3 Players To Watch In Saints' Week 1 Matchup With Cardinals

All eyes will be on the Saints this week...

Aug 23, 2025; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton watches New Orleans Saints quarterback Spencer Rattler (2) at Caesars Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images | Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images

The New Orleans Saints and first-year head coach Kellen Moore are finally ready to begin the regular season with a matchup against the Arizona Cardinals.

This contest should be a good one, but the Saints are expected to lose, according to multiple outlets. Still, New Orleans has a chance to pull off an upset if it can get solid production from a few players.

Who are the players to watch for the Saints' Week 1 matchup with the Cardinals?

OT Kelvin Banks Jr.

Kelvin Banks Jr. was the Saints' top draft pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, and the pick was under heavy fire for a while. But Banks has been dominant in the preseason.

He's going to need to carry that over to the regular season if the Saints want a chance to win this game against the Cardinals.

With a young quarterback under center, the Saints can't afford to let the edge rushers from Arizona live in the backfield. Banks can make the offense run a lot smoother if he can be flawless in pass protection in Week 1.

CB Kool-Aid McKinstry

Jul 28, 2025; Metairie, LA, USA; New Orleans Saints cornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry (4) shakes hands with linebacker Demario Davis (56) at Ochsner Sports Performance Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images | Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

For the Cardinals, all eyes are on second-year wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. Harrison is one of the best young wide receivers in football and a lot of experts and analysts believe he could be a breakout player for Arizona, beginning with a dominant performance in Week 1.

It'll be up to Kool-Aid McKinstry to make sure that doesn't happen.

McKinstry has been very impressive in training camp, but this is his first game as the true top cornerback at the NFL level. If he can handle Harrison and limit him to less than 40 yards, the Saints will be in a very good spot on defense.

QB Spencer Rattler

All eyes will be on Spencer Rattler this week. Every move he makes will be criticized. Every mistake will be highlighted as a reason why Moore made the wrong decision at quarterback.

It's going to be up to the second-year signal caller to prove his head coach correct in naming him the starter.

Rattler has flashed series' of ability in the preseason. He put together a few gutsy drives under center. But now the lights will be a little bit brighter, and the Saints will need Rattler to be at his best. The team won't win too many games if he can't put the pieces together this year.

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