Saints left with major hole in secondary after latest injury

The New Orleans Saints are going to be looking for answers in their defensive secondary yet again.

They had signed Julian Blackmon in training camp after the news that safety Tyrann Mathieu was retiring came out, and Blackmon played every snap on defense in their 20-13 Week 1 loss to the Arizona Cardinals.

Blackmon hurt his shoulder somewhere in the process, though, and coach Kellen Moore said on Monday that the sixth-year NFL safety could very well miss the rest of the season.

The injury was noticed (more realistically felt) when Blackmon got home hours after the game.

"That's what adrenaline does to you," Moore said, according to Katherine Terrell of ESPN. "I mean, sometimes those things happen for these guys. There's a lot of juice and energy and games and you make big-time plays and everyone's sore after a football game. ... Sometimes it takes a little bit of time to realize what's soreness and what's an injury, and unfortunately, this is the way it went down for Julian."

Blackmon notched seven tackles and a pass defended against the Cardinals, so his presence in the back end of the Saints' defense will be missed.

A 6-foot, 202-pound safety from Utah, he was selected 85th pick (third round) of the 2020 NFL Draft by the Indianapolis Colts. He spent five seasons in Indy, recording 300 tackles, 1.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, four fumble recoveries, 10 interceptions, 21 passes defended and one defensive touchdown. 

Blackmon, 27, was meant to be a veteran addition for the Saints who could make plays on the back end. Now they'll have to rely on former fifth-round pick Jordan Howden (who was inactive for Week 1) or rookie Jonas Sanker, who they selected out of Virginia in the third round of the 2025 NFL Draft with pick No. 93.