New Orleans Saints Confront Reality in Harsh Report

There's an Elvis Presley lyric with which the New Orleans Saints and their fanbase can relate: "It's now or never." That's the vibe exiting a 23-13 loss to the Minnesota Vikings and now looking at a 1-4 record on the season.

It wasn't all that long ago the Saints were 1-1 and riding high after an impressive win over the Baltimore Ravens. That good feeling is long gone after three straight losses. Two of the losses were winnable games. The Saints just came up short.

There are several fixable issues that the Saints have, but the most notable come from special teams and turnovers. Against the Vikings, New Orleans not only gave up points with turnovers, but missed out on points with their own mistakes.

Brett Martel of The Associated Press discussed what the Saints are doing well and what has to improve. Here's some of what Martel had to write about the New Orleans season so far.

"The Saints’ defense ranks 11th in the NFL against the pass, allowing just 212 yards per game through the air. None of their first five opponents has passed for more than the Las Vegas Raiders’ 227 yards against them in Week 3. However, opposing teams haven’t had to play from behind very often and therefore haven’t been pressed to abandon their running games. ...

Kicker Daniel Carlson, signed just before the start of the regular season, missed an extra point, after which Moore said: “We just got to look at that. Obviously, he missed an opportunity.” Carlson also has missed two field-goal attempts, albeit from 50 or more yards.

Kick returner Jayden Price, a 26-year-old, third-year pro out of North Dakota State who made his NFL regular-season debut this season, fumbled during a kickoff return to open the second half, leading to a go-ahead TD for Minnesota."

Harsh as it is, Martel's analysis is true. For as well as he has played through the first five games, starting quarterback Tyler Shough even had a forgettable performance against the Vikings.

Shough completed 16 of 25 passes for just 96 yards. The performance dropped him to sixth in the NFL in passing yards with 1,299 for the year. His QBR dropped to 59.1 ranking 15th in the league.

The overarching theme of the Saints' season is missed opportunities. Yet despite all their flaws, if they can start converting second chances in upcoming games, New Orleans has all the ability to turn things around in 2026.