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A hamstring injury to New Orleans Saints cornerback Isaac Yiadom will sideline him for this afternoon’s Week 5 game against the New York Giants. Expected to take Yiadom’s place in the lineup is Quincy Riley, a rookie fourth round draft choice. The inexperienced Riley faces a big test, but the loss of Yiadom might not be as big as what you’d expect for the New Orleans defense.
Yiadom’s defensive snaps had decreased in each of the last four weeks, from 66 on opening day to 38, 24, and finally 12 against the Buffalo Bills last week before getting injured. There was a reason for the decreasing playing time. Over those four games, he gave up an infuriating 92.9% completion percentage when targeted. He allowed 13 completions on 14 throws in man coverage for over 12 yards per catch, not breaking up a single pass on the year while also committing a few costly penalties.
The Saints defense has struggled against the pass as a whole. They rank a respectable 13th in passing yardage surrendered. However, New Orleans is among the worst in the league in touchdown passes allowed (9) while only recording 1 interception as opposing quarterbacks have completed over 71% of their attempts. Yiadom has been the biggest coverage liability, but second-year corner Kool-Aid McKinstry and Alontae Taylor must both do a better job at controlling opposing wideouts.
Enter Quincy Riley, who will see his first significant defensive action of the season. He’s only played a total of 42 defensive snaps through four games, with all of those in the last two weeks, forcing a fumble in a Week 3 loss at Seattle and recording 4 tackles against Buffalo. Riley was the first cornerback off the board in Day 3 of the draft this spring and the 13th corner selected overall. After starting his collegiate career at Middle Tennessee State, Riley transferred to Louisville in 2022. Over his last three years with the Cardinals, he’d have 8 interceptions and 27 pass breakups. His 13 passes defensed in 2024 led the ACC.
Riley has the natural abilities of a potential top-tier man coverage corner. While his zone awareness is still developing, he showed excellent vision and ball skills in college. The Saints and defensive coordinator Brandon Staley hope that those abilities develop quickly in the NFL. Today, New Orleans faces off against the Giants and rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart. New York ranks 17th in passing production, but will be without top wideout Malik Nabers for the rest of the year. However, the Giants still have a dangerous trio of receivers with Wan’Dale Robinson, Darius Slayton, and Jalin Hyatt. McKinstry, Taylor, and Riley must take the option of easy throws away from Dart, perhaps forcing him into critical mistakes.
Rookie safety Jonas Sanker, a Round 3 choice, had a breakout performance last week against the Bills with an interception and 3 passes broken up. It’s been a quiet year for the 2025 Saints rookie draft class, with only first round left tackle Kelvin Banks making a weekly impact and Sanker’s emergence last week. Quincy Riley now gets his turn. Dart and the Giants will likely target Riley often, but if he responds well than it could begin to turn around the fortunes of a New Orleans secondary that’s struggled to this point.
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