Saints lose 16-10 to Steelers in Paris, enter bye week at 2-5
PARIS
On Oct. 25, 2026, the New Orleans Saints lost 16-10 to the Pittsburgh Steelers at Stade de France, dropping their third one-score game of the season and entering the bye week with a 2-5 record. The contest was the NFL’s first regular-season game played in France. Senior writer John DeShazier reported the game on Oct. 25, 2026.
New Orleans benefited from two overturned first-half fumbles, including a play in which quarterback Tyler Shough fumbled after a hit by Steelers linebacker T.J. Watt and another on a run by Kendre Miller. Shough later connected with receiver Devaughn Vele on a 1-yard touchdown with 1:45 remaining in the second quarter for the Saints’ only touchdown of the game. Despite those reversals and that score, New Orleans failed to convert enough opportunities into points against Pittsburgh.
The Saints opened the third quarter with a 65-yard, 13-play drive that consumed 7:17, but the possession stalled when Shough’s pass to receiver Chris Olave was undercut and intercepted in the right flat by Steelers linebacker Payton Wilson. Wilson returned the interception 18 yards to the Pittsburgh 29, and the Steelers drove 51 yards to set up a 39-yard field goal with 14 seconds left in the quarter to take a 16-10 lead. That turnover swung momentum and proved decisive in a low-scoring game.
New Orleans’ two fourth-quarter drives ended with a missed 52-yard field goal by Daniel Carlson and a subsequent punt, allowing Pittsburgh to run out the final 5:52. Carlson’s miss was his fourth in 11 attempts this season. During the closing sequence, the Steelers converted a third-and-6 on an 8-yard run by quarterback Aaron Rodgers, a gain that exceeded the longest rushing play by any Saints back that afternoon.
Shough completed 30 of 38 passes for 278 yards with one touchdown and one interception, while his three rushing attempts totaled seven yards, the team high on the day. New Orleans managed only 18 rushing yards on 17 carries as the running game was effectively shut down. Defensive linemen Chase Young and Carl Granderson each recorded 1.5 sacks, giving Young seven sacks this season and Granderson 5.5. The Saints allowed Pittsburgh to convert 10 of 16 third-down attempts and yielded 148 rushing yards on 30 carries, issues that contributed to the defeat.
Pittsburgh’s go-ahead touchdown drive in the second quarter featured a 51-yard pass from Rodgers to receiver D.K. Metcalf on third-and-14 that set up a 4-yard scoring pass to tight end Darnell Washington over Saints cornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry. Carlson had earlier matched Pittsburgh’s opening-drive field goal with a 38-yarder in the second quarter. After the game, Saints coach Kellen Moore said, “We had our opportunities but ultimately they made a few more plays than us,” noting the small margins that decided the contest.
NFL Sports Blog Take
The loss in Paris underscored recurring problems for New Orleans: a limited running game, missed kicking opportunities and difficulty defending third downs. The Saints generated production through Shough’s passing, but turnovers and a critical third-quarter interception erased a long, time-consuming drive. Special teams factored into the outcome, with Carlson’s missed 52-yard attempt that would have tied the game late. Entering the bye week at 2-5, the Saints must address those areas to improve results when play resumes.