framed as the most important game of the Kellen Moore era.
A few rankings landed in the same neighborhood. USA Today Sports put New Orleans at 14, up three spots.
Sports Illustrated also had the Saints at 14, climbing six. CBS Sports listed them at 18, while Fox Sports moved them to 15.
The Athletic and Yahoo Sports both had New Orleans at 15, with Yahoo calling out the possibility that the Saints could be 2-0 if not for a missed two-point conversion. Bleacher Report was even higher, placing them at 13, and Pro Football Talk summed it up bluntly: “The Saints are the best team no one is paying attention to.”
The quarterback play is a huge reason the Saints are getting this kind of attention. Tyler Shough has already shown he can hang with top-level competition, and the comeback against Baltimore only strengthened that view.
For The Win pointed to his fourth-quarter surge, noting that he has been at his best late in games. According to ESPN Research, Shough has a 14.3 Total QBR in the opening three quarters of games, 29th among 30 qualifying passers this season.
In fourth quarters and overtime, he ranks second with a 97.7 QBR. He is also 5-of-5 for 127 yards and a touchdown on passes of 15-plus air yards in fourth quarters.
There’s still skepticism in some corners, and not every ranking is treating New Orleans like a finished product. For The Win said the Saints “seem entirely unsustainable,” citing defensive holes, limited playmaking beyond Chris Olave, and the fact that slow starts have already hurt them once this season. But that same piece also admitted, “hot damn are the Saints fun to watch, and a Shough playoff game would be appointment viewing.”
Sports Illustrated praised the team’s toughness after the win in Baltimore, calling New Orleans “the toughest team I’ve watched on film this year.” The outlet singled out Devaughn Vele and Chris Olave for their clutch catches in traffic against a strong Ravens defense, while also mentioning how much more dangerous the offense could be with Jordyn Tyson available.
Tyson remains on injured reserve with a hamstring injury, and The Athletic made him the centerpiece of its rookie spotlight. The Saints are also getting contributions elsewhere from the rookie class. Bryce Lance, a fourth-round wide receiver, has four catches for 50 yards through two weeks, while second-round defensive tackle Christen Miller made his debut in Week 1 but was inactive in Week 2.
The broader takeaway from the rankings is simple: New Orleans has earned real respect, even if some voters are still waiting to see whether this start holds up. Fox Sports said it was enough to declare the Saints legitimate after the overtime push against Detroit and the road win in Baltimore, though it also wondered if the early success can last across a full season. Yahoo Sports pointed to the issues elsewhere in the NFC South and said the Saints look like the best team in the division, while also stressing that the next step is avoiding those slow starts and the need for another late rescue act.
USA Today Sports highlighted how dangerous New Orleans can be once the fourth quarter arrives, saying, “You better put them away before the fourth quarter, when the Saints have outscored the opposition 25-3.” It also noted that the Saints will play all but two of their next seven games in the Big Easy.
For now, though, the story is clear enough. The Saints have climbed, Tyler Shough has changed the conversation, and a team many wrote off in September is suddenly sitting in a very different place.
In Other News...
Saints Lose First Tyler Shough-Jaxson Dart Test For One Frustrating Reason
The Saints were already preparing for a young quarterback challenge this week, but the matchup shifted when Jaxson Dart went down with a knee injury against the Rams. What had initially looked like an MCL sprain turned out to be more extensive after an MRI, and the Giants now appear headed toward a long absence for their rookie signal-caller.
For New Orleans, that means the first Tyler Shough-Jaxson Dart test will not happen after all, at least not in the form many expected. Dart is out for the upcoming game, and Jameis Winston is expected to start in his place, leaving the Saints to adjust to a different kind of opponent and a frustratingly altered version of the weeks quarterback storyline. [Read more 🡒]
Saints Already Made A Tough Call In Their Backfield Battle
Audric Estimes Saints stint hit a hard stop before he ever got the chance to settle into the backfield rotation. New Orleans waived the running back from injured reserve with an injury settlement after the thigh injury sidelined him, a move that both compensates him for time missed and clears the way for him to look for another landing spot once he is healthy.
For the Saints, it is another sign of how quickly the backfield picture has shifted around the injured list and the players who stayed available. Estime had been in the mix for playing time, but while he worked his way through recovery, others moved up the depth chart and carved out roles, leaving New Orleans to make a difficult roster decision with the season plan already taking shape. [Read more 🡒]
Drew Brees Just Reframed That Strange Broncos Comeback Story
The odd little Broncos comeback idea got a lot clearer when Drew Brees addressed it on SiriusXMs Lets Go podcast. Brees said he was the one who reached out to former Broncos assistants Pete Carmichael and Joe Lombardi about the possibility of playing for Denver in the 2025 AFC Championship game, which is the kind of late-career twist that instantly gets attention around the league and in Saints circles alike.
Brees said he seriously considered the comeback, but his old injuries kept him from being able to follow through. The NFL has not commented on the matter, and nothing further came from the conversation, leaving the whole episode as one of those strange what-if stories that briefly surfaced, then slipped back into the background. [Read more 🡒]