Danny Stutsman Must Step Up as Saints’ Linebacker Injuries Mount Before Monday Night Game Against Falcons

Danny Stutsman has not started an NFL game, but the New Orleans Saints  may need him to play like a starter Monday night.

New Orleans officially ruled linebacker Kaden Elliss out against the Atlanta Falcons because of a calf injury. Pete Werner, the Saints’ leading tackler through three games, is questionable with a shoulder injury after missing every practice this week. Edge defenders Carl Granderson and Anfernee Jennings were also ruled out. 

That is a considerable amount of uncertainty in the front seven before facing the NFL’s second-ranked rushing offense.

It also creates the biggest opportunity of Stutsman’s young career.

Stutsman has recorded 17 tackles through three games despite not starting. His production has increased each week, going from six tackles against Detroit to four against Baltimore and a season-high seven in last Sunday’s 35-27 loss to Las Vegas. 

Those numbers suggest Stutsman is not entering Monday’s game cold. He has been part of the regular defensive rotation and has shown an ability to find the football.

The fourth-round selection from Oklahoma also appeared in all 17 games as a rookie last season, finishing with 53 tackles. His experience has primarily come as a reserve and special-teams contributor, but the Saints drafted him with the expectation that he eventually could become more than that.

This might be the evening when New Orleans learns how close he is.

The difficult part is the opponent. Atlanta is averaging 173 rushing yards per game, while Bijan Robinson has gained 349 yards on 66 carries. Robinson is also dangerous as a receiver, producing 118 yards and a touchdown on 13 catches. He is coming off a career-high 194 rushing yards against Green Bay.

This is not a matchup where a young linebacker can simply run toward the first sign of movement.

Robinson’s patience creates hesitation. Atlanta uses motion, misdirection and play-action to make linebackers take one false step before the ball heads somewhere else. If Stutsman attacks the wrong gap or loses Robinson in coverage, a routine play can become an explosive one quickly.

In my pure opinion, the Saints should keep Stutsman’s assignment as clean as possible. Let him play downhill, attack his gap and use his 6-foot-3, 233-pound frame around the line of scrimmage. Asking him to replace every part of Elliss’ or Werner’s role would be unrealistic.

Asking him to play fast and tackle cleanly is fair.

Werner’s questionable designation will remain one of the biggest developments to monitor before kickoff. He has 29 tackles through three games and has become the central communicator in the Saints’ defense.

If Werner plays, Stutsman can operate beside an experienced teammate who understands Brandon Staley’s calls and adjustments. If Werner cannot go, New Orleans will have to replace two regular linebackers while also compensating for the absences of Granderson and Jennings on the edge.

That would place additional responsibility on Stutsman, Chase Young, Cameron Jordan and the Saints’ defensive tackles.

Young has provided 3.5 sacks through three games, but Monday’s first challenge will be controlling the ground game. The Saints cannot become so concerned with pressuring Michael Penix Jr. that they leave wide running lanes for Robinson.

Everyone must remain connected.

Monday night offers Stutsman more than emergency playing time.

The Saints selected him No. 112 overall in the 2025 NFL Draft after he became a cornerstone of Oklahoma’s defense. A fourth-round linebacker entering his second season should be moving toward a larger role, and injuries often accelerate that process. 

That does not mean one strong performance would permanently change the depth chart. It would, however, give the coaching staff greater confidence in using Stutsman when the defense needs more size, speed or rotational help.

For a team with multiple front-seven injuries after only three games, dependable depth is no small matter.

This is exactly why teams develop young linebackers before they desperately need them.

Stutsman does not have to become the defensive hero Monday night. He does not need 15 tackles, a sack and an interception. He needs to recognize his keys, stay in the correct gap and prevent Robinson’s five-yard runs from becoming 25-yard runs.

The Saints and Falcons are both 1-2, making this an important early NFC South matchup. It also arrives on the 20th-anniversary celebration of New Orleans’ historic return to the Superdome after Hurricane Katrina. 

The stage will be emotional, loud and considerably larger than anything Stutsman has experienced in the NFL.

Now the Saints need their young linebacker to make himself at home in it.