Shough's form and recent wins provided Saints a hopeful finish to 5th straight non-playoff season

METAIRIE, La. (AP) — Saints quarterback Tyler Shough talks like someone who is exceedingly confident about his future in New Orleans.

“I'm just excited to, one, kind of master the offense, but then also take some time, be able to experience Mardi Gras and kind of be out in the community with everybody,” Shough said Monday as Saints players packed up their lockers for the offseason. “I'm excited for crawfish season, for sure, and I've probably got to go on like a swamp tour or something.”

Although the Saints won just six games this season and missed the playoffs for a fifth straight year, Shough's play as a rookie helped infuse the franchise with optimism.

The Saints were 1-7 when first-year coach Kellen Moore decided to select Shough as the starter for the rest of this season. Shough won five of his nine starts, helped the Saints to their first four-game winning streak in five years and worked his way into discussions about being one of the AP Offensive Rookie of the Year candidates.

“I’m excited going forward; we’ve got a great quarterback,” said Saints leading receiver Chris Olave, who has one more year under contract and is seeking an extension this offseason. “It helps a lot with the bigger picture. It makes me want to stay here even more.”

Now Shough is in demand around town, with Mardi Gras parade clubs reaching out to see if he'd be a celebrity float rider — something former QB Drew Brees also did after his successful first season in New Orleans in 2006. Shough is all for it, but noted it could conflict with the expected birth of his and wife Jordan's first child next month.

“I think we're going to make it happen,” Shough said of parading down St. Charles Avenue, a famous thoroughfare lined with massive, old oak trees, stately homes and America's oldest, continuously operating street cars.

"I might be on St. Charles, on the float and then sprinting to the hospital," he said.

The Saints drafted Shough 40th overall out of Louisville, the highest pick the franchise has used on a QB since taking Archie Manning second overall in 1971.

The Saints are scheduled to pick eighth overall in this spring's draft, and now appear less likely to take a QB at that spot, given pressing needs at other positions including at receiver and running back.

The Saints fielded one of the better defenses in the NFL under coordinator Brandon Staley, a former Los Angeles Chargers head coach in his first season with New Orleans. The Saints ranked ninth in yards allowed (299.8 per game) and fourth in yards passing allowed (179.2 per game).

New Orleans' 45 sacks ranked 10th, with defensive ends Cameron Jordan and Chase Young each hitting the 10-sack mark.

The Saints' 10 fumble recoveries put them in a six-way tie for fourth most.

Two of the most productive members of the Saints' defense this season — Jordan and linebacker Demario Davis — are both 36 years old and not under contract for next season.

But both made it clear they want to play somewhere in 2026 — and prefer to stay in New Orleans.

“My production speaks for itself,” said Jordan, who led the club with 10 1/2 sacks and now has 132 in his 15-season career, which ranks second among active players and 17th all time.

Jordan said his wife, Nikki, has signed off on him prolonging his football career, as long as she gets the same percentage of his contract as his agent, Doug Hendrickson.

"She's earned it,” Jordan said, smiling.

Davis led the Saints with 143 tackles — 60 more than anyone else on the roster.

After Sunday's season finale in Atlanta, he said he fully expects to play next season. But where he ends up — as with Jordan — is somewhat out of his hands until teams start making offers.

Young's three-year, $51 million extension that began this season looks like a better deal for the Saints than it did when he missed the first five weeks of the season with a calf injury.

In 12 games, Young had a career-high 10 sacks. The former Washington Commanders first-round draft choice out of Ohio State also forced two fumbles and recovered three, returning one for his first touchdown since his rookie season in 2020.

“Just staying at it, staying disciplined," Young said when reflecting on this season. "At this point in my career — God willing I continue to be healthy — everything I set out to do I can still accomplish.”

Whether to bring back Jordan and Davis are but a couple of several key offseason decisions facing the Saints.

While 30-year-old Alvin Kamara is under contract for 2026, his future with the club is uncertain following an injury-filled season in which he finished with career lows of 471 yards and one TD rushing, and 186 yards and no TDs receiving, in 11 games.

Veteran starting defensive back Alontae Taylor, 27, and tight end Foster Moreau, 28, both are set to become free agents.

“If I end up going somewhere else, it's going to hurt,” said Taylor, a Saints second-round draft choice in 2022. “It'll be tough, but I have to make the best decision for my family.”

It's also unclear if Taysom Hill, a 35-year-old reserve QB who has been productive at multiple positions on offense and special teams, wants to continue playing. If he does, he also would be a free agent.

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New Orleans Saints defensive end Cameron Jordan talks to reporters after an NFL football game against the Atlanta Falcons, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

New Orleans Saints head coach Kellen Moore walks on the sideline in the first half of an NFL football game against the Atlanta Falcons, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

New Orleans Saints defensive end Chase Young (99) celebrates a turnover in the first half of an NFL football game against the Atlanta Falcons, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

New Orleans Saints linebacker Demario Davis (56) celebrates in the first half of an NFL football game against the Atlanta Falcons, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough (6) drops back to pass against the Atlanta Falcons in the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. has seized two sanctioned oil tankers linked to Venezuela in back-to-back actions in North Atlantic and Caribbean, officials revealed early Wednesday morning.

U.S. European Command announced the seizure of the merchant vessel Bella 1 for “violations of U.S. sanctions” in a social medial post. The U.S. had been pursuing the tanker since last month after it tried to evade a U.S. blockade on sanctioned oil vessels around Venezuela.

Then, Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem revealed that U.S. forces also took control of the tanker Sophia in the Caribbean in a social media post. Noem said both ships were “either last docked in Venezuela or en route to it.”

The U.S. military seized the Bella 1 and subsequently handed over control of it to law enforcement officials, said a U.S. official, who spoke to The Associated Press on Wednesday on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive military operations.

The ship was sanctioned by the U.S. in 2024 for allegedly smuggling cargo for a company linked to Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran. The U.S. Coast Guard attempted to board it in the Caribbean in December as it headed for Venezuela. The ship refused boarding and headed across the Atlantic.

During this time, the Bella 1 was renamed Marinera and flagged to Russia, shipping databases show. The U.S. official also confirmed that the ship's crew had painted a Russian flag on the side of the hull.

Earlier Wednesday, open-source maritime tracking sites showed its position as between Scotland and Iceland, traveling north. The U.S. official also confirmed the ship was in the North Atlantic.

U.S. military planes have flown over the vessel, and on Tuesday a Royal Air Force surveillance plane was shown on flight-tracking sites flying over the same area.

Russia’s Foreign Ministry said before the seizure that it was “following with concern the anomalous situation that has developed around the Russian oil tanker Marinera.”

The ministry’s statement, which was carried by the official Tass news agency, added that “for several days now, a U.S. Coast Guard ship has been following the Marinera, even though our vessel is approximately 4,000 km from the American coast.”

In a post to social media, U.S. European Command confirmed that the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Munro tracked the ship ahead of its seizure “pursuant to a warrant issued by a U.S. federal court.”

The military command went on to say that the seizure supported President Donald Trump’s proclamation on targeting sanctioned vessels that “threaten the security and stability of the Western Hemisphere.” The tanker’s seizure comes just days after U.S. military forces conducted a surprise nighttime raid on Venezuela’s capital of Caracas and captured President Nicolás Maduro and his wife.

In the wake of this raid, officials in Trump's Republican administration have said that they intended to continue to seize sanctioned vessels connected to the country.

“We are enforcing American laws with regards to oil sanctions,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on NBC on Sunday. “We go to court. We get a warrant. We seize those boats with oil. And that will continue."

A local walks past a mural featuring oil pumps and wells in Caracas, Venezuela, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)

A government supporter holds an image of President Nicolas Maduro during a women's march to demand his return in Caracas, Venezuela, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026, three days after U.S. forces captured him and his wife. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)