Saints looking to once more play spoiler in NFC South race

There's not much for the New Orleans Saints (3-10) to play for over the final four games of the 2025 NFL season, but there is something the Saints can do on Sunday that would have a massive impact on the NFL playoff picture. 

New Orleans will host the NFC South-leading Carolina Panthers (7-6) on Sunday afternoon (4:25 p.m. ET, FOX) in hopes of sweeping the Panthers after earning a 17-7 victory on Nov. 9. 

"At the end of the day, it's getting back to neutral for both teams," Saints head coach Kellen Moore said in a news conference on Wednesday. "Other games happened in between that. These games will play out different. That's how these are."

Carolina took over the NFC South lead on Thursday following Tampa Bay's 29-28 loss to the Atlanta Falcons, which dropped the Bucs to 7-7 and behind the Panthers in the NFC South standings. 

And while all eyes will be on Carolina and Tampa Bay in the coming weeks — the Panthers and Bucs play twice over the final three weeks of the season — in the race to decide the NFC South, the Saints can keep playing spoiler. 

New Orleans will end its divisional schedule with a road trip against the rival Falcons. But Sunday's matchup gives the Saints an opportunity to further toy with the playoff hopes of another division rival in Carolina. 

What a win on Sunday would mean for the Saints

On Nov. 9, the Saints defeated the Panthers in a stunning upset one week after Carolina delivered a stunning upset win of its own against the Green Bay Packers. On Dec. 7, the Saints went to Tampa Bay and handed the Bucs their fourth loss in five games to further tighten the NFC South race. 

A win on Sunday wouldn't be remembered for all that long in New Orleans, but in Carolina, a road loss to the Saints could shape the season and the legacy of all involved with it as the Panthers try and get back to the playoffs for the first time since 2017.