The Saints are done tinkering and finally have a real game to point toward.
On Monday morning at the Ochsner Sports Performance Center, Kellen Moore officially opened Week 1 prep, and New Orleans now turns its attention to a Sunday, September 13 opener in Detroit against the Lions at Ford Field. After a stretch of summer installation and roster churn, the Saints are heading into the 2026 regular season with their 53-man active ledger set and a long list of questions that need answers fast.
That late-August roster work mattered. Daniel Carlson locked down the special teams job, while Zamir White, Colby Wooden and Decamerion Richardson all arrived in moves that reshaped the back end of the roster. Now Moore and defensive coordinator Brandon Staley have to turn that new-look group into something functional against a Detroit team that brings real force on both sides of the ball.
The first issue is the offense, and it starts with Alvin Kamara being out on Thursday as he works back from an August MCL sprain. That pushes the Week 1 backfield workload onto Travis Etienne Jr. and Audric Estime, and the fit is pretty clear.
Detroit’s front, with Aidan Hutchinson setting the tone, wants to attack predictable passing situations. Moore’s offense leans on motion, and Etienne’s 4.45 speed plus his receiving ability give Tyler Shough a built-in escape hatch when the pressure comes.
Estime adds a different kind of answer. At 227 pounds, he gives New Orleans a true between-the-tackles option, while Etienne brings the edge speed and pass-catching value. Put those two together, and the Saints have a chance to slow the game down, stay on schedule, and keep Jared Goff and the Lions offense on the sideline.
The defense has its own early test, and it comes right up the middle. Brandon Staley is staring at Detroit’s interior line, and the Saints’ ability to hold up there will tell a lot about what kind of day this can be. Cameron Jordan, Demario Davis and Pete Werner remain the familiar anchors, but the interior got a late-August makeover with second-round rookie nose tackle Christen Miller and waiver claim Colby Wooden added to the mix.
Miller showed a stout point-of-attack presence in the preseason, and Wooden brings 17 career NFL starts to the rotation. If those two can survive the double-teams and stay square, Davis and Werner should have cleaner paths downhill to choke off Detroit’s run game on early downs.
Then there’s the passing game behind Chris Olave. With Jordyn Tyson on Injured Reserve/Designated to Return because of a hamstring strain, the Saints need someone else to grab targets and make defenses pay for focusing on Olave. Devaughn Vele and Bryce Lance both earned active roster spots after strong joint-practice showings in Southern California, and the practice squad now includes Cedric Tillman, Kevin Austin Jr. and Trey Palmer as additional insurance.
Shough will need a second option to emerge, whether that’s Lance working the boundary or Juwan Johnson attacking the middle of the field. If Detroit doubles Olave on third down, New Orleans has to find another reliable answer.
For fantasy purposes, Etienne looks like the safest Saints piece by far, with a strong RB1 floor in all formats and a workload that should land in the 18-to-22-touch range. Carlson also profiles as a useful Week 1 kicker because of his accuracy and the dome setting at Ford Field. And Estime brings DFS and prop value thanks to his potential role near the goal line.
It all adds up to a tough opening test for Moore and Shough. New Orleans walks into Ford Field as a road underdog, but that may suit them just fine. If the Saints lean on Etienne, stay disciplined on defense, and get a composed game from Shough, they have a path to making Detroit’s home opener uncomfortable.
In Other News...
Saints Fans Should Start Watching LSU For One Very Familiar Reason
The Saints pipeline to Baton Rouge has been a little easier to follow lately, and it is not hard to see why Louisiana football fans are paying attention. New Orleans has leaned into familiar roots in free agency, adding players with local ties, while LSU keeps producing talent that fits the kind of roster-building the Saints need as they look ahead. After LSUs convincing win over Clemson, the conversation around that team got even more interesting for Saints watchers.
Three names in particular stand out as possible future fits: Jordan Ross, Whit Weeks and TreyDez Green. They are still a long way from the NFL Draft, with 2027 the target, but each brings something the Saints could use down the line as they sort through positional needs and keep an eye on the next wave of LSU prospects. For now, it is another reminder that if you want to get a sense of where the Saints might shop next, the answer could be in plain sight on Saturdays in Baton Rouge. [Read more 🡒]
Former Rams DT Keeps Finding His Way Back Into The NFL
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Williams, 30, has long been one of those players who keeps finding a way to stick in the league, cycling through practice squads and futures deals with the Rams, Vikings, Lions and Cardinals along the way. His return gives the Saints another experienced option up front, and it also leaves open the question of whether this latest stay is just another brief stop or the start of something more lasting. [Read more 🡒]
Saints No. 6 Suddenly Carries Far More Meaning This Season
The jersey number has not exactly been one of the Saints most famous identifiers over the years, but that is starting to change. As New Orleans prepares to open its 2026 regular season against the Lions, Tyler Shough is set to enter his second year as the unquestioned starter, and the No. 6 on his back suddenly carries a much different feel than it ever did for punters Tommy Barnhardt and Thomas Morstead, the short-lived cluster of kickers who wore it in 2021, or recent defenders Marcus Maye and Willie Gay.
Shough, drafted in 2025, is the first quarterback in franchise history to wear No. 6, which gives the number a new place in the Saints identity if he becomes what the organization believes he can be. For a team that has seen the number bounce from special teams to the secondary and linebacker spots, this season is the first real chance for No. 6 to mean something bigger than a roster detail, and the opener will be the first test of how that new significance looks on the field. [Read more 🡒]