One of the biggest what-ifs of the 2026 New Orleans Saints season is what the defense could be with 17 games of safety Julian Blackmon in the mix.
The takeaway specialist was set to make a major impact in 2025, but had his season draw to a close after the first game of the year due to a labrum injury. The Saints still finished the year as a top-10 passing defense, but the playmaking ability of Blackmon could have helped to raise the season even higher.
It’s one of the reasons that the Saints wasted no time bringing him back this year. An opportunity for which he has shown unmistakable appreciation.
“I feel like that’s exactly how I approached the off season is just humbly because something that’s given to you can be just as quickly taken away,” Blackmon said after the Saints’ first padded practice. “My career has been trials and errors, a lot of hardships, but at the same time a lot of gratitude. Being out there with my guys again, remembering what it feels like to be in pads again, it’s a blessing. That’s how I’ve approached the offseason and how I approach the season coming up.”
As for the offseason, Blackmon spent it trying to make sure he arrived in New Orleans as one of the players in the best shape to start camp. It was a goal of his that he shared with LouisianaSports.Net as minicamp wrapped up. As for achieving that goal, his focus was on conditioning, an emphasis that comes up often for the Saints’ secondary.
“I was out there running every day,” he said. “Whether it was running miles or or running with my kids, I’d be out there just taking care of everything that I could. It was fun. We have a lot of hills that we would go hiking on and we would just run up the hills there. So any different way that I can condition if it wasn’t just football, I would be doing it.”
Hailing from Utah, Blackmon said the elevation there provided an additional challenge and benefit while working.
Throughout training camp, the hard work over the offseason has already begun to pay off. Blackmon snagged an interception in the endzone in the team’s fourth practice, matching the elite takeaway production he showed during last year’s camp.
Blackmon is intent on staying on the field this season and being along with his teammates throughout the year. As he sets up to achieve that goal, the Saints become major beneficiaries in the process. Blackmon’s ball-hawking ability projects as a major asset for the team going into 2026.
