The build for the New Orleans Saints under first-time head coach Kellen Moore was always going to be a slow one. However, expectations increased when the team finished the 2025 season strong and had an offseason filled with promising acquisitions.
At that point, it made the process feel as if it was well ahead of schedule. The Saints were expected to be competitors in 2026, a team fighting for the NFC South division and a playoff spot.
The Saints are still very much alive at 2-5 with the division’s leader sitting at just 3-4, but the once high source of optimism has been tempered by a difficult upcoming schedule for a New Orleans team that hasn’t shown any improvement from last season.
Here are three numbers, good and bad, that show where the Saints’ offense stands in 2026 beyond the major categories.
Slow Starts – Have Scored First Only Twice
The Moore era has been defined by the team’s inability to start fast. Over Moore’s 24 games coached, the Saints have only scored first in twice, least in the NFL since 2025. The Cleveland Browns are ranked No. 31 and have scored first in seven games, over three times more than New Orleans.
Both instances came during the 2025 season. New Orleans was first on the board against the New England Patriots in Week 6 with a field goal and scored a touchdown at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on their opening drive in their Week 14 win.
That opening-drive touchdown remains the team’s only since the beginning of the 2025 season.
Red Zone Leap – Worst to Almost First
New Orleans fielded the worst red zone-to-touchdown percentage (44.4%) during the ‘25 season. If there’s any stretch of improvement that’s worth considering, it’s this one.
Now, in 2026, the Saints rank No. 2 in the NFL scoring touchdowns on 17 of the 22 red zone drives to start the season, a massive efficiency leap to 77.3% so far.
If there’s a need for evidence that the team has been able to make strides in one area this would be it.
Explosive Rushes – Last
Explosive plays are typically defined by those that gain more than 20 yards. Though in some cases, explosive rushes are designated differently.
Using any metric, the Saints rank last in generating explosive runs with their running backs since the beginning of the ‘25 season.
Since then, the team has generated just two 20-plus-yard runs with backs, No. 32 in the league. The second-lowest are the Arizona Cardinals with nine.
New Orleans has generated only 20 rushes of 12-plus yards with running backs, again No. 32.
Finally, at just 10 or more yards per run, New Orleans is again last in the NFL since ‘25 with only 29 such rushes by backs, four shy of the Cardinals.
New Orleans invested heavily in its run game this offseason with the signings of guard David Edwards and running back Travis Etienne Jr. Injuries to Etienne and starting left tackle Kelvin Banks Jr. may have derailed their strides, but even through the games in which both or one of those players was available, the run game continued to slump.
Much like the red zone improvement proved that progress can be made, this area is where the progress must begin to show itself immediately in order to keep the team from continuing down its one-dimensional path on offense.
