Latest / The K.B. Radio Network / New Orleans Saints 2025-26 Season Review
Transcript
- 0:17who that to the who that nation welcome to the who that say podcast here on the kb radio network this is the podcast for your new orleans saints the new orleans saints have wrapped up the 2025 26 nfl football season with
- 0:36a record of 6 and 11 on the year and you know that isn't a doom and gloom to be a hundred percent honest with you.
- 0:47judging by how this season started,
- 0:50we knew that this season was going to be a rough season.
- 0:53We knew that this was a rebuild season.
- 0:56We got a new head coach,
- 0:57a new quarterback,
- 0:58new pieces on offense,
- 1:00new pieces on defense,
- 1:03a lot going up against the new Orleans saints.
- 1:07So a lot of prediction,
- 1:09the early season or preseason predictions had the saints winning three.
- 1:15and
- 1:16four at best,
- 1:18you know,
- 1:19and
- 1:20I didn't see that at the time.
- 1:22I thought the Saints would be contenders at the early onslaught of the season,
- 1:28you know,
- 1:28before it really kicked off.
- 1:30I thought the Saints would probably squeak out eight,
- 1:34possibly nine wins this year,
- 1:36which in hindsight would have warned you to division.
- 1:40Who would have thought that?
- 1:42But it wasn't to be.
- 1:44The Saints did.
- 1:46outperform what a lot of people predicted the new orleans saints to be this season uh with winning six games and you can make an argument for the 11 games that they lost this year uh i would say six of them offhand saints
- 2:05could have won the saints could have a
- 2:1012 and what
- 2:1112 and 5 record if if the ball would have bounced their way but
- 2:16That's not how football works.
- 2:18You know,
- 2:19you only get close.
- 2:22Close calls only count in horseshoes and hand grenades.
- 2:25So you can't count it there.
- 2:28But the record is what the record is.
- 2:30And you are what your record says you are.
- 2:32The Saints are
- 2:346-11. But
- 2:37I will say this before we go any further.
- 2:40I cannot be more happy to be wrong.
- 2:45I was 100%
- 2:46wrong on so much,
- 2:49you know,
- 2:49especially towards the middle point of the season where I just gave up.
- 2:54I didn't recap any games.
- 2:58I was frustrated.
- 2:59Even when the Saints went on their win streak,
- 3:02the Saints went on a four-game win streak towards the end of the season.
- 3:06Unfortunately,
- 3:07came up short in the final game against the Atlanta Falcons.
- 3:10But the Saints looked...
- 3:13really good in the month of December,
- 3:15went undefeated in the month of December,
- 3:18and
- 3:20I still wouldn't get behind his microphone.
- 3:24It was just the same old,
- 3:27same old to me,
- 3:28and I didn't want to jump out there and like,
- 3:30oh man,
- 3:31the Saints turned the corner.
- 3:32I really didn't want to go through all that,
- 3:35but the Saints did,
- 3:36and I can honestly say a lot of boxes were checked as we
- 3:42come to the end of this season that i didn't expect to get checked you know especially looking at the product that we received within the first five six seven games of this season where i was like oh my god this is a dumpster fire of an organization i was calling for everybody's head i was calling for uh
- 4:05kellen moore's head i was calling for brandon staley's head i was calling for Mickey
- 4:10Luma's head.
- 4:12And it pains me.
- 4:14And look,
- 4:14this is the biggest one.
- 4:16This is the biggest one.
- 4:18It pains me to admit that
- 4:24Mickey Loomis did a good job this season.
- 4:27He really did a good job.
- 4:29I know 6 and 11,
- 4:30you look at that like,
- 4:31how can you say that,
- 4:32Kevin?
- 4:34Well,
- 4:35the reason is he picked the right coach.
- 4:40Kellen Moore.
- 4:41He showed that he's a real good coach.
- 4:44He showed that he can be a real good coach in this league and for this team.
- 4:50And the players respond to him.
- 4:52The players play hard for him.
- 4:54And where I didn't see evidence of that early on.
- 4:58That's why that would kind of sway my decision to feel the way I feel,
- 5:02at least felt.
- 5:03early on in the season i'm like man nobody wants to play this dude this dude doesn't have a clue he he can't call plays his clock management is bad we're we're we're going into halftime with all three timeouts and all this i mean just
- 5:19dumb stuff third and one you're in shotgun and all this i'm just so frustrated with this team but something happened towards the midway point of the season where something clicked
- 5:32Something clicked in Kellen Moore.
- 5:34Something clicked in this defense.
- 5:36And well,
- 5:37to be honest,
- 5:37the defense been playing solid all year under the radar.
- 5:42But something clicked with the players on this team and they started playing.
- 5:50And I mean playing hard for Kellen Moore.
- 5:54And that's all you can ask for.
- 5:58I was so impressed.
- 6:01During the last six games of this year or five,
- 6:05five games of this season where I looked at this team as one of the best teams in the league.
- 6:13They definitely were the hottest team in the lead up until the final game.
- 6:17But but you can make excuses.
- 6:20But in football,
- 6:21we don't make excuses.
- 6:23But
- 6:24Saints ran out a whole practice squad in their final game against Atlanta.
- 6:30They were supposed to lose that game.
- 6:32But even with that,
- 6:34they only lost by two points against an Atlanta team that put foot to behind to the L.A.
- 6:42Rams just a few days earlier.
- 6:46So how can you not be impressed?
- 6:50And the boxes that got checked,
- 6:53did we find our franchise quarterback of the future?
- 6:58Well,
- 6:58that's the big question.
- 7:00Did we find the guy?
- 7:02Spencer Rattler began the first half of this season.
- 7:07He was solid the first six games,
- 7:11and then the bottom fell out.
- 7:15He went all the way out,
- 7:16and I'm a big Spencer Rattler guy,
- 7:18but I'll be the first to admit it just fell apart,
- 7:25mainly against that.
- 7:27Tampa Bay Buccaneers in their first Tampa Bay game.
- 7:31He just looked horrible.
- 7:33And then it was all Spencer Rattler from there.
- 7:36I mean,
- 7:37Tyler Shuck from there.
- 7:38But we started off with Spencer Rattler.
- 7:43I never felt he was the guy,
- 7:44but I thought he gave us the best chance.
- 7:46Boy,
- 7:47was I proven wrong.
- 7:48As
- 7:49Tyler Shuck came in,
- 7:51Tyler Shuck looked a little shaky early on.
- 7:54You know,
- 7:55like I always felt.
- 7:57it was going to be a process.
- 7:59It was going to take time.
- 8:01He had to learn.
- 8:02And finally,
- 8:04when it clicked,
- 8:05it clicked.
- 8:06And
- 8:07Tyler Shuck looked like the best quarterback in the NFC South.
- 8:11You can make an argument,
- 8:13one of the better quarterbacks in the league,
- 8:16period.
- 8:17Tyler Shuck looks like the guy.
- 8:20Is he the guy?
- 8:22That remains to be seen.
- 8:23He has to actually go out there and do something as far as winning the division and going to the playoffs and whatnot.
- 8:30But as far as leading this team in the quarterback position,
- 8:36that box is checked.
- 8:38In my humble opinion,
- 8:40I was wrong about Tyler.
- 8:41Well,
- 8:41I'm not going to say I was wrong.
- 8:44I will.
- 8:45I'm pleasantly surprised and surprised on how quickly he developed at the position.
- 8:53I didn't know where the ball dropped on Tyler Shuck.
- 8:57That's why when people were mad at me for the beginning part of the season because I didn't want Tyler Shuck in the game to start,
- 9:07it wasn't because I had hatred towards Tyler Shuck.
- 9:10It was because I felt he wasn't ready.
- 9:13I saw him in the preseason.
- 9:14He didn't look all that good in the preseason.
- 9:18I didn't want him to start.
- 9:21but
- 9:22eventually i wanted to see him on the field because i want to see what we got we spent a high draft pick on him i wanted to see if he's the guy and he proved that he is truly the guy he i don't care about his age people are harping on his age oh he's 25 years old i
- 9:40don't care who cares how old he is 25 years old at 25 years old at the quarterback position
- 9:51that's relatively young you can still get 10 years out this guy you can still build a team around this guy if you can keep them upright and healthy that's going to be the key
- 10:02But as far as did we find our quarterback of the future?
- 10:07Check that box.
- 10:08Tyler Shuck is the man.
- 10:10And I think we need to hitch our wagon to him and ride off into the sunset with him.
- 10:16Is Kellen Moore our coach?
- 10:20That was another box that we needed checked or hope to get checked going into the season.
- 10:28Early on?
- 10:30No,
- 10:30he wasn't.
- 10:31He was not the coach.
- 10:32He was not the coach.
- 10:34He looked like the moment was too big,
- 10:36the lights were too bright,
- 10:37whatever cliche you want to use.
- 10:40He just did not look like he was ready for primetime.
- 10:43And
- 10:45I was ready to move on.
- 10:48I was ready to move on that early.
- 10:50I guess that's why I'm not a GM in this league,
- 10:53because you have to be patient.
- 10:55And that's something I need to work on,
- 10:57my patience.
- 10:58And my patience paid off.
- 11:01the little patience that I had paid off.
- 11:04I think Kellen Moore is a good coach.
- 11:06He can be an excellent coach in his league.
- 11:13He had some growing pains to do.
- 11:15He had to figure it out.
- 11:17Let's not forget,
- 11:19this is his first time being a head coach.
- 11:22I had to put it all in perspective.
- 11:25He's never been a head coach.
- 11:28He's never been responsible.
- 11:29responsible for a whole team he's been offensive coordinator in all his stops previously so he never had to worry about making sure to take a time out here or making sure uh the defense is right making sure that the special teams is right making sure everybody is on the same page that wasn't that was never his job now he's in control of the entire team and so there's a lot of pressure there there's uh the fact that you
- 11:59You coming out there with rookies.
- 12:02You going out there basically with a bunch of rookies,
- 12:05a whole new squad,
- 12:08a lot of players that aren't your guys.
- 12:10You know,
- 12:12he started off the season with Spencer Rattler.
- 12:14Spencer Rattler wasn't his guy.
- 12:16Spencer Rattler,
- 12:17he inherited.
- 12:18And so
- 12:19I give him kudos for this.
- 12:21I give him a lot of respect for giving Spencer Rattler an opportunity.
- 12:27I can't get mad at that.
- 12:29And it was the right move.
- 12:33Let's see what he has.
- 12:35Let's see if he can lead this team.
- 12:38He couldn't.
- 12:40He couldn't.
- 12:41Now,
- 12:41did Spencer Rattler cost us any games?
- 12:44Aside from that Tampa Bay game,
- 12:48he really didn't.
- 12:49But the problem was he couldn't win us one either.
- 12:52And that was the bugaboo.
- 12:54Spencer Rattler couldn't win it.
- 12:57But he also couldn't lose it.
- 12:58He made the decision hard to move on and plug in
- 13:05Tyler Shuck.
- 13:06But,
- 13:07you know,
- 13:08I give him respect for giving
- 13:11Spencer Rattler the opportunity to showcase himself.
- 13:16And I can't get mad at that.
- 13:18But that wasn't his guy.
- 13:20And you could tell by the way the plays were called,
- 13:22the way the offense was moving.
- 13:25He didn't feel comfortable with Spencer Rattler.
- 13:27You can sum it up by saying he didn't trust him fully.
- 13:31And once again,
- 13:32that's not his guy.
- 13:33That's understandable.
- 13:35But once Tyler Shuck got the nod,
- 13:42then we saw a different Kellen Moore.
- 13:44We saw a more comfortable play calling Kellen Moore.
- 13:48We saw Kellen Moore that was willing to take chances and willing.
- 13:53to have his quarterback lead the team,
- 13:56you know,
- 13:57call audibles,
- 13:58change plays and all this other stuff.
- 14:01And the team looked different.
- 14:03The team responded differently.
- 14:06So,
- 14:07I mean,
- 14:08it looked like a different team.
- 14:11The Saints in week three compared to the Saints in week 18,
- 14:16two completely different teams.
- 14:19Two completely different teams.
- 14:22is kellen moore our guy is he the uh uh head coach or of course he's the head coach or is he the right head coach for the new orleans saints i'm gonna say yeah that you can check that box he he is the right guy he's the right guy for this team for
- 14:39the team that we have here you know uh with these young players speaking of young players did the saints hit in the draft well normally
- 14:51you don't get an idea of drafted players or their contributions to the team week not week but year two year three when you really start to feel the impact of a player you drafted
- 15:07no matter what the round is.
- 15:10Saints,
- 15:10oddly enough,
- 15:12we found out this year.
- 15:16All of these,
- 15:17every player drafted,
- 15:19with the exception of
- 15:21Fadil Diggs,
- 15:22who I think was on IR.
- 15:25He got hurt early on,
- 15:27and I think he ended up on the practice squad,
- 15:29as well as
- 15:32Vernon
- 15:33Lloyd, the defensive tackle.
- 15:35I just had his name.
- 15:38But the defensive tackle who looked good in the preseason,
- 15:41but he got put on IR right before the season started.
- 15:45Outside of those two,
- 15:47everybody else played.
- 15:50And I will say everybody produced.
- 15:54Calvin Banks,
- 15:55that was our first pick in the first round.
- 15:57Calvin Banks Jr.,
- 15:58the offensive tackle,
- 16:01he hit.
- 16:02I think we found something there at left tackle.
- 16:05Of course,
- 16:05Tyler Shuck.
- 16:07He hit
- 16:09Jonas Sanker.
- 16:10That was a good pickup.
- 16:12Jonas Sanker looked like he's going to be a very productive safety for the Saints.
- 16:16Danny Scruckman,
- 16:18linebacker,
- 16:19looks like every time I see him on the field,
- 16:22he's hitting something hard.
- 16:25So he looks like we got something there.
- 16:28Quincy Riley,
- 16:30cornerback,
- 16:32he looked like one of the he's probably the best corner on the team.
- 16:36Do you know?
- 16:38Devin Neal,
- 16:38before he went down with injury,
- 16:40he looked like he was making it easy to move on from
- 16:46Alvin Kamara.
- 16:49The tight end,
- 16:50he didn't play that much.
- 16:54Molaki,
- 16:57oh God,
- 16:57I can't think of his last name.
- 16:59But anyways,
- 17:00the Samoan,
- 17:01big guy,
- 17:02big tight end.
- 17:03He didn't play that much.
- 17:04He didn't play that much.
- 17:07But everything else,
- 17:08I mean,
- 17:09that's well over 80%
- 17:11of your draft picks played this season and produced and made a name for themselves,
- 17:18as Gambit would say.
- 17:19And so did this draft class hit?
- 17:24Right now,
- 17:26check.
- 17:27It's as a check.
- 17:29Everything worked out.
- 17:30And that leads me to Mickey Loomis.
- 17:32who not only did I want fired,
- 17:35I wanted him nailed to a stake.
- 17:38I ain't going to say a cross because I don't want to be sacrilegious,
- 17:41but tied to a stake in the middle of
- 17:47Jackson Square over a bonfire.
- 17:51I was ready to just roast marshmallows on him.
- 17:54I cannot,
- 17:55I could not,
- 17:56still can't,
- 17:57still can't,
- 17:59but I got to tip my hat to him.
- 18:01He made the right decisions.
- 18:03Those decisions panned out.
- 18:05Now,
- 18:05I will preface that by saying a lot of this fell in his lap.
- 18:11It's not like he wanted to make these decisions.
- 18:15A lot of this fell in his laps.
- 18:17Let's not forget,
- 18:20Biggie Loomis wanted
- 18:23Derek Carr back.
- 18:25He tried everything to bring Derek Carr back as the quarterback of the New Orleans Saints.
- 18:31It wasn't until Derek Carr said,
- 18:33forget it.
- 18:35It wasn't until he just quit that the Saints were forced to move on and choose a quarterback in Tyler Shuck in the second round,
- 18:45early in the second round.
- 18:47If it wasn't for that,
- 18:49we wouldn't have had Tyler Shuck.
- 18:51We would have been still rocking with Derek Carr if it was up to Mickey Loomis.
- 18:56And so that decision was made because he was.
- 19:00forced to make it but he made it and so i'll give him that and so uh good on him uh i still don't too much care for the dude uh but i gotta give credit where
- 19:15credit is due um the new orleans saints had the biggest up and down season probably in the history of this franchise i mean
- 19:25We saw the highest of the highs and the lowest of the lows this season.
- 19:28We saw all stages of emotion when it came to the 2025 NFL football season,
- 19:38when it came to the New Orleans Saints.
- 19:40I mean,
- 19:42deep depression with some of these losses and just overwhelming hype in some of these victories.
- 19:50And even in some losses,
- 19:52you couldn't do anything but tip your hat.
- 19:55on how hard they played,
- 19:57namely the last game of the season against the Falcons.
- 20:01I think the Falcons game showed me more about this team than any win.
- 20:07that we had this season in that loss i saw tyler shuck go out there with a practice squad with players they called up on friday only
- 20:21to play on a sunday and almost win that game i mean they were a uh controversial in my humble opinion offensive pass interference call from
- 20:36winning that game.
- 20:37I don't think that was a pass interference on Dante Pettis on that touchdown that was called back.
- 20:43They scored that touchdown.
- 20:44It's a different game.
- 20:46But they had to settle for a field goal at that point.
- 20:48Think about it.
- 20:49That's four points taken off the board.
- 20:52We lost by two.
- 20:53So that lets you know how big that penalty was.
- 20:58And I don't think that penalty was a penalty in my humble opinion.
- 21:03But it is what it is.
- 21:04But they should.
- 21:05They showed me that they were willing to go out there and play hard and actually try to win.
- 21:13It wasn't
- 21:15Cancun on three.
- 21:16They were actually trying to win the game and gave it their all.
- 21:20The defense came to play.
- 21:22B.
- 21:22John Robinson did absolutely nothing in that game.
- 21:26Nothing.
- 21:27And this is a running back that averages up,
- 21:30what,
- 21:30130 all-purpose yards a game?
- 21:34I think he had...
- 21:3540 yards total in that game they completely shut the atlanta falcons down now thinking about it in in in its totality neither one of those teams saints or falcons had anything to gain from that game win
- 21:53or lose it didn't matter they both were sitting on the couch uh when the clock hit zero in the fourth quarter and so it didn't matter the only thing that was up for grabs
- 22:05was the Carolina Panthers and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as far as their division.
- 22:10That goes to show you how trash the NFC South was this season.
- 22:16It came down to the two worst teams in the division in order to decide who won the division.
- 22:25I've never seen that in all my years,
- 22:28in 46 years on this planet.
- 22:33I've never seen.
- 22:35A division decided by two teams that weren't going to win the division,
- 22:41but whoever won that game was going to determine who won the game,
- 22:47who won the division.
- 22:49It is horrible.
- 22:50And none of these teams are above 500.
- 22:53Everybody was below 500.
- 22:58Now,
- 22:58if you want to really go in depth with it,
- 23:01the winner end up,
- 23:02but since the Saints lost,
- 23:04The winner ended up being Carolina.
- 23:07Carolina won a division for the first time since 2017,
- 23:11I believe.
- 23:12Kudos to them.
- 23:13All respect to them.
- 23:16Saints swept Carolina this season.
- 23:19The worst team in this division swept the division winner.
- 23:26Played them twice,
- 23:27beat them twice.
- 23:28Handedly,
- 23:29mind you.
- 23:30Saints split with
- 23:32Tampa Bay.
- 23:34It wasn't like this was a runaway division.
- 23:37Now,
- 23:37the Saints did get swept by Atlanta,
- 23:40which is the one thing about this season that hurts me the most.
- 23:43Out of all that took place this season,
- 23:47that's the one thing that bothers me.
- 23:49I hate Atlanta.
- 23:50There ain't no point putting it kindly.
- 23:52I can't stand Atlanta.
- 23:53And the fact that they were celebrating that win like they won the Super Bowl.
- 23:59Y'all are sitting on the couch right next to...
- 24:03us it's hilarious to me that they were celebrating that like they won the super bowl but that's neither here nor there uh all four teams had a three and three record and uh in the division so that
- 24:20lets me know that this this division is up for grabs and here's where the hope and here's where the final box that needs to be checked is there hope for the future
- 24:33Yes,
- 24:34you can check it.
- 24:36Look at the division.
- 24:38Look at the quarterbacks in this division.
- 24:40Let's round them out,
- 24:41people.
- 24:42You have Tyler Shuck.
- 24:44You have Baker Mayfield.
- 24:46You have Bryce Young.
- 24:47And I don't know what Atlanta.
- 24:49Is it
- 24:50Mike Pennis or is it
- 24:52Crew Cousins?
- 24:53I don't know.
- 24:54It doesn't matter.
- 24:54But you can put them both on there.
- 24:57Tyler Shuck has the most upside.
- 24:59Tyler Shuck is the best.
- 25:01He played the best.
- 25:03You know,
- 25:04in his limited time,
- 25:06he didn't play the whole season.
- 25:07In his limited time,
- 25:09in his limited play,
- 25:11outplayed all of these quarterbacks in his division.
- 25:14I think we have the better quarterback.
- 25:16I think we have the better youth movement on this team.
- 25:22I feel confident that the New Orleans Saints can go into next season and overtake this division.
- 25:29I feel that this division is ours for the taking.
- 25:32We had our worst season in a long time and struggled,
- 25:38rebuilt,
- 25:40trying to figure it out.
- 25:42And we were right there.
- 25:43We was only two games out of first place in this division.
- 25:49And that's what us trying to figure it out.
- 25:52Everybody else,
- 25:56it was standard.
- 25:56You know,
- 25:57everybody else was established.
- 25:59Tampa has won five years in a row,
- 26:01four or five in a row,
- 26:03They were established.
- 26:06Atlanta,
- 26:06they probably had the most talent,
- 26:09and they've been having the most talent on their team for years.
- 26:13They're established.
- 26:15Carolina,
- 26:16Carolina is Carolina.
- 26:18But,
- 26:18you know,
- 26:19they're pretty much established with quarterback and everything else.
- 26:23Saints are trying to figure it out,
- 26:25and they were right there with everybody else in this division.
- 26:29Saints showed at the end of this season that they are figuring it out.
- 26:36And if you go into next season,
- 26:37building on what you left off with this season,
- 26:42what's to tell me that the Saints can't take this division?
- 26:45Yes,
- 26:46am I being too hopeful?
- 26:49Do I have the black and gold glasses on?
- 26:51It's possible.
- 26:53But I got to look at the positive here.
- 26:54In the positive,
- 26:55everything looks great going forward.
- 26:59I mean,
- 26:59you going into this offseason,
- 27:01you actually are under the cap.
- 27:03I never thought I would say that.
- 27:07With all these years,
- 27:08man,
- 27:09the Saints are under the cap.
- 27:11We don't have to restructure 50 people in order to get under the cap.
- 27:15We don't have to move this and move that.
- 27:19Get rid of a player.
- 27:20Let this player go.
- 27:22No,
- 27:23Saints actually have money to spend.
- 27:25And
- 27:26I thank free agents
- 27:28would love to come here now they see that there's a quarterback here they see that there's a coach here that is uh looked up all all accounts show he's player friendly um everything looks great defensively they look great you can bring in pieces on the defense i mean stuff
- 27:50stuff is looking up man it is looking on the upside as far as that is concerned plus we do have some draft
- 27:57uh capital to use you we can get some um um players to come in and plug some of the holes that we have with saints do have a lot of problems still of course obviously we're six and eleven we have problems the number one priority going into this offseason hands
- 28:16down first order of business all finn sieve line we need to fix that old line
- 28:26I don't care what we got to do.
- 28:29I don't know if we can address it in a draft.
- 28:31I heard that this draft is Lyman heavy.
- 28:36I don't know.
- 28:37I haven't followed the college ranks as of yet.
- 28:41Normally,
- 28:42I do my research around this time of the year,
- 28:45but haven't gotten to it yet.
- 28:48But we'll see how that goes.
- 28:50Or can you address it in a draft?
- 28:52You know,
- 28:53I think that not to drive,
- 28:54sorry,
- 28:55and free agency.
- 28:56I think the I think free agency wise,
- 28:59there are not too many players that are going to be available as far as offensive linemen are concerned.
- 29:04But something needs to happen there.
- 29:07Something needs to happen there.
- 29:11Trades something that offensive line is pathetic.
- 29:16This is one of the worst offensive lines in football.
- 29:18But with that being said,
- 29:20the last few weeks.
- 29:21The offensive line actually been doing a pretty decent job.
- 29:24Now,
- 29:26the last few weeks,
- 29:27the Saints haven't been playing top 10 defenses either.
- 29:30So you've got to kind of look into all of that and put all of that in perspective before you make a statement like that.
- 29:40But I'm going to give credit where credit is due.
- 29:42A lot of the sacks that
- 29:45Tyler Shuck takes,
- 29:47I will say 70%
- 29:49of them is his fault.
- 29:50He holds onto the ball a little too long,
- 29:53but there's a lot of factors that go into that.
- 29:55There's the fact that is a lot of players that he's not accustomed throwing to and players that can't get open and a wide receivers.
- 30:04I would like to say,
- 30:07and stepping up in the pocket,
- 30:08that's something he has to work on too.
- 30:11But,
- 30:12you know,
- 30:12we need to address it,
- 30:13especially those at the guard position.
- 30:16We need to address that.
- 30:19Maybe even center,
- 30:20sadly to say.
- 30:21And Eric McCoy is the linchpin of that offensive line.
- 30:25Not having him on that offensive line obviously showed.
- 30:29It showed why he is who he is and why we need him.
- 30:33The reason I say we need to address center,
- 30:37Eric McCoy,
- 30:37this is the second year in a row.
- 30:39He's been hurt.
- 30:40He got injured,
- 30:41you know,
- 30:42and we haven't had his services.
- 30:45Is this a pattern now?
- 30:46You know,
- 30:47is this a need?
- 30:50Yes,
- 30:50it is a need.
- 30:51We need to address it.
- 30:53Now,
- 30:53his backup also went down,
- 30:56Will Clapp.
- 30:56He went down as well.
- 30:58So it was just bad,
- 31:00man.
- 31:00We were just in a bad position,
- 31:02and injuries as a whole,
- 31:04as a team,
- 31:05has been an issue throughout the entire year.
- 31:08I mean,
- 31:09I can't remember the last time the New Orleans Saints had been this,
- 31:13you know,
- 31:14ridden by.
- 31:15injuries like this you know by in all positions almost is is is crazy but at the same time a lot of those injuries open the door for these rookies to get playing time to where we got to see him and so it's kind of a catch-22 do
- 31:34you know and so it's still it's still you don't want to see that you don't want to see black men go out early you didn't want to see uh uh
- 31:44Of course,
- 31:44Eric McCoy go out.
- 31:46You didn't want to see
- 31:48Chase Young,
- 31:48who didn't start the first four weeks of the season,
- 31:51and
- 31:52Alvin Kamara and
- 31:54Kendra Miller,
- 31:55Devin Neal,
- 31:56you know,
- 31:56the whole running back room almost to a degree.
- 32:00So it was brutal injury-wise.
- 32:04But like I said,
- 32:05you got to see a lot of young talent as a result of that.
- 32:09So it is what it is.
- 32:12As far as the draft is concerned,
- 32:14the New Orleans Saints will be picking eighth this draft.
- 32:19We got the eighth pick overall,
- 32:22and that's a good spot.
- 32:24I heard a lot of rumblings and upset people.
- 32:28It just blows my mind in the Who Dat Nation sometimes.
- 32:32When the Saints went on their winning streak,
- 32:34they're messing up draft position and all this.
- 32:38What are you talking about?
- 32:41At that point,
- 32:41the Saints were going to be a top 10 pick regardless.
- 32:45It didn't matter.
- 32:46So why are you even tripping?
- 32:48We don't need to draft a quarterback.
- 32:50So I don't know.
- 32:50What are you trying to get at the number one,
- 32:53one,
- 32:53two,
- 32:54three pick in the draft?
- 32:56The only good thing that would result in that when you can trade down and get more picks,
- 33:02you can still do that with the eighth pick,
- 33:04you know?
- 33:05So it's not the end of the world.
- 33:07I'm cool with the eighth pick.
- 33:08I didn't want.
- 33:09a high pick i really didn't not because it wasn't nothing there i just had no faith in mickey loomis but i still don't even though even though the draft picks panned out this season i still don't have uh all the faith in the world that they're gonna do the right thing there because this
- 33:30was a this was a anomaly this this was a uh freak of nature man you know it normally if the saints
- 33:39swing and miss when it comes to first round draft picks for years this is the first time it actually done panned out so far we'll see going forward hopefully we keep on this trajectory but we'll see but
- 33:55the saints do have the number eight pick and now the big question is what do we do with it do we pick a running back it's time it is time for a running back i know we need to address our offensive line but i don't think
- 34:09at number eight is the right time yeah we drafted calvin banks jr pretty i i think he was the uh he was the ninth we picked night last year right yeah the ninth pick we used that but that he was he
- 34:26he is a he's a number nine player he he deserved to be picked that high like i said i don't know right now off the top of my head an offensive lineman i would use the number eight pick on
- 34:39But,
- 34:40hey,
- 34:40we'll see.
- 34:41We'll see going forward.
- 34:43By the time the combine and all that come around,
- 34:47we'll get the resume on all these guys.
- 34:49So we'll see.
- 34:51But
- 34:51I'm leaning towards a running back.
- 34:55Jeremiah Love,
- 34:56to be exact.
- 34:58If you don't know anything about Jeremiah Love,
- 35:01look him up.
- 35:02That dude is the real deal.
- 35:05The dude's the real deal.
- 35:06I don't know if he'll be there at 8,
- 35:08though.
- 35:08If he do fall to eight,
- 35:10eight,
- 35:12get him,
- 35:13get him,
- 35:14get him.
- 35:16Now,
- 35:16the problem with that is we still need to assure that offensive line,
- 35:21that offense,
- 35:22it doesn't matter who you get at running back.
- 35:24If you don't have an offensive line,
- 35:27it's a waste of time.
- 35:28Ask Barry Sanders,
- 35:30the Hall of Famer,
- 35:31one of the greatest running backs of all time.
- 35:34Detroit didn't have an offensive line to save their life.
- 35:37Every yard.
- 35:38barry sanders got he got it wasn't because of the offensive line and so you give him an offensive line barry sanders you probably add two three years to his career um but that's neither here nor there yes
- 35:54we do need to address uh our running back situation we thought it was kendre miller uh sadly is not him he looked good early on i thought this was the year he he actually showed that
- 36:07Okay,
- 36:08I see why we drafted him.
- 36:10And then,
- 36:10once again,
- 36:11got hurt.
- 36:12Injury prone.
- 36:14He can't last the season.
- 36:16Sorry,
- 36:17I hate it because I like him.
- 36:20I like how he runs.
- 36:22He's physical.
- 36:23He's fast.
- 36:24He does it all.
- 36:25But he can't stay healthy.
- 36:28Devin Neal,
- 36:28like I said,
- 36:30jury's still out on
- 36:31Devin Neal.
- 36:33But he got hurt.
- 36:34He got hurt.
- 36:35He was looking good before he got hurt,
- 36:37but he got hurt.
- 36:40Alvin Kamara,
- 36:45it pains me to say that it's time to move on from Alvin Kamara.
- 36:49I'm not saying just throw the baby out with the bathwater just yet,
- 36:52but let's be real,
- 36:55people.
- 36:56Alvin Kamara has never,
- 36:58I mean,
- 36:59since he's been a New Orleans Saint.
- 37:01has never given us in full season.
- 37:05Never.
- 37:06Is he phenomenal to watch?
- 37:08Yes.
- 37:09Is he a dog?
- 37:10Absolutely.
- 37:11Do I want to see him go?
- 37:12No.
- 37:13Do I want to see him retire as a Saint?
- 37:15Yes.
- 37:17But let's be real.
- 37:19Is he helping this team?
- 37:20At this point,
- 37:21at this juncture right now,
- 37:23is he helping this team?
- 37:25You don't have to go all the way back.
- 37:27Let's just say the first,
- 37:29the last two to three seasons.
- 37:31Has he helped this team?
- 37:33Now,
- 37:34has the team helped him?
- 37:35No.
- 37:36No,
- 37:37the team has not helped him either.
- 37:39Be fair,
- 37:40but you got to give to get,
- 37:42and you got to get to give.
- 37:44So it's not working.
- 37:47It's not working at this time.
- 37:48And that goes back to the Kellen Moore factor.
- 37:52Alvin Kamara is not a Kellen Moore guy.
- 37:56He inherited Kellen Moore.
- 37:58I mean,
- 37:59Alvin Kamara.
- 38:01Now,
- 38:01can he use him?
- 38:03Of course you can use Alvin Kamara.
- 38:05Alvin Kamara can do it all.
- 38:07He can run and catch.
- 38:10Yes,
- 38:10he can use him.
- 38:11I would argue that
- 38:12Kelly Moore didn't use him right early on when he was healthy.
- 38:16And to be fair,
- 38:17I don't think
- 38:18Alvin Kamara was 100%
- 38:20all season.
- 38:21He just didn't look right all year.
- 38:24But they didn't use him.
- 38:27They didn't use him.
- 38:30and he was a non-factor and he wasn't a non-factor.
- 38:32He's been a non-factor for the last couple of years.
- 38:34So
- 38:35I'm not saying next season we move on from him,
- 38:38but you can bring him back.
- 38:40But it's time to start that transition phase.
- 38:44You know,
- 38:44the same way with
- 38:46Demario Davis.
- 38:47Demario Davis is,
- 38:50I mean,
- 38:51a true leader on this team.
- 38:53The leader on this team,
- 38:55offensive and defensive,
- 38:56even though he's a linebacker.
- 38:58He's the...
- 38:59voice of this team he's getting old and he's played a phenomenal year this year and it's hard for me to say move on from demario davis but if they do i wouldn't be mad but
- 39:15if they bring him back i wouldn't be mad either you can add cam jordan into that category cam jordan had his best season this season in a while
- 39:27Cam Jordan look rejuvenized this season.
- 39:31Would I be mad if they move on from Cam Jordan?
- 39:34No.
- 39:35But if you bring Cam Jordan back,
- 39:38will I be upset?
- 39:39No.
- 39:40Because
- 39:41I see the value.
- 39:42I see that there's still gas in the tank for these guys.
- 39:47But it's time for the transitional phase.
- 39:51Time to bring in some guys.
- 39:53Because you move on from who you're replacing them with.
- 39:56Right now.
- 39:57If you move on from Cam Jordan,
- 40:00who right now on this roster,
- 40:02as the team sits right now,
- 40:04who is Cam Jordan's replacement?
- 40:07Nobody.
- 40:08Nobody.
- 40:09I couldn't tell you who.
- 40:11Oh,
- 40:11Carl Granderson?
- 40:12Yeah,
- 40:12Carl Granderson had a good year.
- 40:14But Carl Granderson started off hot,
- 40:17and he disappeared.
- 40:18He came on at the end of the season.
- 40:21So it was about a
- 40:236, 7,
- 40:248-game stretch where I didn't hear Carl Granderson's name.
- 40:28And so I'm not comfortable enough to say that Carl Granderson is ready to hold down the Cam Jordan spot.
- 40:36Aside from that,
- 40:37nobody.
- 40:38Nobody is ready to bump
- 40:43Cam Jordan out of that position.
- 40:45Same thing with Demario Davis.
- 40:46Demario Davis,
- 40:48he looked great throughout the year.
- 40:50He played decent.
- 40:52Has he lost a step?
- 40:53Yes.
- 40:53I mean,
- 40:54his father,
- 40:55he's 30.
- 40:55He's in his mid-30s.
- 40:57Yes,
- 40:57he's going to lose a step,
- 40:59you know?
- 41:00But who is there?
- 41:02Strutman?
- 41:03Strutman looks good.
- 41:05But is Strutman ready for that mic?
- 41:08position and so i'm not ready to hand over the keys to the ferrari just yet give it another year and that's all i'm saying and plus that leadership leadership factor you can't you can't exclude that either and so uh but those are the moves uh i think you need to kind of focus on now going back to the draft portion of this yeah
- 41:33i think you should move on with a running back there
- 41:37I know a lot of folks will say,
- 41:38oh,
- 41:38Rob Receiver,
- 41:39we need a playmaker.
- 41:42I don't think so.
- 41:43I think the Saints are good at Rob Receiver.
- 41:45Now,
- 41:45you look at the last game of this year,
- 41:48you're like,
- 41:48what receiver?
- 41:50We didn't have any receivers,
- 41:52and we didn't.
- 41:54Everybody was hurt.
- 41:56Chris Olave had that blood clot,
- 41:58and I'm praying for a speedy recovery from him with that,
- 42:02but
- 42:03Chris Olave came on.
- 42:06On the second half of the season,
- 42:08they had a career year.
- 42:10He had 100 catches over 1,000 yards receiving.
- 42:13And I can't remember.
- 42:14We're going to go over the stats in a few.
- 42:17But he had a phenomenal year overall.
- 42:19And
- 42:21I think he earned a contract.
- 42:23Now,
- 42:24with that being said,
- 42:25does he deserve number one money?
- 42:29I'm not ready to do that.
- 42:33I'm not ready to give him that.
- 42:34But I think he earned a contract,
- 42:37not a big money contract,
- 42:40but a contract nonetheless.
- 42:42He is a really,
- 42:45really good player.
- 42:46He fits this offense great.
- 42:47And I think the chemistry between him and Shuck is good.
- 42:52I think they got something going,
- 42:53man.
- 42:54So I'm encouraged by that.
- 42:56Bailey,
- 42:57Bailey,
- 42:59a tree that I was so confused by.
- 43:04early on this season once again going at mickey loomis head like a stupid move why did we trade for this guy and he's not even playing some some weeks he was even a healthy scratch and all i'm like why did we trade for this guy and
- 43:20then he arrived then he started playing and i'm like this dude the best receiver on the team he was better than chris olavi he he is phenomenal every but he catches
- 43:33Everything.
- 43:34He's a big target.
- 43:36Everything about him is great.
- 43:39I love
- 43:40Devon
- 43:41Bailey. I think that was an awesome pickup.
- 43:45You know,
- 43:48kudos to Mickey Loomis for that trade.
- 43:52Speaking of trades,
- 43:54another head scratcher.
- 43:55We traded for a player that was on IR.
- 43:58Is it Jonas
- 44:01Polk?
- 44:02But anyway,
- 44:02the wide receiver from
- 44:05New England,
- 44:06we traded for him for next year.
- 44:09You know,
- 44:10he's on
- 44:11IR still,
- 44:12but he is expected to play next year.
- 44:16He is a good wide receiver.
- 44:18I went and looked him up,
- 44:20you know,
- 44:20and really watched him.
- 44:21I saw a couple of games with him live,
- 44:23but I really went back and looked at some of his highlights and,
- 44:29you know.
- 44:30how he runs and his route running and all this here,
- 44:33that dude,
- 44:34that dude is good.
- 44:36Really good.
- 44:38That could be a potential steal.
- 44:40in that tree i am encouraged by that and so you have olive vele you have a poke let's not forget you still have trey parker who uh was
- 44:56on ir this season trey parker is a palmer i meant to say trey palmer is a excellent receiver as well so you have those pieces do you bring i think you still address it.
- 45:08I think you could still
- 45:10probably address that in free agency possibly or or late round pick you know get another receiver but i don't think you need to go high in the draft uh for a wide receiver i think we have what we what we need there um
- 45:28i was speaking on the defense earlier and that defensive line that's where i'm kind of i don't know i'm kind of iffy on at times they show flashes of
- 45:39greatness but then again they'll show not so greatness you know sometimes it looks like they don't need a blitz to get pressure they get pressure with the front floor and then their games where that offensive well yeah that offensive line opposing offensive line will bully them so yeah
- 46:03do we need a pass rusher yeah I think we do need another one Ed.
- 46:07like to add on to what I was talking about earlier to get that transition started with these older players,
- 46:13a la cam Jordan,
- 46:15you know,
- 46:16yeah,
- 46:16we do need another pass rusher,
- 46:18but I think that can be addressed late and,
- 46:22and through free agency.
- 46:23So we don't have to go high there either.
- 46:26So,
- 46:28with all that being said,
- 46:29speaking of next year,
- 46:31these are the saints opponents for the upcoming season.
- 46:36They're looking ahead.
- 46:37in 2026 and speaking of which i've been speaking for almost an hour and i forgot to say happy new years to everybody happy new years uh to all you out there in the who that nation i hope 26 uh
- 46:53brings you more joy than 25 can ever uh imagine but going into 26 um this is the saints
- 47:03opponents we don't have the schedule the schedule don't come out too much later but uh we do know who we will be facing next season start up with the home games we play more home games than away games this year you know because of the it's
- 47:20an 18 week schedule so you play 17 games of course it's not even so you play more either away games or home games saints of course we'll play atlanta tampa and carolina at home
- 47:33In addition,
- 47:34coming to the Dome,
- 47:36Green Bay,
- 47:38Minnesota,
- 47:39Cleveland Browns,
- 47:40Pittsburgh Steelers,
- 47:42Arizona Cardinals again,
- 47:44and the Las Vegas
- 47:46Raiders will be coming to the Caesars Superdome in 2026.
- 47:51Away games.
- 47:53The Saints,
- 47:53of course,
- 47:54Atlanta,
- 47:55Tampa,
- 47:55and Carolina.
- 47:56But we will have to travel again to Chicago,
- 48:01Cincinnati.
- 48:03detroit baltimore and to the giants and so this isn't a favorable schedule this is not going to be it it looks like it's going to be a little easier at home away
- 48:18is going to be kind of tough but at home the saints schedule looks very promising if you can take care of home turf the saints looks good you know and probably squeak out
- 48:31Three or four victories on the road.
- 48:32The Saints could possibly be looking at a division title as well as playoff run.
- 48:42So we'll see as the year goes on.
- 48:48Going over the season,
- 48:50this previous season,
- 48:52like I said,
- 48:53man,
- 48:55the Saints could have been better.
- 48:56But honestly,
- 48:58it went the way it needed to go.
- 49:01everybody of course i know the fandom gets to you it got to me i'm like okay we can do this and we can tweak this we can make a run we can make the playoffs dude we didn't want this team in the playoffs let's be real it would have been embarrassing um so it
- 49:17went the way it was supposed to go but the saints started off this season against the arizona cardinals we lost that game 20 to 13 that's a game we probably could have won
- 49:29You know,
- 49:30we had opportunities in that game,
- 49:32but once again,
- 49:34I wasn't expecting to win that game because it was the first game,
- 49:38you know.
- 49:42I just weren't expecting much out of that game.
- 49:44But after watching it,
- 49:46and the Saints didn't play,
- 49:48you know,
- 49:48nearly as good as they played later on this season,
- 49:51but Saints still had opportunities to win,
- 49:54I was kind of hopeful going forward.
- 49:57Week two,
- 49:58they played the San Francisco
- 50:0449ers. They lost that game,
- 50:0526-21.
- 50:06Another game where they could have won that game.
- 50:10you know and san fran they look like us you know they just as hampered as us injury wise but for some strange reason kyle shanahan he he knows how to coach he knows how to get the
- 50:25true uh next man up mentality going over there in frisco and they they figured it out you know their playoff team almost almost snagged the first seed in the nfc with nobody
- 50:41you know they lost their best offensive players their best defensive players they they lost their quarterbacks they all throughout the season and they still managed to uh chug along um they were missing players in week two when they met up against the saints but the saints just couldn't get there we lost that game 26 to 21 uh week three is when it really got bad that's when we had to go to Seattle to play the Seahawks and we got decimated.
- 51:1044 to 13 that's the game when the special teams just they didn't they didn't make the flight they stayed in the wall it was bad i think we had what two punt returns in that game or something like that a kickoff return and a punt return and it
- 51:28was it was just a mess that was a horrible horrible game uh but uh that was the true real loss this season it was only two
- 51:39that took place this year that i can honestly say saints got their butt kicked and that was the that was the first one uh we move on to the next week we had to go to buffalo go clear across the country and i knew that was going to be difficult uh within
- 51:55itself let alone playing the bills who are one of the best teams in the league but they had their struggles this season as well but we lost game 31-19,
- 52:07but the score really doesn't reflect.
- 52:09Saints had multiple opportunities to take control of that game,
- 52:13and we just couldn't cross the hump.
- 52:17I finally remembered that
- 52:19Spencer Rattler actually outperformed
- 52:23Josh Allen in that game.
- 52:26We just could not score.
- 52:28We could not score.
- 52:30We moved the ball up and down the field,
- 52:33but we couldn't punch it in,
- 52:36and that's how we lost that game.
- 52:39The next week,
- 52:40we came back home.
- 52:41We played the Detroit,
- 52:42not Detroit.
- 52:43What am I talking about?
- 52:46The New York Giants.
- 52:48We got our first victory of the year,
- 52:5026-14 over the Giants.
- 52:53In that game,
- 52:55we won that game because the Giants didn't know how to hold on to the ball.
- 52:58I think they had five turnovers in that game,
- 53:01and the
- 53:03Saints ended up winning.
- 53:04But we'll take it how we can get it.
- 53:07But it was a very ugly game.
- 53:11But Spencer Rattler got his first win.
- 53:13Kellen Moore got his first win as the head coach.
- 53:17It was looking good.
- 53:18It looked like maybe we got some momentum going.
- 53:22Well,
- 53:23unfortunately,
- 53:24we didn't.
- 53:25The next week,
- 53:26we played the New England Patriots.
- 53:29The Patriots beat us
- 53:3025-19. We played them tough.
- 53:35and the Patriots are a
- 53:37You know,
- 53:37as the season went on,
- 53:38they proved to be one of the best in the AFC.
- 53:41Saints could have won that game.
- 53:44They had multiple opportunities to win that game,
- 53:47but just couldn't score yet again.
- 53:5125-19.
- 53:53The Bears.
- 53:55We had to travel to
- 53:56Chicago. Like,
- 53:57we're going to have to travel to Chicago next year again.
- 54:00I don't know what
- 54:03Goodell got against the Saints.
- 54:05uh we gotta go to go to chicago but maybe it's the dennis allen factor i don't know but uh our first meeting against dennis allen uh he got us it was 26 to 14 this well
- 54:22i take back what i said earlier about there were two defining victories there was actually or losses there were actually three and this was the second one it was a close game scoreboard wise but
- 54:34It really was.
- 54:36The Chicago Bears dominated.
- 54:38We couldn't do anything.
- 54:40The fact that we scored two touchdowns in that game was a miracle.
- 54:45It was dominant.
- 54:46In that game,
- 54:47I think that's the game that we lost
- 54:50Kendrick Miller for the year.
- 54:52Alan Kamara couldn't run.
- 54:55It was like he was in quicksand.
- 54:57Not because he was just running slow.
- 54:59They would not give him any quarter.
- 55:04We couldn't push the ball down the field.
- 55:06It was nothing.
- 55:07There was nothing we could do right in that game.
- 55:11Our first meeting the following week against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers,
- 55:16Tampa Bay beat us 23-3.
- 55:20This was the final stand for Spencer Rattler.
- 55:22Spencer Rattler,
- 55:23I think,
- 55:23threw two picks in that game,
- 55:26and that was the scrawl that broke the camel's back.
- 55:30We just could not bounce back from that.
- 55:33And in that game,
- 55:35the reason this isn't one of the games that I say that the Saints decisively lost,
- 55:41even though we lost by 20 points,
- 55:45Tampa Bay did nothing in that game.
- 55:46They did absolutely nothing.
- 55:49It was the Saints turning the ball over.
- 55:51I think one was a pick six or something like that.
- 55:54I forgot how it went,
- 55:55but their points came off of Saints turnover.
- 55:58We don't turn over the ball.
- 56:00We probably had a chance to win the game because.
- 56:02Tampa Bay's offense was depleted.
- 56:06Baker Mayfield,
- 56:08he was injured.
- 56:08He wasn't 100%
- 56:09in that game.
- 56:10He could barely throw.
- 56:12And even if he could,
- 56:13his receivers were out.
- 56:16Their running game was hampered.
- 56:18They had nothing.
- 56:20But we couldn't do anything.
- 56:23It was probably one of the most embarrassing,
- 56:25but I wouldn't say it was one of those defining losses of the season.
- 56:30That came a week later.
- 56:32When we had to go to L.A.
- 56:33to take on the Rams,
- 56:34the Rams put foot in the Saints 34 to 10.
- 56:39And that score does not reflect what what the beating we received at the hand of the
- 56:45Los Angeles Rams.
- 56:47Very,
- 56:48very tough loss for the Saints.
- 56:51Then we had to travel to Carolina.
- 56:53We get our second win of the season,
- 56:5617 to 7 against the Panthers.
- 56:58the Panthers were fresh off of beating
- 57:01Oh,
- 57:01who they played the week before.
- 57:04Was it Atlanta?
- 57:06No,
- 57:06no,
- 57:06no,
- 57:06no.
- 57:07I think it was Green Bay that they beat the Brakes out of.
- 57:12And I'm like,
- 57:12oh,
- 57:12my God.
- 57:15No,
- 57:15it could have been Chicago,
- 57:16something like that.
- 57:17But I remember Rico D'Avila,
- 57:19he ran for almost 200 yards or maybe over 200 yards or something like that the week before.
- 57:25And I'm like,
- 57:25oh,
- 57:26my God,
- 57:26this dude is going to get 300 yards today.
- 57:30But.
- 57:30No,
- 57:31the Saints shut them down.
- 57:33They did nothing other than that one drive,
- 57:36which was assisted by a defensive penalty to keep that drive alive that they scored on.
- 57:43Aside from that,
- 57:45Carolina did nothing in that game.
- 57:48Saints shut them down.
- 57:50I was so blown away by that.
- 57:53I was like,
- 57:54oh,
- 57:54my God.
- 57:57This is good.
- 57:58This is good to build on.
- 57:59Well,
- 58:00unfortunately,
- 58:01it didn't roll over to the next week when we played our first game against the Falcons at home.
- 58:06And the Falcons beat us 24 to 10.
- 58:11I try to forget that game as much as possible.
- 58:15So I don't have much to reflect on that game.
- 58:17But it was it wasn't it wasn't pretty.
- 58:20And I think the Saints,
- 58:23I think it was I think it was moody because if I'm not mistaken,
- 58:27Drake London didn't.
- 58:28play that game it was moody that just tore into the saints in that game they couldn't stop could not stop um the following week which was the uh game that officially ended the saints playoff hopes the saints traveled to miami and
- 58:48lost to the dolphins 21 to 17 another game saints could have won saints had a chance to win that game
- 58:58on a on a fewer cage to kind of take control of that game couldn't capitalize on it but uh you know it is what it is we lost to the miami dolphins and at that point the saints were eliminated from playoff contention we
- 59:13move on and this is where the saints turned the corner i don't know if it was the loss to miami that kind of kicked us in the butt or the fact that we
- 59:24We're close in that game.
- 59:25We were competitive in that game.
- 59:27We should have won that game.
- 59:28And something clicked,
- 59:30but the Saints traveled.
- 59:32They stayed in Florida,
- 59:34went to Tampa.
- 59:36and revenge the loss and beat Tampa Bay
- 59:4224 to 20 in that game that game
- 59:46showed me so much because that was a that game was in the middle of a typhoon it was a it was a flat-out tsunami in that game i mean it was pouring down raining you couldn't throw the ball you could not throw and
- 1:00:02this was the moment i fell in love with tyler shuck tyler shuck literally put the team on his back and went out and won that game he rushed for two touchdowns
- 1:00:15He was running.
- 1:00:16He was moving up and down the field with his team.
- 1:00:20Even though you couldn't throw the ball,
- 1:00:22he found the way to throw the ball.
- 1:00:24It was just,
- 1:00:25he took control.
- 1:00:27He was poised.
- 1:00:29The stage wasn't too big.
- 1:00:31You're on the road.
- 1:00:32It's a division rival.
- 1:00:33The weather,
- 1:00:34this implement weather,
- 1:00:35everything was against him.
- 1:00:38And he put the team on his back and went out there and won it.
- 1:00:43And at that moment,
- 1:00:44he won my heart.
- 1:00:45That was it.
- 1:00:46I was sold.
- 1:00:47I was sold from that moment on.
- 1:00:50And so we move on to the next week when the Saints had to face the Carolina Panthers yet again.
- 1:00:58And I'm like,
- 1:00:59well,
- 1:00:59Carolina,
- 1:01:00they got their act together because from the moment we beat them to the next time we play,
- 1:01:06Carolina went on a run.
- 1:01:08Carolina didn't lose a game after that.
- 1:01:10And I mean,
- 1:01:11they were beating people.
- 1:01:12The same Rams team that tore us up,
- 1:01:15they tore them up.
- 1:01:17They tore up the Bears.
- 1:01:19They tore up,
- 1:01:19I mean,
- 1:01:20they went through teams.
- 1:01:22I'm like,
- 1:01:22well,
- 1:01:23so much for that run.
- 1:01:24We got one,
- 1:01:25at least we beat Tampa Bay.
- 1:01:27And that's what I was saying in my head.
- 1:01:30Saints win
- 1:01:3120-17, beating the Carolina Panthers yet again,
- 1:01:36sweeping Carolina on the year,
- 1:01:39the one team that we did sweep.
- 1:01:42and
- 1:01:43That was super,
- 1:01:44super impressive that the Saints were able to get two division wins back-to-back.
- 1:01:50At that point,
- 1:01:51Saints hosted the
- 1:01:53New York Jets.
- 1:01:55After that,
- 1:01:55Jets were or are a dumpster fire of an organization.
- 1:02:00They don't have a team.
- 1:02:02They don't have a quarterback.
- 1:02:03They don't have nothing.
- 1:02:04And the Saints showed the world that that was true.
- 1:02:08Saints had their most dominant victory as a team.
- 1:02:1220
- 1:02:128-9 to 6 over the Jets.
- 1:02:16Much needed.
- 1:02:17That was supposed to happen.
- 1:02:19I didn't think it was going to happen in that manner,
- 1:02:21but they did it.
- 1:02:22And kudos to them on that.
- 1:02:25They played the Tennessee Titans.
- 1:02:28Beat the Titans 34-26.
- 1:02:31And this was a Tennessee team that they were trying to win.
- 1:02:35They were giving the Saints everything they can handle.
- 1:02:38Saints were giving them everything they can handle.
- 1:02:40It was an actual game.
- 1:02:42And you couldn't tell that there were,
- 1:02:46what,
- 1:02:46nine wins between the two of them?
- 1:02:50You know,
- 1:02:51you wouldn't imagine that.
- 1:02:52But I don't even think it's nine.
- 1:02:54I'm being kind with nine.
- 1:02:56But they really went at it.
- 1:02:59They went at it.
- 1:03:00And
- 1:03:02Cam Ward,
- 1:03:02I don't think he looked as good all year.
- 1:03:05Just say he was the number one overall pick.
- 1:03:08But he looked.
- 1:03:09Excellent in that game,
- 1:03:10but it wasn't enough.
- 1:03:12Saints came out victorious.
- 1:03:14Unfortunately,
- 1:03:14that was the last victory for the New Orleans Saints as they wrapped up the season against the Atlanta Falcons and lost 19-17 in that game.
- 1:03:28The Saints,
- 1:03:30like I said,
- 1:03:30no Chris Olave,
- 1:03:32no Valey,
- 1:03:33no Tifton,
- 1:03:36no,
- 1:03:37I mean,
- 1:03:37no nothing,
- 1:03:38man.
- 1:03:38You have
- 1:03:39you had a guy who I've never heard of.
- 1:03:42Well,
- 1:03:43two guys I've never heard of out there running routes,
- 1:03:45trying to catch passes.
- 1:03:47And it was,
- 1:03:48it was just,
- 1:03:50it wasn't expecting to win that game.
- 1:03:51Even with Chris Olave,
- 1:03:53it would have been tough to win that game.
- 1:03:55But,
- 1:03:56I give him credit for playing hard for giving it their all.
- 1:03:59And it really did.
- 1:04:00They gave it,
- 1:04:01they all in that game to finish strong.
- 1:04:03And I believe that they did.
- 1:04:05And so that wrapped up the 2025 season saints.
- 1:04:083 and 11.
- 1:04:10Let's go over the stats real quick,
- 1:04:12and we're going to wrap up,
- 1:04:13put a bow on the 2025 season.
- 1:04:18Let's start with passing.
- 1:04:21Our passing leader this year was Tyler Shuck.
- 1:04:24Tyler Shuck,
- 1:04:24he went 198 for 292.
- 1:04:30He had a completion percentage of 67.8.
- 1:04:362,125 yards,
- 1:04:39nine touchdowns,
- 1:04:40and five interceptions.
- 1:04:42The worst stat,
- 1:04:44he was sacked 27 times.
- 1:04:48Yes,
- 1:04:50we need to address that offensive line,
- 1:04:53people.
- 1:04:5427 times he was sacked.
- 1:04:58Spencer Rattler,
- 1:04:59he finished the year
- 1:05:01174 of 257 attempts.
- 1:05:07He had a passer rating of 67.7.
- 1:05:10They pretty much had the same passer rating.
- 1:05:111,586 yards,
- 1:05:17eight touchdowns.
- 1:05:18and five interceptions.
- 1:05:19They,
- 1:05:20their numbers are almost dead.
- 1:05:23Even it's almost dead.
- 1:05:25Even
- 1:05:27Tyler Shook had more yards passing,
- 1:05:30but that's crazy to me that their completion percentage was the exact same,
- 1:05:36which tells me quarterback.
- 1:05:37Isn't the problem.
- 1:05:39And it wasn't a problem early on.
- 1:05:40And it wasn't a problem late.
- 1:05:43That's so you could take that,
- 1:05:46take that.
- 1:05:46However you want it.
- 1:05:48Rushing leader.
- 1:05:49And this is crazy to think,
- 1:05:51but Alvin Kamara finished as our rushing leader on the team with
- 1:05:56471 yards off of 131 carries.
- 1:06:03He only scored one touchdown.
- 1:06:07And that was in the first game of the season.
- 1:06:11You can't make that up.
- 1:06:14Coming in second is Devin Neer.
- 1:06:16Neal,
- 1:06:17he had
- 1:06:1857 carries,
- 1:06:19206 yards.
- 1:06:22He scored two touchdowns.
- 1:06:24Kendrick Miller,
- 1:06:25he had 193 yards off of 47 carries.
- 1:06:30He scored one touchdown as well.
- 1:06:34Leading receiver is,
- 1:06:36of course,
- 1:06:36Chris Olave.
- 1:06:37He had
- 1:06:391,163 yards receiving this year with...
- 1:06:45off of 100 catches.
- 1:06:47Good on him.
- 1:06:49Nine touchdowns.
- 1:06:50Our second leading receiver was Jawan Johnson.
- 1:06:54He had
- 1:06:5574 catches for 828 yards and three touchdowns.
- 1:07:02Rashid Shahid,
- 1:07:03shockingly,
- 1:07:04is our third leading receiver,
- 1:07:06even though he's not on the team anymore.
- 1:07:10They traded him early on in the season,
- 1:07:12but yet still,
- 1:07:13he's the third leading receiver.
- 1:07:15Put it to all his saints with 44 catches and 499 yards and two touchdowns.
- 1:07:24Just for kicks and giggles,
- 1:07:26Devon Bailey,
- 1:07:28he had 25 catches for 293 yards and two touchdowns on the year.
- 1:07:37Moving over to defense,
- 1:07:39our leading tackler,
- 1:07:41the one who goes get it,
- 1:07:43the one who hits.
- 1:07:44more people than anybody on the team this season was the old man demario davis he had 137 tackles total uh 63 of them were solo tackles but
- 1:08:01uh he also had a half a sack this season as well as two fumble recoveries leading uh i guess interception getter D'rgh
- 1:08:15leading the team in interceptions was uh kool-aid mckintry he had three interceptions this season so tip my hat to him for that i don't know how the
- 1:08:29voters are going to vote but i i can't think of anybody else and this isn't the who that in me talking this isn't a homer or
- 1:08:42whatever the case may be,
- 1:08:43but I honestly can't think of nobody else.
- 1:08:48Tyler Shuck should be rookie of the year.
- 1:08:50I know he didn't play the entire season and will that play a factor in it?
- 1:08:56I don't know,
- 1:08:57but you look at his production and what he's done,
- 1:09:01his record,
- 1:09:03the other rookie quarterbacks that came out this year and playing,
- 1:09:07compare them to him.
- 1:09:10Who else?
- 1:09:12Who else would be rookie of the year?
- 1:09:16I think that he should be rookie of the year.
- 1:09:18If not winning,
- 1:09:19he definitely should be in the conversation.
- 1:09:22He has played phenomenal.
- 1:09:27He made me out a believer.
- 1:09:29I'm not ashamed to eat crow.
- 1:09:32I'm not ashamed to say I had it wrong.
- 1:09:35I had it wrong.
- 1:09:37And I would argue
- 1:09:39I never said that he was going to be bad.
- 1:09:41i just didn't believe he would be this good this fast and he looks good and so i i honestly think
- 1:09:49that he's the guy.
- 1:09:50Now,
- 1:09:51you can also make an argument.
- 1:09:52I know there's going to be some out there that's going to pick apart every little thing.
- 1:09:59Who did he play in that stretch that he started?
- 1:10:04Yeah,
- 1:10:04Tennessee.
- 1:10:05He played the Jets.
- 1:10:08He beat
- 1:10:10Tampa,
- 1:10:11Carolina. Yeah,
- 1:10:14they weren't.
- 1:10:15They're not top.
- 1:10:17tennis defenses i i'll give you that but the stage never got too big for that young man he never i mean you think about the hostile conditions that he had to play under and the fact that he was getting new players every week every week he had a different player on the team every week the offensive line was changing every week he had a different receiver he was throwing to it feels like
- 1:10:43another running back to hand off to,
- 1:10:46it felt like.
- 1:10:47He had so much,
- 1:10:48but he stayed consistent.
- 1:10:50And that's all that matters at the end of the day.
- 1:10:53I think he should win Rookie of the Year.
- 1:10:56And I think,
- 1:10:57with that being said,
- 1:10:58if I was giving out MVP of the team for the season,
- 1:11:04it will go to Tyler Shuck.
- 1:11:05Tyler Shuck is the MVP of the 2025 NFL season for the New Orleans
- 1:11:12Saints.
- 1:11:13But that's it.
- 1:11:15That's it for the Saints this season.
- 1:11:17I'm happy.
- 1:11:20I'm hopeful.
- 1:11:22Despite we ended on a loss and even worse against Atlanta,
- 1:11:28I never walked away from an Atlanta loss feeling this good.
- 1:11:32And
- 1:11:33I feel hopeful.
- 1:11:35I see the promised land.
- 1:11:38I see the land of milk and honey.
- 1:11:40And I think that we are done.
- 1:11:42just pieces away and now it's not going to be easy there's a lot of pieces you know that we have to fill in you know a lot of gaps that we have to fill in here but i think the saints are in a position to fill those gaps i think that um our cap
- 1:12:00situation puts us in a good position our draft positioning puts us in a good position and so the the future is bright the future is bright uh
- 1:12:12Kudos to Kelly Moore on this season.
- 1:12:15As much as I wanted to strangle him early on,
- 1:12:18now I just want to wrap my arms around him,
- 1:12:20give him a hug,
- 1:12:21on a good job.
- 1:12:24Brandon Staley as well.
- 1:12:26Brandon Staley's defense looks like it's geared up to be something special.
- 1:12:33If he can get the pieces that he wants on his team,
- 1:12:36that he needs on his team,
- 1:12:38and for it to work in the way that he sees it fitting,
- 1:12:42This is going to be a scary team because that defense is a top 10 D.
- 1:12:45I think the Saints finished number nine overall defensively with this defense,
- 1:12:52with these pieces,
- 1:12:53you know,
- 1:12:54with old man Demario Davis and
- 1:12:57Cam Jordan with,
- 1:13:01Lord have mercy,
- 1:13:03Justin Reed,
- 1:13:04no relation,
- 1:13:05thank God.
- 1:13:07What a disappointment,
- 1:13:09Justin Reed did not,
- 1:13:10he does not.
- 1:13:11cut the mustard for me but even with all that with losing uh blackman early on you know uh with your corners not really playing up to their potential you know alante taylor he's
- 1:13:26so on and off you know uh kool-aid same way he he'll he'll get burnt but he'll come back and get you but it's it's hot and cold um over there but even with that
- 1:13:40The Saints never allowed a
- 1:13:43300-yard passer all season long.
- 1:13:47The Saints never allowed a
- 1:13:52100-yard plus,
- 1:13:52I think.
- 1:13:53Maybe once,
- 1:13:55but I'm a
- 1:13:57100-yard rusher,
- 1:13:57I'm trying to say.
- 1:13:59But I'm trying to remember.
- 1:14:02I don't think so.
- 1:14:03If they did,
- 1:14:03it was once or twice.
- 1:14:05But
- 1:14:06Saints defense really played.
- 1:14:09Saints defense came to.
- 1:14:10Saints defense is the reason why we had chances in those 11 losses that we had because it wasn't the defense the reason why we lost those games.
- 1:14:22It never was.
- 1:14:25I can think of the defense of reasons why we won,
- 1:14:30but never why we lost.
- 1:14:31And so,
- 1:14:33Brandon Staley,
- 1:14:34I tip my hat to you as well.
- 1:14:37The future is bright.
- 1:14:38And so,
- 1:14:39I hope.
- 1:14:40that the Saints can build off of this,
- 1:14:42and that's all you can do.
- 1:14:44The foundation has been laid.
- 1:14:46We have our quarterback.
- 1:14:48We have young pieces on defense.
- 1:14:50We have a few young pieces on offense that we can build around.
- 1:14:55So
- 1:14:57I can't wait to see what's ahead.
- 1:14:59I would like to know from the Who Dat Nation,
- 1:15:02shout out,
- 1:15:03what do you,
- 1:15:04or should I say,
- 1:15:05how do you feel about the 2025 season and how do you think the 2026 season will go?
- 1:15:13Do you think that we're going to get a repeat of this year's out?
- 1:15:17put or do you are you feeling like me are you hopeful are you hopeful that the saint uh can come back and take back the division that was ours for so many years uh we're
- 1:15:33close we are very very close look how close we are now this season and we were nowhere near our best yeah i can't help but be hopeful but i want to know your thoughts your
- 1:15:47feelings and your predictions email the show kbradiopodcast at gmail.com you can also search for the show on all social media platforms just search for the kb radio network also don't forget about youtube subscribe to the kb radio network channel and like this video if you don't mind don't forget about the five stars the reviews and sharing this show if you're listening on apple podcast spotify our heart radio wherever you are currently listening
- 1:16:15to the Who That Say podcast here on the KB Radio Network.
- 1:16:19Everybody,
- 1:16:19thank you for joining me for this recap of the 2025 New Orleans Saints football season.
- 1:16:29The Saints ended the year
- 1:16:3211, or I wish,
- 1:16:346-11.
- 1:16:366-11,
- 1:16:38but a hopeful
- 1:16:396-11.
- 1:16:42To the Who That Nation,
- 1:16:44happy...
- 1:16:44Happy New Year.
- 1:16:46Have a blessed New Year.
- 1:16:49And to my New Orleans Saints,
- 1:16:51thank you for finishing this season strong,
- 1:16:55playing hard,
- 1:16:56and showing that we are the most resilient team for the most resilient city.
- 1:17:04All I got to say until next season is who that?