Now that the full schedule for the New Orleans Saints has been released, the staff here at Canal Street Chronicles got together to make their initial set of week-by-week picks for the Saints 2026 season:
All of the staff believes the Saints will have a winning record in 2026, with picks for their final record ranging from 9-8 to 13-4. The Saints have a tough start to their schedule, with road trips to Detroit and Baltimore in Weeks 1 and 2. Most of the staff picked the Saints to start at least 1-1 in this stretch however, as the Lions and Ravens despite both having strong rosters did fail to make the playoffs last year. These first two games will give us a strong indication of how they may do the rest of the year. Fans should be happy with a split, but as long as they are competitive in both games and do not get blown out, I think they should feel optimistic regardless. We know the first two weeks can be a bit deceptive however (remember two years ago when the Saints started 2-0 and outscored their opponents 91-29 only to finish 5-12) but this year against two good teams on the road we should have a good feel for how well the Saints should expect to play the rest of the season.
The next few games are much easier however, as the Saints will play three straight home games against three non-playoff teams in Weeks 3-5. The entire staff predicted that the Saints will defeat the Las Vegas Raiders in the home opener and the Atlanta Falcons on Monday Night Football, but an improved Minnesota Vikings team in Week 5 might be a challenge even at home. The Saints then head to New York to face the Giants in a matchup of Tyler Shough vs. Jaxson Dart, a game most of us think they should win. After that they head to Paris to face the Pittsburgh Steelers in what will be a very important game, not just because it is an international game but because they may be at or around .500 at this point given how their schedule is formed. The majority of the staff believes the Saints should come out of Paris with a win, but now that Aaron Rodgers is officially back with the Steelers, they again should have playoff expectations this year.
The Saints come off their bye with a home game against the Cleveland Browns, one of four unanimously picked wins among the CSC staff, and then host the Panthers in their second division game of the year. A November game in Chicago is the only unanimously picked loss of the season, and games against the Bengals and Packers should prove to be no easier, but then the real season starts for the Saints. The Saints will play four division games in the last five weeks of the season, three of which are on the road. If they manage to have a winning record during these last five weeks, they will have a good chance to clinch the NFC South and return to the playoffs. It will not be easy though, as the NFC South will be one of if not the most competitive divisions in the NFL this year. Most of us here at Canal Street Chronicles think they can win it, but they will not have a lot of room for error and will need to be playing their best football at the end of the year.
