Saints Year in Review: Nathan Shepherd turned in career-best year
· Yahoo Sports
When Kellen Moore was first hired as new coach of the New Orleans Saints last offseason, one of the first things he did was hire Brandon Staley as his defensive coordinator. There was no question of Staley's track record as a defensive coach. However, there were some concerns about him switching to more 3-4 looks out of the primary 4-3 scheme the Saints had used for years. Most of the players responded to the scheme changes with good years.
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One of those players was Nathan Shepherd, a veteran defensive lineman. Shepherd was originally a third round choice in the 2018 NFL draft out of Fort Hays State by the New York Jets. He spent five years with the Jets before being signed as a free agent by the New Orleans Saints during the 2023 offseason. Over his first two seasons in New Orleans, Shepherd had 5 sacks and 7 tackles for loss with 20 pressures and 14 QB hits. Here's a look at what Shepherd did in Brandon Staley's defense.
Nathan Shepherd Year in Review
- Position: Defensive tackle
- Age: 32
- Height: 6-feet, 4 inches
- Weight: 315 pounds
- NFL experience: 8 years (3 with Saints)
- 2025 season: 16 games (8 starts)
As expected, Shepherd was one of the down lineman starters when the Saints opened the regular season. His production was quiet to start the year, as he had 6 pressures but no sacks and just 1 tackle for loss in the first seven weeks. Shepherd got his first sack of the year in a Week 8 loss to Tampa Bay, a game he was also in on several big short yardage stops.
Like most of the rest of the New Orleans players, Shepherd turned it on over the last half of the season. Over the last nine games he'd have 3 sacks, 8 pressures, 3 of his 4 tackles for loss, and 7 QB hits. On the year, Shepherd played a career-high 696 defensive snaps, a career-best 67% of that unit's total. While he finished with just 3 sacks and 4 stops for loss, his 13 QB hits were third on the team and 14 pressures the highest of his career.
Last offseason, Shepherd signed a one-year contract extension that carries through the end of this year. He'll count a little under $6.9 million against the salary cap, a relative bargain for a defensive lineman who can play multiple roles across the front. However, a still-building New Orleans defensive line needs more production from Shepherd, especially as they are expected to add more pieces to the position.
This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: Saints Year in Review: Nathan Shepherd turned in career-best year