The countdown continues as we are 99 days away from the New Orleans Saints season opener against the Arizona Cardinals. We’ll take this opportunity to highlight Chase Young who wears jersey number 99.
Young is entering his second year with New Orleans, and expectations for the edge rusher may be higher than they were last year. That’s saying something because there was hope, from the moment he was signed, for him to be the dynamic pass rusher the Saints have been missing for years.
That is the difference between 2024 and 2025. There’s no longer room for hoping Young is the dynamic pass rusher. He has to be that in 2025 after receiving a new contract.
Chase Young's first year with the Saints
Young was a strong pass rusher in his debut season with the Saints with one fatal flaw, sacks. It's a big flaw and dramatically impacts how Young's first campaign will be remembered. There weren't many who were better at getting to the quarterback in the NFL. Next Gen Stats credits Young with 73 quarterback pressures in 2024, a career high. His pressures made up 25.5 percent of the Saints team pressures. That was the fifth highest percentage by a single player.
Getting to the quarterback wasn't the problem, getting him down was. Despite his 73 pressures, Young only registered 5.5 sacks. Pressures impact the game for sure, but the sacks need to be present too.
Saints paid Young like a double digit sack artist
Young was clearly highly valuable to the Saints defense, so it makes sense to want to bring him back. They did so on a three-year contract worth $17 million per year. It's not ridiculous money, but it does warrant more production. Most edge rushers getting paid that amount have hit 10 sacks in a season. Young hasn't.
Once you get a bigger contract, the hope is out the door. Getting close to 10 sacks is the floor. Hitting double digits is the expectation. Young has clearly shown the ability to disrupt the passer, but in 2025, he'll have to show a greater ability to finish.