The New Orleans Saints have gotten off to a rough start in the 2025 NFL season. After a 20-13 loss at the hands of the Arizona Cardinals in Week 1, the Saints followed that up with another narrow loss to an NFC West opponent, this time to the San Francisco 49ers by a score of 26-21.
To make matters a bit more embarrassing for the Black and Gold, they lost both of these games at home, the second of which came against the 49ers' backup quarterback, Mac Jones. It felt like New Orleans had a chance to win either contest, but new head coach Kellen Moore and his team fell short.
Saints fans knew that this was going to be a bit of a rebuilding year, and for that reason, the fan base has been excited about the development of their young players and the 2025 draft class. Unfortunately, one of their draft picks from this past April is now out for the season.
Saints' third-round rookie Vernon Broughton out for season
On Monday, NFL Network's Mike Garafolo reported that rookie defensive tackle Vernon Broughton is expected to miss the rest of the 2025 NFL season with a hip injury. He is still getting multiple opinions to see if surgery is required, but his first campaign is now up in smoke after just two weeks.
Broughton was selected No. 71 overall out of Texas, but he fell behind a bit in the defensive tackle battle in New Orleans. He was inactive in Week 1 as he sat behind Bryan Bresee, Davon Godchaux, Nathan Shepherd and others, but he got his first opportunity in Week 2.
In 24 defensive snaps, Broughton earned a Pro Football Focus grade of 60.1, which was the seventh-best mark out of 17 Saints defenders. He flashed several times en route to three solo tackles in his NFL debut.
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Unfortunately, after just one game, however, Broughton's rookie campaign is already over. This is a devastating blow for him, the team and the fan base, who felt like the young player was just getting started.
Now, the Saints will have to rely on players like Jonah Williams, Jonathan Bullard, and Khristian Boyd for defensive tackle depth for the remainder of the season. Injured John Ridgeway III is expected to return at some point this season as well.
Ideally, Broughton gets the medical advice that he needs, and he makes a full recovery for the 2026 season. In the meantime, the Saints need to figure out a winning formula for this campaign under their first-year head coach.