The New Orleans Saints head into Week 1 with a chance to test a Detroit Lions secondary that is already missing two of its biggest pieces.
That matters because the Lions will be without Kerby Joseph and Brian Branch for at least the first four games. Joseph and Branch were supposed to help anchor the back end, and their absence changes the entire shape of the matchup for the Saints offense. Branch has developed into one of the league’s best young safeties, while Joseph remains a steady playmaker who led the league with 9 interceptions in 2024 and had three picks in six games last year.
For Tyler Shough, that opens a window downfield. Detroit’s cornerback group is healthy but still carries questions after losing Terion Arnold, and D.J. Reed now has to show which version of him is the real him after an up and down 2025 campaign.
The Saints’ receiver room has been one of the biggest talking points all offseason, from Chris Olave’s contract negotiations to Jordyn Tyson’s health to the breakout camps of Bryce Lance and Barion Brown. Now that group gets a chance to turn all that buzz into something real against a secondary that is not at full strength.
It is not a simple matchup, though. New Orleans will be leaning on Lance and Brown as its third and fourth options, and that brings plenty of uncertainty with it. The rookie pair may not be proven, but their speed gives the Saints a real way to attack the space left behind by Joseph and Branch.
Speed is speed, and both Lance and Brown should have the ability to get down the field. That kind of vertical threat could force Detroit to defend every blade of grass without two of its key safeties.
Still, the Saints’ biggest damage may need to come from the top of the depth chart. Chris Olave and Devaughn Vele are the receivers who will likely have to carry the heaviest load. Olave is coming off his best season, and if he keeps that momentum going, New Orleans has a much better shot at pulling this one off.
Vele is another name to watch after slipping a bit under the radar once the team drafted Tyson. With Tyson injured, Vele now has a clear opportunity to remind people what he showed at the end of last season.
The Saints are still underdogs, but a weakened Detroit secondary gives them a real opening. New Orleans will need its defense to hold up in a tough assignment, so the offense has to make the most of whatever advantages are available.
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
Jonah Williams is back on the Saints practice squad, another familiar stop in a career that has taken the veteran defensive tackle through plenty of NFL doorways. Kellen Moore announced the re-signing, adding a player New Orleans already knows well after Williams spent time with the team in 2025 and carved out a role on the interior defensive line.
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 🡒]