If the New Orleans Saints walk out of the draft with the same success they walked away from free agency with, Tyler Shough will be set up to have an even better second season and the Saints will turn into NFC South favorites. With that at stake, it's understandable why Yardbarker's Clark Dalton has the Saints as one of five teams under the most pressure in the NFL Draft.
Free agency featured the signing of Travis Etienne, David Edwards, Kaden Elliss and Ryan Wright. Etienne and Edwards were two of the best on the market at huge positions of need. Elliss is a defensive chess piece who can impact the run defense and pass rush. The first three signings have been heavily discussed, but Wright is flying under the radar. The Saints finally have a veteran punter they can trust to win the hidden yardage war.
How do you follow that up? Dalton believes the best route is to draft Carnell Tate and maximize Shough's ceiling. To Dalton, Tate is the best receiver prospect. The overarching stance, however, is to surround Shough with more talent. The approach has defined the offseason and should continue to do so in the draft. It doesn't have to be Tate. It could be Lemon or one of the top prospects in the second round. Just build around Shough!
Saints have to make strong finish, Tyler Shough's ascension mean something in 2026
The Saints, as a team, closed out the 2025 campaign extremely strong. They won four of their last five games, including the longest win streak since Sean Payton was the coach. The back half of the season was also defined Tyler Shough's rise. It's the reason the Saints are seemingly more aggressive with their roster building.
There are questions about the level of competition during that time frame. Two of those victories came against the Tennessee Titans and New York Jets. The other two came against the Buccaneers and Panthers. The latter two are divisional games against a playoff team and a fringe playoff team. Still, the NFC South isn't the strongest division, so even those wins will be understandably questioned.
Shough's performance is accepted as a rookie quarterback getting off to a hot start, but he has just as much to prove as the team. The Saints have to show they aren't just feasting on struggling teams. When the season rolls around, they'll have to win games against good teams if they want to become a playoff game.
Similarly, Shough has to dodge the sophomore slump. The fan base has rallied behind him, and now the pressure is on him to prove it is deserved. The mission only gets harder with half a year of tape out on him.
It may not be there fully from national media, but there are expectations for this team for the first time in a couple years. They have an exciting young quarterback, just had a strong close to the season and were aggressive in free agency. It's not "Super Bowl or bust" pressure, but it is pressure to be in the mix for a playoff spot.
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