As the New Orleans Saints look to turn the tide of their 2026 season, they’ll compete next with a familiar face in New York Giants quarterback Jameis Winston. The former Saints quarterback took over the mantle in New York following the season-ending injury to second-year passer Jaxson Dart and has since led the team to a 2-0-1 record as the team’s starter.
As with all of Winston’s previous stops, he quickly electrified the fan base and team, tossing three touchdown passes in back-to-back games, heavily relying on former LSU wide receiver Malik Nabers, who was targeted 20 times in the Giants’ tie with Washington.
Winston’s reputation has always been that of a player that can generate an explosive play at any time, or commit the critical mistake that could swing the momentum in the opposing team’s favor.
The latter is what the Saints must strive for in Week 6.
Per Next Gen Stats, New Orleans has surrendered the seventh-highest explosive play percentage (19.8%) in their go-to Cover 3 coverage looks. They’ve deployed Cover 3 on a league-leading 57.1% of their defensive snaps.
The team also has only one interception on the season, safety Julian Blackmon’s game-deciding pick against the Baltimore Ravens in Week 2.
New Orleans (1-4) will need to be able to stay true to its defensive identity, but can only do so effectively if they aren’t surrendering big plays. Opponents have been able to make the Saints’ defense uncharacteristic under defensive coordinator Brandon Staley, surrendering a number of chunk or explosive moments throughout the first five games.
If the Saints want an opportunity to turn their season around, one that’s even drawn criticism from the team’s owner Gayle Benson, eliminating big plays and turning them into takeaways will be the top priority as the Saints face the Giants.
