Saints extend winning streak to three while Jets offense collapses in 29-6 rout

The trajectory of two struggling franchises crossed paths at the Caesars Superdome on Sunday, and they continued in opposite directions. The New Orleans Saints, despite a roster battered by injuries, are suddenly playing their most inspired football of the season. The New York Jets, meanwhile, look like a team ready for the offseason to arrive.

New Orleans dominated the trenches and the scoreboard in a 29-6 victory, improving to 5-10 with their first three-game winning streak since 2022. For New York, dropping to 3-12 was simply another chapter in a season defined by offensive ineptitude and coaching turmoil. While the playoffs remain a distant dream for the Saints, the culture shift over the last month is palpable. For the Jets, the questions regarding the future of their quarterback and coaching staff are only getting louder.

Here are the major takeaways from a game that showcased a suffocating Saints defense and a Jets team searching for answers.

Cam Jordan cements his legacy in a dominant defensive showing

The story of this game was the relentless pressure generated by the New Orleans defensive front. The Saints sacked Jets rookie quarterback Brady Cook eight times, completely dismantling the New York game plan. At the center of this destruction was veteran defensive end Cameron Jordan.

Jordan turned back the clock with a two-sack performance that carried significant historical weight. With his second takedown of Cook late in the second quarter, Jordan reached 130 career sacks, surpassing Pro Football Hall of Famer Rickey Jackson to take sole possession of 17th place on the NFL’s all-time sack list.

It was a moment of validation for the 35-year-old, who has faced questions about his production this season. By adding Cook to his list, Jordan has now sacked 51 different quarterbacks in his career. Beyond the personal accolades, his energy permeated the entire unit. Chase Young, Alontae Taylor, Jonah Williams, Chris Rumph and Isaiah Stalbird all joined the sack party in the second half. Nathan Shepherd contributed a massive play in the fourth quarter, executing a strip-sack that Young recovered to seal the Jets’ fate.

The Jets offense is broken at the point of attack

For the New York Jets, Sunday was a harsh indictment of their offensive line and their ability to protect a young quarterback. Brady Cook never looked comfortable. He completed 22 of 35 passes for 188 yards, but those numbers are misleading. He was under siege from the first snap to the last.

The Jets looked sloppy and undisciplined, racking up penalties that stalled drives before they could start. The inability to establish the run with Breece Hall, who was held to 54 yards on 16 carries, allowed the Saints pass rush to pin their ears back and hunt.

Cook committed turnovers on consecutive drives that sucked the life out of the visitors. Safety Jonas Sanker read Cook’s eyes perfectly in the fourth quarter to snag an interception, and the fumble caused by Shepherd highlighted a lack of pocket awareness that often plagues rookies under pressure. With only two field goals to show for their efforts, the Jets have to take a hard look at their protection schemes and personnel heading into the final two weeks of the season.

Shough and Olave find rhythm despite missing stars

New Orleans entered this game without star running back Alvin Kamara and key offensive linemen like Cesar Ruiz, yet the offense produced its most efficient outing of the year through the air. Quarterback Tyler Shough stepped up in a massive way, completing 32 of 49 passes for a career-best 308 yards.

Shough’s primary target was Chris Olave, who continues to be one of the few bright spots in a difficult season. Olave hauled in 10 catches for 148 yards and two touchdowns, breaking the 1,000-yard mark for the third time in his young career. He is now just the fifth player in franchise history to record at least 90 catches in a single season.

The connection between Shough and Olave was evident early, but it was the creativity of the play-calling that stood out. Taysom Hill, the Saints’ perpetual X-factor, threw a 38-yard touchdown pass to Olave late in the game, catching the Jets defense completely off guard. When an offense can lose its best player in Kamara and still put up nearly 412 total net yards, it speaks to the depth and preparation of the unit.

The high cost of a physical victory

While the mood in New Orleans is lighter with the winning streak, the physical toll of this game was heavy. The Saints lost tight end Foster Moreau to an ankle injury in the third quarter, but the silence in the Superdome was deafening when defensive tackle Bryan Bresee went down.

Bresee left the game with what was described as a scary knee injury. In a season where the Saints are playing for pride and evaluation for 2026, losing a cornerstone piece of the defensive interior is a brutal blow. The emotions on the sideline were visible, a stark reminder of the violence of the sport. As the Saints try to close out the season on a high note, the severity of Bresee’s injury will be a major storyline to monitor.

Special teams perfection keeps the Jets at bay

In a game where the offense moved the ball but occasionally stalled in the red zone, rookie kicker Charlie Smyth was the ultimate safety net. Smyth tied a club record by drilling all five of his field goal attempts, hitting from 35, 36, 39, 49, and 50 yards.

Smyth’s consistency allowed the Saints to build a lead steadily, demoralizing a Jets defense that actually played decent football in stretches but was constantly put in bad positions by their own offense.

Furthermore, Taysom Hill’s impact wasn’t limited to his touchdown pass. He converted a crucial fake punt for a first down, keeping a drive alive and demoralizing the Jets special teams unit. It was the kind of aggressive, “play to win” mentality that has defined the Saints during this three-game resurgence.

For New York, the loss compounds the misery of a 3-12 campaign. They head home to face New England next week with more questions than answers. For New Orleans, the playoffs aren’t happening, but they are proving they haven’t quit on the season.