The New Orleans Saints (5-10) are set to face the Tennessee Titans (3-12) on Sunday afternoon in Nashville.
The Saints are on fire, winning their last three games. Last week, the Black and Gold cruised past the New York Jets in a 29-6 victory. In the win, players such as Taysom Hill and Cam Jordan reached personal and historical milestones.
Much like New Orleans, Tennessee started the season slowly, going 1-11 through its first 12 games. Since then, they’ve won two out of their last three, including a 26-9 win over the Chiefs last week.
Kickoff between New Orleans and Tennessee from Nissan Stadium is set for noon on Sunday, December 28th.
SEASONS ENDING
There’s more bad news on the injury report for the Black and Gold. Running back Devin Neal and wide receiver Devaughn Vele’s seasons ended before last week’s game when they were put on IR. This week, the Saints announced that tight end Foster Moreau will also go on injured reserve.
With that news, New Orleans elevated rookie tight end Moliki Matavao, as well as wide receiver Ronnie Bell and Treyton Welch. This comes with other players like Alvin Kamara and Mason Tipton, either being questionable or already unavailable for Sunday’s game.
Tennessee also lost some players ahead of this week 17 matchup, with depth pieces in OLB and former LSU Tiger Ali Gaye and wide receiver Bryce Oliver going on IR. The Titans only have a couple of other players out, with a few more previously having their seasons come to an end due to injury, such as Calvin Ridley and L’Jarius Sneed.
KEEPING THE WIN STREAK ALIVE
The start of the 2025 season didn’t go over well for the Saints. They were 1-8 and then 2-10, 13 weeks into the season, eliminating them from playoff contention. Since then, New Orleans has gone on a run.
Through the last three weeks, the Saints have won three games in a row to elevate them to a 5-10 record. The last time New Orleans won three straight was week 15 through 17 in the 2022 season. That Dennis Allen-led group beat the Falcons, Browns, and Eagles in the stretch.
If the Black and Gold get a fourth consecutive win on Sunday, that would be the first time for New Orleans since 2020, when Drew Brees was still suiting up. The Saints won nine in a row in that stretch.
BATTLE OF THE BAD
Neither offense will be recognized for its season-long outputs. There’s only been one time this season where either team has scored 30 or more points, and that was the Titans in week 14 when they beat the Cleveland Browns 31-29. The closest the Saints got to putting up at least 30 points in a game was last week when they put up 29 versus the Jets.
Both teams also rank near the bottom in offensive yards per game. Tennessee sits 31st with 258.9 average yards; the only team worse is the Raiders. New Orleans doesn’t rank much higher, though, sitting 26th with 304.5 yards a game. By proxy, the Saints and Titans are also both bottom five in the league in passing and rushing.
This will also be a battle of rookie quarterbacks. Tennessee’s Cam Ward was the first overall pick in this past draft and has started all season. Tyler Shough was taken 40th overall in the second round and has seven starts under his belt.
SERIES RECORD: Titans lead 9-7-1
2023: Saints 16 – Titans 15
2021: Titans 23 – Saints 21
2019: Saints 38 – Titans 28
2015: Titans 34 – Saints 28 OT
2011: Saints 22 -Titans 17
STAT LEADERS:
Saints
Tyler Shough: 176-265, 1,792 Yards, 7 TD, 5 INT
Alvin Kamara: 131 Carries, 471 Yards, 1 TD
Chris Olave: 92 Catches, 1,044 Yards, 8 TD
Carl Granderson: 8.5 Sacks
Demario Davis: 131 Tackles (63 Solo)
Kool-Aid McKinstry: 3 INT
Charlie Smyth: 9-of-11 Field Goals, Long of 56, 7-of-7 PAT
Titans
Cam Ward: 299-497, 2,866 Yards, 13 TD, 7 INT
Tony Pollard: 210 Carries, 949 Yards, 5 TD
Chig Okonwo: 51 Catches, 503 Yards, 1 TD
Jeffrey Simmons: 9 Sacks
Cedric Gray: 144 Tackles (85 Solo)
Cody Barton: 3 INT
Joey Slye: 24-of-30 Field Goals, Long of 57, 23-of-34 PAT
INJURY REPORT:
Saints
Bryan Bresee, DT, Knee, Out
Alvin Kamara, RB, Knee/Ankle, Out
Zaire Mitchell-Paden, TE, Knee, Out
Cesar Ruiz, G, Ankle, Out
Nathan Shepherd, DT, Ankle/Knee, Questionable
Mason Tipton, WR, Groin, Questionable
Chris Olave, WR, Back, Questionable
Asim Richards, OT, Ankle, Probable
Tyler Shough, QB, Hip, Probable
Charlie Smyth, K, Illness, Questionable
Titans
Marcus Harris, CB, Knee, Out
Jalyn Armour-Davis, CB, Achilles, Questionable
Gunnar Helm, TE, Toe, Questionable
Sebastian Joseph-Day, DE, Calf, Questionable
Oluwafemi Oladejo, OLB, Fibula, Out
Kevin Zeitler, G, Groin, Questionable
Julius Chestnut, RB, Back, Probable
Cedric Gray, LB, Concussion, Probable
Jalyen Harrell, OLB, NIR-Personal, Questionable
Micah Robinson, CB, Illness, Questionable