Not much has gone well for the New Orleans Saints during the 2025 campaign. And now things are going to get much worse after a devastating injury.
Starting center Erik McCoy is believed to have suffered a torn biceps against the Chicago Bears, via Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network. Once confirmed, McCoy will be ruled out for the remainder of the season.
Before suffering his injury, McCoy earned a 68.1 grade from Pro Football Focus, ranking 13th/49 centers. He was absolutely dominant against the pass, as his 82.7 pass blocking grade ranked first overall. Needless to say, McCoy's loss will be a major absence for the now 1-6 Saints.
Unfortunately for the center, injuries have been nothing new recently. He managed to make the Pro Bowl in 2024, however, McCoy played in just seven games due to an elbow injury. McCoy entered the year coming off of groin surgery.
While this will now be a lost year for the center, he is locked in with the Saints through the 2027 season. When healthy he will continue to be the team's offensive line building block. New Orleans invested back-to-back first-round picks on their tackles in Kelvin Banks and Taliese Fuaga. In a trio including McCoy, the Saints hope they'll have a formidable front for whoever is playing quarterback for the foreseeable future.
But for now, New Orleans will be without their starting center. It'll become even more for Alvin Kamara and company to gain yards on the ground, especially considering the Saints ranked 24th in rushing (101.1 yards per game) with McCoy in the lineup.
New head coach Kellen Moore has dealt with plenty of adversity in his first year with the Saints. And now he must continue his debut without his starting center.
