Christen Miller is latest step in Saints' much-needed youth movement

Story by

John Sigler, Saints Wire

Sat, Apr 25, 2026 ·

2 min read

How does Christen Miller fit the New Orleans Saints defense? The former Georgia Bulldogs defensive lineman can occupy blockers from all across the interior, and with the Saints picking him in Round 2 of the 2026 NFL Draft, he'll be on the field sooner rather than later.

He'll be part of a youth movement that's been badly needed. The Saints had one of the NFL's oldest rotations at defensive tackle last season, with four of their five interior linemen to play 200-plus snaps being on the wrong side of 30:

Nathan Shepherd (32): 695 snaps across 16 games, 43.4 snaps per game. 43.6 run/56.4 pass split
Bryan Bresee (24): 667 snaps across 15 games, 44.5 snaps per game. 44.1 run/55.9 pass split
Davon Godchaux (31): 455 snaps across 17 games, 26.8 snaps per game. 61.1 run/38.9 pass split
Jonathan Bullard (32): 326 snaps across 15 games, 21.7 snaps per game. 64.1 run/35.9 pass split
Jonah Williams (30): 319 snaps across 15 games, 21.3 snaps per game. 48.9 run/51.1 pass split

Bullard and Williams both left in free agency, and now the Saints are replacing them with Broughton (25 in July) and Miller (22 in August), both of whom should climb the depth chart over the course of the season. Godchaux and Shepherd are both in the last year of their contracts and could be phased out if the youngsters get up to speed quickly. Don't be surprised if Miller gets practice reps ahead of Godchaux this summer to see if he can handle a starter's responsibility.

In the big picture, Bresee is set to play out the final two years of his contract across 2026 and 2027, and it's possible Broughton develops into his replacement in the starting lineup. He'll at least have ample opportunities to rotate into games and wreck havoc. That's true for Miller, too, but as a top-50 draft pick with a 31-year old starter in a contract year ahead of him, he's facing a significantly shorter runway.

This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: 2026 NFL Draft: Christen Miller is part of Saints' youth movement