Saints Re-Sign Safety In First Major Offseason Move

The New Orleans Saints made their first big move of the offseason on Tuesday and it was a good one.

The Saints announced that the team has signed safety Julian Blackmon to a one-year extension for the 2026 season.

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"New Orleans Saints Executive Vice President/General Manager Mickey Loomis announced today that the club has signed safety Julian Blackmon to a one-year contract extension," the Saints announced. "Blackmon, 6 feet, 202 pounds, is a six-year NFL veteran who was originally selected in the third round (85th overall) by the Indianapolis Colts out of Utah in the 2020 NFL Draft. In six seasons with the Colts (2020-24) and Saints (2025), the Layton, Utah native has played in 67 regular season games with 63 starts and has recorded career totals of 300 tackles (224 solo), 1.5 sacks, 10 interceptions, including one returned for a touchdown, 22 pass breakups, two forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries and seven special teams tackles.

The Saints made a good move

Oct 26, 2025; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Sean Tucker (44) runs for a gain past New Orleans Saints safety Jonas Sanker (33) and safety Julian Blackmon (28) during the second quarter at Caesars Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images | Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

"In one postseason contest in 2020 as a rookie, he started the game for Indianapolis and had five solo stops.In 2025, Blackmon started the season opener for the Black and Gold and recorded seven tackles (four solo) and one pass breakup before being sidelined for the remainder of the season with a shoulder injury. In 2024, Blackmon opened all 16 games he played in for the Colts and recorded 86 tackles (62 solo), a split sack, three interceptions, four pass breakups and one fumble recovery to tie for the team lead in picks and takeaways (four)."

This arguably is the right move. The Saints brought Blackmon in to help replace Tyrann Mathieu, but he only was able to play in one game in 2025. The Saints' safety room is loaded heading into the offseason and arguably is all set with Blackmon, Jonas Sanker, and Justin Reid.

Last offseason, there was an argument that Blackmon was the top overall safety available in free agency based on his talent and youth -- he's still just 27 years old. Now, the Saints' defense gets a boost early on in the offseason.

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