A former Minnesota Golden Gopher whose top defensive moment came on a scoop-and-score fumble return.
Jordan Howden has spent his career as a depth safety and core special-teamer for New Orleans since the Saints drafted him out of Minnesota, flashing occasional big plays while working primarily in a reserve defensive role.
Path to the league
Howden played safety at Minnesota beginning as a true freshman in 2018, when he saw action in 10 games and logged 472 snaps at the position. The New Orleans Saints selected him with the 146th overall pick in the fifth round of the 2023 NFL Draft.
Career highlights
Howden has carved out a role as a rotational safety and special-teams contributor across his first three NFL seasons. His signature moment came in a Week 5, 2025 game against the Giants, when he scooped up a Cam Skattebo fumble forced by Bryan Bresee and returned it 86 yards for his first career touchdown.
2025 season recap
Howden appeared in 16 of 17 games in 2025 with two starts, finishing with 25 tackles and no interceptions on a career-low 261 defensive snaps, about 25 percent of New Orleans' defensive total. Outside of his fumble-return touchdown, it was a relatively quiet defensive season, with his combined tackle total the lowest of his three-year career.
Sources
- Wikipedia: Jordan Howden
- Pro Football Reference: Jordan Howden
Statistics
2025 season and career2025 Season · Defense
16 games played▶Defense · career
| Year | Team | GP | TOT | SOLO | SACK | INT | FF | FR | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | saints | 16 | 29 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2024 | saints | 17 | 50 | 27 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 2023 | saints | 16 | 43 | 23 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 |
Player Profile
Background
- Position
- Safety
- Group
- defense
- College
- Minnesota
- Hometown
- San Diego, CA, USA
- Age
- 26
- Status
- active
