Saints to begin 2026 NFL season with major test in Week 1

Moore has New Orleans trending upward, and the Saints will quickly gauge where it stands in the NFC's pecking order with a road date against one of the conference's projected top teams. The two teams last played in 2023, a 33-28 Lions win in New Orleans. They haven't played in Detroit since 2020, a 35-29 Saints win.

In 11 games (nine starts), Shough completed 67.6 percent percent of his pass attempts for 2,384 yards, 10 touchdowns and six interceptions. He finished second in Associated Press Offensive Rookie of the Year voting.

Despite his promising rookie season, the Saints finished No. 28 in scoring a season ago, averaging 18 points per game. But the front office worked aggressively to improve the unit during the offseason, signing guard David Edwards (four years, $61M) and running back Travis Etienne (four years, $48M) in free agency and selected wide receiver Jordyn Tyson at No. 8 overall in the first-round of the 2026 NFL Draft.

Improved weaponry and protection should only help Shough, who could face the Lions at the right time. Safety Brian Branch tore his Achilles in early December of last season, putting him in jeopardy to miss the 2026 season-opener. General manager Brad Holmes recently described Branch and safety Kerby Joseph, who dealt with a knee injury last season, as "heading in the right direction," but it's far too soon to know what that means for early September.

New Orleans can get an early statement win by going to Detroit and leaving with a victory. Either way, we'll learn something about the Saints, for better or worse.