A career-best season for New Orleans Saints edge rusher Chase Young offered a sterling, but incomplete, puzzle. So the seven-year veteran has continued slotting in missing pieces this offseason, and his coaching staff couldn't be more pleased.
Young missed the first five games last year before stacking these totals: 10 sacks (career high), 11 tackles for loss (career high), four passes defensed (tied career high), three fumble recoveries (tied career high), a fumble returned for a touchdown (second of his career), 15 quarterback hits (second-most in his career), 38 tackles (second most) and two forced fumbles (tied for second most) in 12 games.
And at the conclusion of the Saints' mandatory minicamp on Wednesday, the former NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year completed what has been an outstanding offseason.
"I feel like he's gotten better from my exposure being with him for the last year-and-a-half now, just the growth and the preparation — the work ethic that he has shown through the offseason is really impressive," Saints coach Kellen Moore said. "This guy loves to work, he loves to work really hard. I think he has gotten better; you could see as the season went on he just kept getting better and I think this offseason has been a good indication of where he's going. The leadership that he has provided, the energy he provides. He's looking like he's getting better each and every day."
Young's finishing kick in 2025 included five sacks, seven quarterback hits, six tackles for loss, a fumble recovery for a touchdown and a pass defended in the final four games, three of them victories.
Much of it was attributable to the installation of defensive coordinator Brandon Staley's 3-4 defense and the move to edge rusher.
"Brandon's experience, and you look at his track record with the edge rushers at all the different spots that they've been — Chicago, Denver, L.A. (Rams), L.A. (Chargers), now here — I think him and (edges coach) Jay (Rodger) do an excellent job of teaming up coaching these edges and providing them with a bunch of tools, but also enough flexibility to (allow players) to let it go, let it loose and be able to attack off the edge," Moore said.
Staley evaluated Young as Rams outside linebackers coach in 2020, when Young was the No. 2 overall draft pick by Washington. He crossed paths with Young several times before joining Moore's staff last year, Young's second as a Saint. Staley and the Rams played at Washington in '20, and his first game as head coach of the Chargers was against Young and Washington in '21.
He knew of Young's early production and battles with injury (torn ACL in 2021, neck injury that required surgery in 2024).
"I was able to see him as a very young player and then when I got to the Niners (in '24 as assistant head coach/defense), he had just been with them in the Super Bowl," Staley said. "So, I got to see that jump as a player and then when I got here, one more year. I feel like I've been able to follow his career pretty closely.
"He's one of these guys who has just improved a lot later than what people maybe expected or whatever with him being the second overall pick and Defensive Rookie of the Year. He faced a lot of tough things that all pro players go through, and he was able to overcome them and still put himself in a position to be an impactful player. And I think what he did last year was take a much bigger step toward being a feature, premium player in this league.
"That's what he expects from himself, that's what we know he is and who he can be, and he gets to build on a really special season. We're excited about his progress, he just needs to stay the course."
Part of Young's course this offseason was taking on more of a leadership role on defense; linebacker and team captain Demario Davis signed with the Jets as an unrestricted free agent, and Saints all-time sack leader Cameron Jordan, another defensive captain, was absent until signing a one-year contract Tuesday.
"I think when you have a successful season and you're building, confidence comes from that and I think you can sense that from Chase," Moore said. "Also, when Cam wasn't around... there's a leadership void there for Chase, for Grando (Carl Granderson), for Chris Rumph — these guys that have been here, to help lead that group."
As much as Young has helped the group, he has helped himself by adding pieces to provide a more complete picture.
"Just the leadership aspect, the intangibles, he has taken a real jump there," Staley said. "And then within his game, just becoming a consistent all-around player. A playmaker in all phases of his game and taking pride in all phases of his game. He's been fun to coach, he continues to improve."
