Quincy Riley’s name was the first Caesars Superdome public address announcer Mark Romig called when the New Orleans Saints’ defensive starters were introduced Sunday before kickoff.
Maybe someday, Riley’s name will be the last one, a spot reserved for fan favorites and face-of-the-franchise guys like Demario Davis, Cam Jordan, Alvin Kamara and Taysom Hill.
But for now, Riley is just fine with having his name called, period.
He's young, but he’s ready. That also holds true for several of his young teammates who are making an early impact. The Saints are rebuilding, and they are relying on their younger players to contribute right away. If Sunday’s 26-14 victory over the New York Giants is any indication, the Saints' youth movement is about as fast as Rasheed Shaheed was on his 87-yard touchdown reception.
“They brought us here to play football,” said Riley, a fourth-round draft pick in April. “So at the end of the day, it’s just playing football and getting adjusted to the different level of this game. Just taking roles and being a sponge around the vets, and they are just helping us be better every day.”
The Saints started four other rookies Sunday: left tackle Kelvin Banks, safety Jonas Sanker, undrafted right guard Torricelli Simpkins and undrafted punter Kai Kroeger.
If you need a better indication of the impact the young players had Sunday, look no further than the guys the Saints’ P.R. staff brought to the podium to speak to the media after the team’s first win since December.
Cornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry. 23 years old.
Safety Jordan Howden. 25 years old.
Quarterback Spencer Rattler, who just turned 25 last week.
And Shaheed, who at 27 was the old head among the guys standing in front of the microphone Sunday.
“They are understanding their role and doing their very best to make plays,” Shaheed said about the younger players. “You couldn’t ask them to do any more. I’m proud of the young guys. Their preparation is showing up on Sunday.”
It's not quite a total changing of the guard. Players in their 30s like Kamara, Davis and Jordan are still doing their share of the heavy lifting. But the shift is starting to happen right before your eyes.
Take third-year running back Kendre Miller, whose snap count has increased in every game this season.
“I feel like the coaches are starting to trust the younger guys,” Miller said. “We can’t lean on the older guys forever. We are going to have to step up at some point. I feel like they are slowly putting us out there, and we are progressing. We are just stepping up. We are just going to have to keep producing.”
They sure did their thing Sunday.
Miller’s 41 rushing yards (4.1 yards per carry) led the team.
McKinstry got his first career interception in the fourth quarter. Then he picked off another one five minutes later.
Sanker, maybe the most promising of all the rookies, recovered a fumble to go with his seven tackles.
Banks held his own against the Giants’ edge rushers to make sure Rattler never got sacked.
Riley held his own in pass coverage.
Isaiah Stalbird, an undrafted rookie in 2024, almost blocked a punt.
Stalbird pointed to the fingers on his right hand to show how much of the ball he tipped on the play.
He was oh so close.
And he feels these young Saints are oh so close to breaking through.
“It goes into the coaching staff and the preparation,” Stalbird said. “We’re in the NFL, so we’ve got to always be on our P’s and Q’s. If you ain’t, and you go out there and you’re looking stupid, you’re going to be out of a job. That’s the reality. So you can see that whoever we plug in, it’s not going to be a dropoff. Even when we took those losses, you could see our progress. When we had to make big plays today, we made them. That’s taking that next step. We’ve got a ton of potential.”
Stalbird was referring to the young players.
But those words should also apply to his young coach. Kellen Moore, who turned 37 in July, is the youngest coach in the NFL. He got his first career victory Sunday. Moore, in his typical laid-back fashion, didn’t do a whole lot of celebrating afterwards. The only difference in Moore was that the smile he usually wears was just a little bit bigger.
“He didn’t dance or anything, but hopefully we can get him to that level,” Stalbird said. “But he and his family are going to remember that game forever.”
There is still plenty of work to do, though. This was just one win over a struggling Giants team trying to find its way just like the Saints are. It was a much needed one though, especially for some of the younger players. Miller, for example, played on a college team that played in the national championship game his final season at TCU. He hasn’t won many games since then as a Saint.
“I feel like we won the Super Bowl in here,” Miller said. “I’m glad everybody is happy. We have that 1-0 mentality. Now we have to get another one next week.”
For Simpkins, who started in place of the injured Cesar Ruiz, this was a new experience. He had no idea what it’s like to win an NFL game before Sunday.
“It was very lit,” Simpkins said. “That’s how I want to keep it.”
The bright lights in the locker room weren't the only thing flashing Sunday.
The potential of the young stars flashed brightly, too.