Cardinals at Saints: Week 16 preview, odds and injuries

Week 16 · Sun, Dec 27 · Caesars Superdome1 PM ET

at1 PMET · Fox

At a glanceUpdated Nov 10, 2026, 5:53 PM ET

The Arizona Cardinals (3-6) visit the New Orleans Saints (3-5) on Sun, Dec 27, 1 PM ET at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, LA (Week 16, 2026 season), on Fox.

When and where is Cardinals vs Saints?

Sun, Dec 27, 1 PM ET at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, LA. TV: Fox.

Who is injured for Cardinals vs Saints?

Cardinals: Bam Knight (RB, questionable, concussion), Hjalte Froholdt (C, questionable, concussion), Jayden Williams (OT, questionable, knee), Jon Gaines II (G, questionable, ankle) and Roy Lopez (DT, questionable, toe). Saints: Erik McCoy (C, doubtful, biceps) and CJ Donaldson (RB, questionable, shoulder).

Cite this page

Pigskin Nightly, “Cardinals at Saints: Week 16 preview”, https://pigskinnightly.com/games/2026-12-27-ari-at-no (updated 2026-11-10).

How we calculate Plain-text version Report an error

Regular season through week 15 · rank out of 32

Where this game will be decided

1Saints red-zone defense vs Cardinals red-zone offense
The Saints' red-zone defense ranks 10th in red-zone touchdown rate (49% allowed, 35 trips faced) and faces a Cardinals red-zone offense ranked 30th (44%, 34 trips).
30thARI offense20 spots apart10thNO defense
2Cardinals run defense vs Saints run game
The Cardinals' run defense ranks 7th in EPA per rush (-0.14 allowed, 243 rushes faced) and faces a Saints run game ranked 24th (-0.13, 187 rushes).
24thNO offense17 spots apart7thARI defense
3Cardinals ball security vs Saints takeaway defense
The Cardinals' ball security ranks 8th in turnovers per game (0.9 giveaways a game, 9 games) against a Saints takeaway defense ranked 28th (0.9 takeaways a game, 8 games).
8thARI offense20 spots apart28thNO defenseSmall sample, read with care Why sample size matters

When the Cardinals have the ballEdge ARI · +14 ranks

ARI dropback offenseEPA per dropbackNO pass defense

24th-0.02386 dropbacks

+0.10 allowed304 dropbacks faced22nd

ARI run gameEPA per rushNO run defense

14th-0.06214 rushes

ARI +14

-0.02 allowed204 rushes faced28th

Dropbacks include sacks and scrambles; rushes are designed runs. What EPA measures.

When the Saints have the ballEdge ARI · +17 ranks

NO dropback offenseEPA per dropbackARI pass defense

21st+0.02342 dropbacks

NO +10

+0.25 allowed292 dropbacks faced31st

NO run gameEPA per rushARI run defense

24th-0.13187 rushes

ARI +17

-0.14 allowed243 rushes faced7th

Third downEdge ARI · +14 ranks

ARI third-down offensethird-down conversion rateNO third-down defense

16th39.0%136 third downs

ARI +14

49.5% allowed103 third downs faced30th

NO third-down offensethird-down conversion rateARI third-down defense

8th43.5%115 third downs

NO +14

43.0% allowed107 third downs faced22nd

Conversions are third-down snaps that gained a first down or scored.

Red zoneEdge NO · +20 ranks

ARI red-zone offensered-zone touchdown rateNO red-zone defense

30th44%34 trips

NO +20

49% allowed35 trips faced10th

NO red-zone offensered-zone touchdown rateARI red-zone defense

6th66%29 trips

NO +20

69% allowed32 trips faced26th

A trip is a drive with at least one snap inside the opponent's 20; the rate is trips that ended in an offensive touchdown. Small samples swing fast here.

Explosive playsEdge ARI · +15 ranks

ARI big-play offenseexplosive-play rateNO defense against big plays

31st5.8%600 plays

10.6% allowed508 plays faced27th

NO big-play offenseexplosive-play rateARI defense against big plays

29th7.0%529 plays

ARI +15

9.2% allowed535 plays faced14th

Completions of 20+ yards and runs of 10+, per snap. Definition.

Pressure & sacksNo big edge

ARI pass protectionsack rateNO pass rush

15th6.0% sacked386 dropbacks

7.6% of dropbacks304 dropbacks faced8th

NO pass protectionsack rateARI pass rush

14th5.8% sacked342 dropbacks

6.5% of dropbacks292 dropbacks faced15th

Sacks per dropback. The public play-by-play has no pressure charting, so this is the sack side of it only.

TurnoversEdge ARI · +20 ranks

ARI ball securityturnovers per gameNO takeaway defense

8th0.9 giveaways a game9 games

ARI +20

0.9 takeaways a game8 games28th

NO ball securityturnovers per gameARI takeaway defense

27th1.6 giveaways a game8 games

0.8 takeaways a game9 games30th

Interceptions and lost fumbles on offensive snaps, per game. Turnover rates are among the least stable numbers in football.

AbsencesARI 0 · NO 1 regulars out or doubtful

Cardinals5 listed

0 of them are regulars ruled out or doubtful (60%+ of their unit's snaps across 3+ weeks on the field).

QHjalte FroholdtC100% offense · 9 wk
QJon Gaines IIG90% offense · 6 wk
QJayden WilliamsOT48% offense · 8 wk
QRoy LopezDT45% defense · 9 wk
QBam KnightRB23% offense · 8 wk

Saints2 listed

1 of them is a regular ruled out or doubtful (60%+ of their unit's snaps across 3+ weeks on the field).

DErik McCoyC97% offense · 8 wk
QCJ DonaldsonRB26% offense · 7 wk

Snap share is the average of the weeks each player was on the field this season. Full injury report ↓

Rest & travelSame rest · ARI travels 1,324 mi

AwayCardinals

7days since last game

1,324miles to get here

1time zones

Last: Sun wk 15 vs NYJ · 10,871 mi flown this season

Normal week

Rest edgeEvensame restTravel gap 1,324 mi

HomeSaints

7days since last game

0miles · home

0time zones

Last: Sun wk 15 at TB · Tampa · 15,807 mi flown this season

Normal week

League splits for these situations ↓

Sample: ARI 9 games, 600 offensive and 535 defensive plays · NO 8 games, 529 offensive and 508 defensive plays. Rank 1 is the best offense or the best defense in each stat. Keys are the largest rank gaps (12+ spots) between an offense and the defense it faces, one per stat. Ranks are not schedule-adjusted.

Season to date · rank out of 32