- 1 Detroit Lions vs New Orleans Saints: 14.5 sacks on one side, a second-year quarterback on the other
- 2 Detroit Lions: a complete offense and a pass rush that sets the standard
- 3 New Orleans Saints: upgraded roster and a dependable offensive line
- 4 NFL Pick Detroit Lions vs New Orleans Saints
- 5 First, a word on our free picks
- 6 No commitment from us
- 7 Information changes
- 8 Your role
- 9 Responsible gambling first
- 10 Legal age
- 11 About the images…
Detroit Lions vs New Orleans Saints: 14.5 sacks on one side, a second-year quarterback on the other 
Aidan Hutchinson racked up 14.5 sacks last season for Detroit, out of the 49 the Lions produced as a team. One player accounted for nearly 30% of the franchise’s defensive pressure.
Across the field, Tyler Shough enters his second season as New Orleans’ starter. The clash between that front and that quarterback is the central theme here.
Kickoff is set for Sunday, 13 September at 1:00 p.m. local time in Detroit. Ford Field hosts Week 1 of the 2026 season.
The Saints also spent the offseason building around their quarterback. Travis Etienne joins a backfield that already includes Alvin Kamara.
Detroit, meanwhile, has a new offensive coordinator, with John Morton moved on after just one season and Drew Petzing brought in. The talent is still there, but Week 1 can be messy when timing is off.
With Ford Field indoors, the weather won’t matter. Both offenses should get ideal conditions to throw the ball and get after it.
Detroit Lions: a complete offense and a pass rush that sets the standard 
The Lions can line up four offensive threats at once: Jared Goff, Jahmyr Gibbs, Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams. That’s enough to keep defenses guessing without forcing the quarterback into hero ball.
Gibbs is the hardest piece to contain. He makes a defense choose between loading the box and covering the pass, and usually leaves it stuck doing neither particularly well.
The addition of Isiah Pacheco offsets the departure of David Montgomery, who was sent to Houston this summer. Detroit still has a run game built to set a tone and drag people into a fight.
Defensively, Hutchinson’s numbers go well beyond sacks: 100 pressures, 35 quarterback hits, 64 hurries and 4 forced fumbles last season. He finished in the top five in the league in every one of those categories.
That sort of production changes the way this game gets played. Shough will have to get the ball out fast and can’t drift back in the pocket, or he’ll be in for a long afternoon.
The main watchpoint is the offensive transition. Petzing inherits a roster built to win now, but first outings under a new coordinator rarely look polished.
The battle may come down to how New Orleans handles the box. If the Saints back off to cover St. Brown and Williams, Gibbs gets favorable numbers to run against.
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New Orleans Saints: upgraded roster and a dependable offensive line 
Chris Olave caught 100 passes for 1,163 yards and 9 touchdowns last season. He remains the top target in an offense that will need touchdowns, not field goals, at Ford Field.
That’s simple math. Against an offense that can finish drives, settling for three turns a tight first half into a ten-point hole.
The Saints can point to a real strength up front. Kelvin Banks, their first-round pick in 2025, started all 17 games and gave up just 4 sacks across the season.
New Orleans will also be without Jordyn Tyson, its first-round pick in 2026, who is expected to miss several weeks with a hamstring injury. That shifts more of the load onto Olave and tight end Juwan Johnson.
The best answer to the pass rush may be the run game. Etienne and Kamara can work as receivers out of the backfield and force Detroit’s linebackers to defend laterally.
Dan Campbell himself praised the maturity Shough has shown heading into year two. When the opposing coach says that before Week 1, people tend to notice.
The Saints are chasing the NFC South title, which they have not won since 2020. The spending spree around the quarterback this summer says plenty about the target.
Red-zone execution should decide a lot for New Orleans. Kamara and Etienne can be used on the move or as receivers instead of being sent straight into a crowded front.
Projected Detroit Lions quarterback: Jared Goff
Projected New Orleans Saints quarterback: Tyler Shough
NFL Pick Detroit Lions vs New Orleans Saints
Our pick: Detroit to win, New Orleans to keep it close
New Orleans doesn’t need to win at Ford Field. It needs an offensive line that holds up, which Banks’ 4 sacks allowed in 17 games suggests it can, plus two red-zone touchdowns.
Detroit should get the job done, but this offense is still bedding in under Petzing, and the Saints arrive better equipped than they were in 2025. Our pick: Detroit to win, but New Orleans to cover the spread.
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