There weren’t a lot of positives to take away from the New Orleans Saints’ special teams performance in 2025.
On top of having the lowest field goal percentage in the NFL, the team also had one of the league’s lowest net yards per punt averages and one of the largest starting field position disparities in the negative.
Going into 2026, the Saints have made some personnel changes in the hopes of positively impacting their special teams fortunes moving forward. Paramount of which was signing punter Ryan Wright.
New Orleans, for the first time in decades, signed a free agent punter in the thick of the open market span. In doing so, a team that has been a revolving door of undrafted rookies at the position, made Wright one of the highest-paid legs in the game.
In total value, Wright’s three-year, $14 million agreement makes him No. 4 among the NFL’s highest-paid punters.
His $3.5 million per year average value ties him at No. 5 with Philadelphia Eagles punter Braden Mann.
Wright’s booming averages over the course of his career give the chance to be the team’s best punter since the departure of longtime boot Thomas Morstead.
He will be integral in the Saints’ hopes of rebounding in the special teams phase of the game, giving the time a chance to drastically improve its punting and making things far more challenging for opposing offenses by being able to pin them back more reliably.
Last year, New Orleans surrendered the most favorable average starting field position off of punt for opponents in the league.
Wright, along with the upcoming kicker battle between favorite Charlie Smyth and contender Tanner Brown, will be at the forefront of change for a special teams unit desperate for improvement in 2026.
