Finally, the New Orleans Saints won a game at home with a 23-22 overtime victory over the Cleveland Browns last Sunday. It was the first victory after three losses at the Superdome for the Saints, who improved to 3-5 with that win.
The New Orleans defense helped set up the victory, playing perhaps their best ball of the season through the first few quarters. However, late defensive breakdowns also nearly cost the Saints that win. It's been the story of the 2026 season for the New Orleans defense, which has looked nothing close to the unit we saw most of 2025.
As the Saints enter Week 10, here's where the team currently ranks defensively.
New Orleans Saints total defense
▪︎ 27 points per game (27th)▪︎ 370.5 yards per game (29th)▪︎ 9 turnovers (20th)▪︎ 169 first downs (24th)▪︎ 47.2%
third down efficiency (28th)▪︎ 53.1% red-zone percentage (11th)
Saints pass defense
▪︎ 236.6 yards per game (28th)▪︎ 65.5% completion percentage▪︎ 13 touchdowns▪︎ 4 interceptions▪︎ 23 sacks▪︎ 48 QB hits
Saints run defense
▪︎ 133.9 yards per game (29th)▪︎ 4.5 per carry (25th)▪︎ 11 touchdowns (30th)▪︎ 35 tackles for loss
New Orleans completely bottled up the Browns, aside from four costly coverage breakdowns that nearly caused a defeat. It was the worst outing of the year for a Saints secondary often guilty of extremely soft and passive coverage thanks to coordinator Brandon Staley. The safeties have been consistently ineffective. Julian Blackmon has been adequate, but Justin Reid has been downright awful, with Jonas Sanker not much better. All three are capable of better play, but have usually a disaster in tackling (especially Reid) and have shown very little playmaking skills in coverage, though Blackmon does have 2 interceptions.
Owner of the Saints other 2 interceptions is cornerback Martin Emerson Jr. Emerson has proven to be a solid offseason signing and has taken over primary corner reps from Quincy Riley. In his second season, Riley had some early-year struggles but would still be a much better option at the nickelback spot than Sanker in coverage. Why Staley has refused to make the switch has been incomprehensible. Kool-Aid McKinstry has also had some wild ups and downs as the number one corner, but does lead the defense with 4 pass breakups. The fact that Saints corners have a combined 13 passes broken up is a testament to how excruciatingly passive Staley's scheme has been.
Soft coverage has allowed opposing quarterbacks to often have an easy pitch-and-catch to their receivers. It's also hindered the pass rush, with the lack of tight coverage not forcing passers to hold the ball longer. In spite of this, edge rushers Chase Young and Carl Granderson have been outstanding and the bright spots on the defensive unit.
Young has eight sacks, second in the NFL, along with 13 QB hits. Granderson is also among the league leaders with 7.5 sacks, while equaling Young's 13 pressures. Both have been consistently in opposing backfields weekly. If New Orleans owned a better record, Young would likely be among the mid-season favorites for NFL Defensive MVP.
Outside of Young and Granderson, very few Saints have made an impact on the defensive side. One exception has been inside linebacker Kaden Elliss. The defensive captain and play-caller, Elliss can provide pressure as a blitzer and is the team's best coverage linebacker, along with the top run defender. Thank goodness, because fellow linebacker Pete Werner has been abysmal at all three. Werner is a major liability, yet Staley refuses to give his early-down reps to Danny Stutsman or turn to the athletic Isaiah Stalbird in passing situations.
Saints defensive linemen have also made a minimal impact. Legendary veteran Cameron Jordan is but a shadow of his Hall of Fame form. Nathan Shepherd and Vernon Broughton have not made nearly their expected contributions. Rookie nose tackle Christen Miller has been a disappointment, but Khristian Boyd is one of the few interior linemen who has created some disruption. The lack of pressure from the position and ineffectiveness against the run has had a trickle-down effect on the entire defense.
This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: Where the Saints rank defensively as they head into Week 10
