4 Kellen Moore Quotes that Stood Out after Saints

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New Orleans Saints head coach Kellen Moore spoke to the media after its 24-20 loss to theJacksonville Jaguars to open preseason play.

Moore was enthusiastic about his team’s performance despite the loss. Zach Wilson took a major step, the defense played lights out and everyone got a little better on Saturday.

Here are four important quotes Moore said after the game.

On Zach Wilson's command…

Aug 15, 2026; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Saints quarterback Zach Wilson (4) looks to throw against the Jacksonville Jaguars during the second quarter at Caesars Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Yeah, I thought Zach did a really good job. He continued what we've seen throughout training camp. I think our quarterbacks have been playing at a really high level. You know, it's a really, really talented group, but a group that's just getting better. I think they're all younger than you realize, plenty of growth in their futures, and so I thought Zach did a good job. And, you know, I thought Spencer did some good stuff.

He had a good drive there to get us in position, and I thought the quarterback role was two good things. And I was proud of Hunter, you know, hopping in there. There were some challenging first couple drives, and then he stuck with it and got us all the way down to the one-yard-line with a chance to go win the game. So, I'm proud of all three of those guys.

On whether or not Zach Wilson gets reps with the second team offense…

"We’ll continue to get these guys all these different reps," Moore said. “I think the world of our quarterback room. At the end of the day, I think it's as talented a group as ever been around. You know, I thought Spencer did some good things. He's continued a really good training camp. I think what Zach did today, but also through training camp he's just been getting better. And so I feel really good about this whole, entire group.

On the emergence of Martin Emerson Jr.

He's been coming together all of training camp. He's coming off a year where he wasn't able to play and coming off a season-ending injury. And to see his growth, I think this last week, he's been awesome. From team periods, to joint practice, to the preseason game I was just proud of his growth.

On the performance of the defense…

I was proud of that. Our defense gave up a drive, but then we got a turnover right there. I thought that was a great job. Jay Ford was the one who had that turnover, and JP (Jayden Price) had one as well.

One of the things I was proud of with our defense was that we had two short-field, almost sudden-change situations where they had a short distance to potentially score, and we forced three-and-outs and field goals each time.

Terry Joseph called our defense today, and I thought he did an outstanding job handling some of those circumstances.

Winners and Losers

Who were the biggest winners for the Saints in Saturday's first preseason game? Who were the biggest losers? Check out our thoughts here.

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