Author: SaintsReportUK

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Week Five- Saints Vs Seahawks Preview 

If a game in week five is a must-win it’s usually because things are not going well. That’s definitely the case for the 2022-2023 New Orleans Saints. This is a must-win game Vs the Seattle Seahawks. Let’s see how the Saints stack up.

The Saints chose not to have their bye week as usual after a London game. I wouldn’t be surprised to see a post-London hangover with all the travel and time changes. The Sants have got to prove the organisation was right to make that choice this week and not let that be the reason for another week of sloppy play, ending in a loss.

Embed from Getty Images

Saints Offense Vs Seahawks Defense

This has to be a get-right game for the again Andy Dalton-led Saints offense. Last week was a good start for Dalton and the offense, in their attempt to right the offensive ship. However, they were still plagued by a very slow start on offense, turnovers, fumbles especially and penalties.

The first 6 drives of the game for the Saints; Three of those drives were three-play, three-and-out drives. One was a 60-yard touchdown after the Tyrann Mathieu interception, the last play before the half was a one-play drive where Dalton lost a fumble.

The Saints went three and out again to start the second half before going. Touchdown, touchdown, field goal and missed field goal to end the game. The second half showed promise, but they can’t keep getting off to such slow starts, this team has barely played with a lead all season. This team is not built to win from behind.

This week on paper looks to be a good matchup for the New Orleans offense.

In the picture above are Seattle’s top seven players in terms of coverage snaps (Picture from PFF). Four of those seven players have allowed a 130+ passer rating when targeted (NFL column). Specifically, I want to highlight Jordyn Brooks (PR 149.0) and Coby Bryant (136.9). 

Brooks struggled against Alvin Kamara last season, (four receptions for 49 yards and 2 first downs) given up against Kamara in coverage last season (per PFF) this should be a matchup the Saints target again, with Kamara set to return this week.

Bryant has been manning the slot since regular starter Justin Coleman got injured in Week One and he’s struggled. Whilst in coverage he’s allowing 71.4% of the passes thrown his way to be completed and those receptions on average go for 17.3 yards per catch. He also hasn’t forced any incompletions whilst in coverage so far this year.

This should be an advantageous matchup for Jarvis Landry; the Saints’ main slot receiver. This seems like a good game to put Olave and/or Harty in the slot for some slot plays to try and take advantage. 

Seattle could have Coleman back, he’s been out with a calf injury but there’s no guarantee that he immediately be pushed back into the starting line-up, we saw this with starting CB Paulson Adebo in his first game back from his ankle injury.

Rookie CB, Tariq Woolen has impressed in the Seattle secondary as has Saints rookie WR Chris Olave. This is a matchup I’m fascinated to watch on Sunday. More on that here (Analysing Three Key Matchups For The Saints In Week Five Vs Seattle – Full10Yards)

Per Pro-Football-Reference (PFR) Seattle’s defense on average is giving up 8.2 yards per pass play. This ranks dead last in the league in this metric.

 2022 Seattle Seahawks Rosters, Stats, Schedule, Team Draftees, Injury Reports | Pro-Football-Reference.com

Also, per PFR Seattle’s defense is giving up 5.1 yards-per-carry which ranks as the fourth worst in the NFL. This is another sign of hope for the Saints’ offense. It’s clear that New Orleans wants to establish the run and the offense has looked its best when they’ve been able to run the ball, especially on early downs. With Kamara back, Ingram not on the injury report and Taysom seeming to be back to full health. This should be a good matchup for them to dominate on the ground.

The Saints’ o-line should be able to hold up well against the Seattle pass rush. They had a very solid game last week against a stronger rush. Although Minnesota only blitzed Dalton six times last week, which is surprising considering the Saints’ issues against the blitz, expect that to be tested early this week.

Saints Defense Vs Seahawks Offense 

At the start of the season, I would have said this was one of the easiest matchups for the Saints’ defense. After four weeks of the NFL season that isn’t the case.

Geno Smith has been great, he’s played exactly how the Saints would have wanted their QBs to play so far. 

He’s been efficient completing a league-best 77.3% of his passes. With only two turnovers (two interceptions) he’s playing a perfect point guard role at QB distributing the ball to his playmakers with minimal fuss.

Expect star WR D.K Metcalf to be matched up with Saints star CB Marshon Lattimore for most of the day, this is always a blockbuster matchup and one the Saints need to win, more on that here (Analysing Three Key Matchups For The Saints In Week Five Vs Seattle – Full10Yards).

Despite Metcalf’s star power, he’s not the Seahawks leading WR so far this season. That title goes to Tyler Lockett, who has more catches and yards so far this season. He plays 44.9% of his snaps in the slot. This means Bradly Roby will be under a microscope in this matchup, the Saints could even shade some help his way.

Seattle also possesses one of the league’s most potent ground games. Rashaad Penny, who once looked like a first-round bust. Now looks like one of the most explosive runners in the league.

Per PFF, he averages 4.57 rushing yards after contact per rush, which leads all RBs in the NFL. He’s also averaging six yards-per-carry (YPC) so far this season after an incredibly impressive, 17 carry 157-yard performance last week @ Detroit.

The Saints’ defense needs to show up against the run like it did last week when it bottled up another elite RB (Dalvin Cook) for 3.6 YPC on 20 attempts. 

The final piece to the puzzle for the New Orleans defense? Putting Geno under pressure. When under pressure Smith’s PFF passing grade is 62.0, compared to 87.3 when not under pressure. They need big games from Cam Jordan and Marcus Davenport Vs two rookie tackles. More on that matchup here- Analysing Three Key Matchups For The Saints In Week Five Vs Seattle – Full10Yards

State Of The Rosters

Saints

The Saints will be without QB1 and WR1 again this week as Jameis Winston and Michael Thomas are both OUT for this weekend.

On the plus side, the Saints will have star RB Alvin Kamara, starting safety Marcus Maye and starting LG back for this game.

Seahawks 

Fairly clean bill of health for Seattle. There was a scare earlier in the week when star RB Rashaad Penny didn’t practice, he practised fully since then.

The Main miss for Seattle is last week’s starting EDGE Darrell Johnson is OUT after being put on injured reserve with an ankle injury. This will give Seattle a chance to give second-round rookie Boye Mafe an extended look in Taylor’s absence.

For more information on the injuries click here- https://whodathype.com/2022/10/07/week-five-injury-updates-saints-seahawks/

Score Prediction 

If the Saints offense doesn’t get back firmly on the tracks this week then honestly, I don’t expect them to and this has to be the week for an Alvin Kamara game.

Unless the pass rush goes ballistic (which it could) then I think Seattle will still score points. 

The Saints win 31-24 with a late Seattle touchdown bringing the score closer.

For more Saints articles New Orleans Saints – Full10Yards 

Please let me know your feedback on this article and the others throughout the season, I’m always looking to improve and add things that people want to read about!

Follow me on Twitter @SaintsReportUK, for much more Saints content and discussion.

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Analysing Three Key Matchups For The Saints In Week Five Vs Seattle

In what is now a must-win game for the New Orleans Saints, there are three key matchups I think the Saints need to win on Sunday, to get back to 2-3 and bring their season back from the brink.

Embed from Getty Images

Marshon Lattimore vs D.K. Metcalf

This was always going to be a blockbuster matchup. After last week there’s now a lot more of a spotlight on the Saints’ CB.

Lattimore has made a name for himself by shadowing the other team’s number 1 WR. For the most part, he’s done that very well. Traditionally he’s fared worse against the smaller more shift WRs (Stefon Diggs, Antonio Brown etc..) and excelled against the bigger-bodied WRs (Mike Evans, Davante Adams etc..).

Metcalf definitely falls within the bigger-bodied WR category. Therefore, this matchup should be in Lattimore’s wheelhouse.  

There is a pause for concern from the Saints’ side. Lattimore did not have his best game against Justin Jefferson and gave up a huge play at the end of the game which led to the Vikings’ game-clinching field goal.

On paper, the last meeting between the Saints’ star CB and Seahawks’ star WR also, should make you pause. In week Seven of last season, the Saints squared off with Seattle @ Lumen Field.  Metcalf’s final figures against Lattimore? Two receptions of 3 targets for 96 yards and a TD.

Context is required here, 84 of those yards came on one play. A play which could have been called OPI (I think it was right it wasn’t called but it was close). This play happened early in the first quarter, from then on Lattimore locked him down only allowing one reception from two targets for 12 yards.

The final nugget that makes this battle a must-watch? Shenanigans after the whistle. Last season Metcalf played the role the ‘Sean Avery’ role to perfection (if you get this reference then respect!) he wound Marshon up at every convivence, with shoves and shots. Once Lattimore retaliated that flags were thrown (flags are always thrown on the second guy, especially if they play the Saints).

Lattimore has already been thrown out of a game this season (wrongly) for unnecessary roughness. That cant happen again, the Saints need their lockdown CB on the field and Lattimore needs to try as best he can to keep his head as I’m sure Metcalf will test him early with some stuff after the whistle.

DK METCALF vs MARSHON LATTIMORE FIGHT+HIGHLIGHTS (2021) – YouTube 

Chris Olave Vs Tariq Woolen

It’s looking unlikely that Michael Thomas will not play again this week. Jarvis Landry has struggled to get involved in the offense since his Week One heroics and sustaining a foot injury in Week Three.

That leaves rookie standout Chris Olave as the Saints’ main target at WR.  Olave leads all rookie WRs in receiving yards (335) and receptions (21) Olave’s 335 receiving yards are also the eighth most in the entire NFL.

Seattle has their own impressive rookie, Tariq Woolen. His story is slightly different to Olave’s. A converted WR now 6’ 4” 205 lbs CB who ran a 4.26 40-yard dash at the combine. An athletic freak might not give his athletic profile enough credit.

He entered the NFL as a raw prospect with need or refinement after being drafted in the fifth round last May. 

Well, he’s transitioned well into the NFL, he’s tied for first in the NFL with two interceptions and is only allowing a 40.4 passer rating when targeted. 

 It doesn’t appear that Seattle uses him to match up against the team’s best WR, its rare for a rookie to do this and traditionally how Seattle likes to play defense under Pete Carrol, even when Richard Sherman was at his height on the Legion of Boom defences, he didn’t always travel. Seattle generally prefers to put their CBs on respective sides of the field and keep them there. 

However no doubt they will match up plenty and despite the good, I’ve highlighted above about Woolen’s play it does look like a matchup the Saints can still attack. Woolen has given up nine receptions for 138 yards so far, so when he does give up a catch it can be for big yardage, he’s also committed five penalties so far this season of those penalties, two have been defensive pass interference and two have been defensive holding.

With Olave’s silky route-running ability this could be a matchup, the Saints choose to attack. If they choose to they had better be careful and any sniff of a wayward pass, Woolen’s ball skills have already shown he will have no problem picking it off.

Cameron Jordan And Marcus Davenport Vs Seahawks Rookie Tackles 

Cam Jordan and Marcus Davenport had their best game of the season so far this week in London. They had ten total pressures including a shared sack, three other QB hits and multiple throwaways due to their pressure. This week they get an enticing matchup against two rookie tackles.

Charles Cross (the ninth overall pick from this year’s draft) is starting at LT for Seattle. With the 72nd overall pick Abraham Lucas starting at RT. Lucas has yet to allow a sack in four starts, he has allowed nine total pressures (six hurries and three QB hits per PFF). Cross on the other hand has given up three sacks and 6 further pressures. 

Seattle has played two teams that you would classify as having elite pass rushes (Broncos and 49ers).  Lucas held up well in pass protection in both games, and Cross held up well against the 49ers but struggled against Denver (two sacks and two hurries). Lucas held up fairly well overall.

Seahawks QB Geno Smith has been one of the surprises of the season. Keeping him under pressure is imperative to the Saints’ success. Being dominant on the edge is the path to that. As the interior d-line has not been producing so far this season from a pass rush perspective (having camp stand-out Malcolm Roach back could help this area). 

The Saints need to give the rookie tackles a ‘welcome to the NFL’ game and if Jordan and Davenport play how they did in Week Four again this week, then I think they will achieve that.

For more Saints articles New Orleans Saints – Full10Yards I will have a full preview on Sunday’s game up on there on Saturday.

Please let me know your feedback on this article and the others throughout the season, I’m always looking to improve and add things that people want to read about!

I want to try and create as much of a UK Saints community as possible, so follow me on Twitter @SaintsReportUK, for much more Saints content and discussion.

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Vikings ‘@’ Saints Week Four London Game Recap.

The New Orleans Saints are now 1-3 and are losing a heartbreaker 28-25 to the Minnesota Vikings at Spurs Stadium in London. Sadly, the Saints are what their record says. A losing team, with far too much talent to be in the position their in. Penalties, turnovers and a last-second double doink missed field goal. led to defeat today and staring at despair.

Let’s breakdown what went wrong for the Saints yesterday.

I’m trying a different recap style, let me know which you prefer—this or my usual quarter by quarter.

Embed from Getty Images

Overview

Saints offense

Let’s start with the Saints’ offense, overall, I thought the Dalton-led unit was an improvement over the four back fractures Jameis Winston experience.  Dalton still struggled to start the game with 2 quick three-and-outs.

Crucially though, he capitalised on the Vikings turnover (shout out Honey Badger with the pick) and marched the Saints down the field on a type of drive the Saints have been missing and sustained a 12-play 60-yard touchdown drive. With a crucial pass too early in the drive to Chris Olave on third and eight. This was a play the offense hadn’t been making.

Sadly, Dalton couldn’t fix the offensive penalties or the fumbles. The Saints offense had two offensive penalties on the first drive one, a false start which turned a third and six into a third and 11. The worse penalty came the play after, the Saints managed to convert the third and 11 with a very well-executed screen to Mark Ingram. It was called back by an ineligible man downfield penalty on Cesar Ruiz.

Instead of first and ten at the Saints 35, it ended up third and 16 at the Saints 19. Subsequently, the Saints had to punt.

The aforementioned fumble, now that the game has finished, was one of the day’s biggest plays, which is a shame for Dalton if he did play very well overall.

The Saints got the ball back with just over a minute to go in the first half down 10-7 after a Vikings field goal. With two timeouts and a chance to get some points on the board before the half, the Saints also go the ball first to start the second half.

The first play, Dalton is sacked and stripped by Dalvin Tomlinson. Giving the Vikings the ball on the Saints’ 20, the defense held well but the Vikings still kicked a field goal. This was essentially a gifted three points. Now the Saints enter halftime down 13-7 instead of maybe 10-10 at worst 10-7.

The second half was a totally different story for the Saints offense. We finally saw some sustained offense. They went punt, touchdown, touchdown, field before the missed field goal to end the game (more on that shortly)

The touchdown drives were well put together and none of the scoring drives were less than eight plays. This shows the ability to make consistent plays.

For example, on the Saints first touchdown drive Dalton hit Marquez Callaway (who played well today) for a five-yard pass on fourth and four to extend the drive, which as mentioned ended in a TD. A bulldozing one-yard TD run by Latavius Murray.

Murray had a great first game back with the Saints. He provided a spark in the second half, HC Dennis Allen even commented on it in his post-game press conference. He ended with 11 carries for 57 yards and a TD and looked like the best RB on the field today.

The o-line seemed to hold up well (hard to tell fully watching in the stadium) only gave up two sacks and the Dalton didn’t look under pressure too much. Could be wrong on a watch back.

Some positive quick hitters:

Chris Olave, led the team in catches and yards again (four catches for 67 yards and a TD) and looked open all day.

Marquez Callaway, he made some big plays today. Previously mentioned 4th down catch and later on that drive a huge 33-yard contested catch down the left sideline to set the Saints up for TD.

Taysom Hill, sprinkled in the QB power is still really good especially inside the five, seems almost automatic.

Saints o-line- from what I could it looked like they played very well, with plenty of open holes in the run game and Dalton didn’t look to be under a huge amount of pressure.

Saints Defense

One of my key matchups for this game was stopping Dalvin Cook and the running game. The Saints Definitely did that today. Apart from a rogue 14-yard rush in the fourth quarter, the Saints kept Cook bottled up for 3.8 yards per carry on 20 attempts.

The d-line looked very stout against the run and much better rushing the passer, d-lineman Kentavius Street (1), Cam Jordan (0.5) and Marcus Davenport (0.5) all had sacks and multiple QB hits.  LB’s Demario Davis and Pete Werner looked great again, especially against the run. Davis also had a sack.

Unfortunately, what I thought shutting down the run game would stop, didn’t.

Play-action passing, I’m interested to see what his final stats were from play-action passes but certainly from the stadium, it seemed like Cousins shredded the defense from it.

Adam Thielen dominated early, he had five of his seven catches in the first half.

Justin Jefferson dominated late, with six of his ten catches coming in the second half. Two of those were huge plays, one for 41 yards, two Saints players did run into each other leaving him wide open but either way, the play was made, this set up a Vikings field goal.

The second catch was a dagger, a 39-yard catch one on one Vs Lattimore. Which set the Vikings up for the field goal to go up 28-25 with only 24 seconds left. Jefferson definitely got the better of Lattimore in this matchup. He ended with ten catches for 147 yards seemed like all if not most were when Lattimore was in coverage.

(10 targets, 7 catches 93 yards, per PFF)

Some positive quick hitters:

Cam Jordan- Looked a terror today, with 0.5 sacks but had 3 other pressures per PFF

Pete Werner- again! he’s looking like an all-pro. PFF charted him as having 5 defensive stops in the run game.

Kentavius Street– had a sack today and another pressure. The interior d-line has been disappointing so far this season, if he can start to step up that would really help.

Special teams

Complete and utter shambles.

This Saints special teams unit is supposed to be one of the best in the league. Right now, they look like one of the worst. They allowed multiple good kick and punt returns in this game and have all season.

Deonte Harty fumbled a punt that would have given the Saints good starting position at their own 44. Down six. Instead, the Vikings were given great field position, which ended in another field goal.

Harty looks checked out since his contract talks in the summer didn’t go his way. He looks far away from his all-pro returning skills of previous years.

Finally, two special teams’ errors on the same drive again cost the Saints another three points. The Vikings had a good return out to their own 30. An unnecessary roughness penalty for a late hit out of bounds added 15 yards. The Saints’ defense held them to a quick three and out.

Then, the Saints feel for a fake punt, not just a fake punt but a fake punt that gained the Vikings 13 yards. Which again put the Vikings in field goal range.

This part of the game shouldn’t be a problem, the Saints prioritise players with special teams ability. They have the same coach that has led them to be one of the top units in the league over the last few years, so what gives? The players need to execute better of course but it has to come down to coaching as well sooner or later.

Some positive quick hitters:

Will ‘Big Nutz’ Lutz, made a 60-yarder in the clutch to tie the game. Then he nearly nailed a 61-yarder to send the game to overtime unfortunately it double-doinked.

Conclusion

Even with the penalties, the turnovers the general sloppiness. The Saints could have won this game. If they can out of their own way they can be a playoff team. They came that close today without QB1 (Jamies Winston) WR1 (Michael Thomas) and RB1 (Alvin Kamara).

The next game at home against Seattle is now a must-win. There’s no more margin for error.

Last point, the NFL have a severe officiating problem, the illegal use of hands to face penalty today on Tyrann Mathieu was awful, it kept the Vikings on the field on a drive they then scored a TD on. That definitely cost the Saints today.

There are terrible calls like this every week.  

For more Saints articles New Orleans Saints – Full10Yards 

Please let me know your feedback on this article and the others throughout the season, I’m always looking to improve and add things that people want to read about!

I want to try and create as much of a UK Saints community as possible, so follow me on Twitter @SaintsReportUK, for much more Saints content and discussion.

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Vikings @ Saints London Game Preview

Despite it only being week four this is an incredibly pivotal game for the 2022-2023 New Orleans Saints. It might not quite be a must-win, but it’s certainly not far away. Let’s see where both teams are at heading into Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday.

Embed from Getty Images

Overview

Saints Offense Vs Vikings Defense

The Saints very easily could be 0-3 and staring down the barrel of a completely wasted season instead they sit 1-2 thanks to a miracle fourth-quarter comeback against Atlanta in week one. Only one game off the lead in the division.

Minnesota laid a beat down on the Packers in week one, then got a similar beatdown put on them in week two by the juggernaut Eagles. Week 3 brought a very similar comeback win against the Lions as the Saints did in week one against Atlanta. 

Both teams could be on the other side of results giving them very different outlooks. Even though the Saints are 1-2 and the Vikings are 2-1 both teams feel like they could end up being very similar.

Offensively so far, the Saints have been a mess for 10 of 12 quarters this season. Jameis Winston having four fractures in his back certainly doesn’t help this. His mobility is clearly affected and that has cost the Saints so far, there have been times where he could have scrambled for first downs or to extend drives or moved to avoid rushes and he clearly hasn’t been able to do it.  

Therefore, a QB change is coming to give Winston a chance to heal up. The ‘Red Rifle’ Andy Dalton took first-team reps all week in practice. Winston is listed as doubtful and all reports are, he’s unlikely to play on Sunday.

There’s no guarantee that Dalton will be better than Winston. However, there is reason to believe that he could operate the offense with more rhythm than Winston has been able to. Dalton has shown throughout his career that he’s willing and able to get through his progressions quickly and take the check down. Something this offense has been missing and needs at times to keep drives going.

This could finally be the game for Alvin Kamara to shine in the passing game and look for the Saints to use Kamara to attack Jordan Hicks in coverage. 

The problems with offense do not just sit with Winston and his injured back and they are much different from problems faced this time last season. Last year the Saints were too injured and completely void of talent at the skill positions.

This year, it’s the opposite. They arguably have the best WR core in the league, especially with the emergence of rookie sensation Chris Olave and to date, no offensive starters have been lost for the season (touch wood) unlike this time last year. Olave and Jarvis Landry should find ways to win Vs this Vikings secondary. 

Former all-pro Patrick Peterson has started the season well. The same can’t quite be said for his other starting CBs. Cameron Dantzler and slot corner Chandon Sullivan both have allowed more than a 100-passer rating when targeted so far this year. 

So, what’s the problem? Well, it seems everything else. Turnovers, Penalties and struggles against the Blitz.  For more analysis on these offensive issues see https://www.full10yards.co.uk/analysing-three-key-matchups-to-watch-for-vikings-saints/

I expect to see the Vikings test the Saints’ defense early and often with the Blitz.

The Vikings have star pass rushers Danielle Hunter and Za’Darius Smith. Expect to see Smith lined up inside on certain packages to add to the deception of the blitz. The Vikings also possess two LBs that are more than effective blitzing in Jordan Hicks and Eric Kendricks. The Saints will need to prove early that they have fixed their issues against the blitz otherwise despite not being a blitzing team the Vikings will keep coming early and often.

The offense doesn’t need to score 30 points per game as it has in the past to win games. With how this defense is playing right now 21-24 points with minimal turnovers feels like a formula to win more games than you lose.

Saints’ Defense Vs Vikings Offense  

The Vikings have star pass rushers Danielle Hunter and Za’Darius Smith. Expect to see Smith lined up inside on certain packages to add to the deception. The Vikings also possess two LBs that are more than effective blitzing in Jordan Hicks and Eric Kendricks. The Saints will need to prove early that they have fixed their issues against the blitz otherwise despite not being a blitzing team the Vikings will keep coming early and often.

The Saints’ defense overall has played well but mainly because of their coverage. Marshon Lattimore is playing like the best CB in the league through three weeks. He will have another tough test this weekend against Vikings star Justin Jefferson (more on this matchup here https://www.full10yards.co.uk/analysing-three-key-matchups-to-watch-for-vikings-saints/ ). The Saints could have their training camp MVP back fully opposite Lattimore. 

Paulson Adebo was worked back in last week against Carolina, it’s expected that he will see more snaps this week. That could be huge for New Orleans considering the WRs they are expected to face on Sunday.

The pass rush needs to improve and has struggled to get pressure without blitzing. The Saints need to start getting pressure just with the front four. Cam Jordan and Marcus Davenport need to get going. They have one sack between them so far.

Vitally the Saints need to do a better job stopping the run. With Dalvin Cook and Alexander Mattison on the other side, both have started the season well and are a massive threat to, a so far fragile and very uncharacteristically porous Saints rush defense (allowing 139.3 yards per game so far) more on the Dalvin good vs Saints rush defense here https://www.full10yards.co.uk/analysing-three-key-matchups-to-watch-for-vikings-saints/ .

State of the Rosters 

A rather lengthy list of injuries for New Orleans, many carrying no injury designation meaning they will play on Sunday. 

QB Jameis Winston is Doubtful for Sunday and all reports are he will not be playing leaving Andy Dalton to start. 

Unfortunately, the Saints will also be without star WR Michael Thomas a player whose skills would have definitely been accentuated by Dalton’s style of play. All reports are the Toe injury shouldn’t keep him out long-term, so hopefully, him being out is more precautionary to make sure the injury isn’t made worse and keep him out longer.

Saints will also be without starting LG Andrus Peat and starting safety Marcus Maye. Not having both players hurt, backup LG Calvin Throckmorton looked rough last week after Peat went out. Not having Maye hurts quite a lot, backup safety P.J. Williams will need to step up again. We could even see Justin Evans take some safety snaps despite playing solely from the slot so far this year. 

With Adebo back, that likely means Roby moves to the slot. Freeing Evans to play some more safety.

Seems unlikely 2nd round rookie Andrew Booth will make his season debut after being listed as doubtful. 

Za’Darius Smith is listed as questionable, HC Kevin O’Connell has been quoted that Smith is a true game-time decision, but is trending upwards (so I’m sure he will play).

Otherwise fairly clean injury for the Vikings.

Score Prediction

Tough one here, I like to predict things I can root for, thus generally you won’t see me pick against the Saints. This is the first game so far this year where my head says I should.

However, I can see a path for them to win this game so I’m going with that. Saints win 24-21.

For more Saints articles New Orleans Saints – Full10Yards 

Please let me know your feedback on this article and the others throughout the season, I’m always looking to improve and add things that people want to read about!

I want to try and create as much of a UK Saints community as possible, so follow me on Twitter @SaintsReportUK, for much more Saints content and discussion.

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Analysing Three Key Matchups To Watch For Vikings ‘@’ Saints

The New Orleans Saints need to find a way to win on Sunday. No matter how win ugly if you have to. There are three key matchups the Saints need to be on the right side of to win on Sunday in London.

Embed from Getty Images

Saints Offense Vs Themselves

The Saints lead the league in turnovers with nine in total. Now, before everyone shouts, well you have Jameis Winston at QB what do you expect? He’s not the reason the Saints lead the league in this category. 

Of Winston’s five interceptions only two are bad throws. Even one of those was more a good coverage scheme than an interception that Winston has become known for. The bigger problems have been fumbles. 

Mark Ingram has lost two fumbles, both coming at crucial times in weeks one and two. Alvin Kamara lost one last week that was returned for a touchdown, the Saints ended up losing by eight against Carolina. 

They have 9 offensive penalties so far through three games. Many killing the few good drives the Saints offense has produced. four of those nine penalties have been preventable (false starts, offensive offsides etc). 

Recognising, defending and attacking the blitz has been a consistent drive killer. The offense has struggled against the blitz in all three games so far. Winston has been sacked six times against the blitz and pressured a further 12 times. 

This has clearly been a problem and has cost the Saints big time in games. For example HIGHLIGHT: Jeremy Chinn hits Jameis Winston for big sack (panthers.com) the lost yardage on this sack caused a missed field goal for New Orleans. This needs to be cleaned up, some of the blame falls on the o-line, some on coaching and some on the QB. 

If this was a lot of other QBs in the league (maybe even Andy Dalton who may end up starting on Sunday), they’d have changed the play at the line to a quicker developing pass play, allowing the offense to punish the Panthers for sending that many players. Right now, that awareness isn’t there. Meaning teams can tee up blitzes, at will with no fear of a counter.

If these issues were isolated and occasional then it does come down to the players doing a better job of executing. When these issues are so widespread and consistent then an equal portion of the blame must land on the coaches. The offensive staff led by OC Pete Carmichael Jr. have to do a better job of ironing out these areas of weakness and putting the players in better positions to succeed. 

Run Defense Vs Dalvin Cook

Dalvin Cook is one of the most dynamic RBs in the NFL and he is the focal point of the Vikings’ offense. The Vikings want to be able to establish the run to allow for play-action to at its most effective.

In three previous meetings with the Saints, Cook has played rather well. Across those three games, he averages 21.6 (22) rushes for 96 yards, at 4.2 yards per carry. This is compares favourably to other RBs against the Saints over this time. Since 2017 New Orleans has only allowed 94 yards rushing per game in that span. The stat considers every rushing yard in a game, a random QB scramble, a blown assignment allowing a random long run etc… so for Cook to average above that on his own is impressive. 

Play action has been effective so far for the Vikings. Kirk Cousins has the third-best passing grade in the league on play-action throws. His stats on play-action passes:

  • 34 attempts, 25 completions for 267 yards. Four TDs to zero Interceptions. 135.5 passer rating

Compare that to his stats on none play-actions throws:

  • 85 attempts, 49 completions for 491 yards. One TD to three interceptions. 63.4 passer rating.

It’s clear that so far this season the Vikings success in the passing game comes from establishing the run. So, the Saints priority must be to stop the running game if they want a chance to win on Sunday.

Marson Lattimore vs Justin Jefferson 

Marson Lattimore has been lights out. In three games he’s only been thrown at Seven times, he’s allowed three receptions for 23 yards and a passer rating against of 51.5. All the while he’s lined up against: 

  • Drake London
  • Kyle Pitts
  • Mike Evans 
  • Russel Gage 
  • D.J. Moore 

I’d say that’s pretty good. This weekend it’s not clear if he will shadow Justin Jefferson or not and I’m interested to see if the Saints elect to have Lattimore travel with Jefferson or if they choose to play sides.

They chose the latter last week @ Carolina and they don’t always choose to have Lattimore travel. Sometimes they prefer to play sides and double-team a player with a LB or Safety. 

The way Lattimore is playing I think putting Lattimore on Jefferson and letting them battle it out would be wise. The last time the two faced off the Saints CB came out on top:

  • Eight targets, 4 receptions for 55 yards and 2 PBUs.

Jefferson started the season hot in week one Vs Green Bay (who many called the best secondary in the league) he went off. Catching nine of his ten targets for 184 yards and 2 TDs. Since then he’s been kept in check.

The Eagles chose for the most part to match him with Darius Slay. That went incredibly well. Whilst in coverage against Slay, Jefferson on six targets only managed one reception for seven yards. Slay also intercepted 2 of the passes. 

This is in the plan I think the Saints should copy. Lattimore has been elite and traditionally plays better against a team’s number one WR, as Lattimore knows he has to be at his best. Against lesser competition, he has been known to get complacent and play down their level.

Conclusion 

So, stop fumbling, stop getting offensive penalties, and start identifying and attacking the blitz better. Stop the run and finally put Marshon Lattimore on Justin Jefferson. Sounds easy right?

Probably not but I feel these are all a must if the Saints are going to win on Sunday. Regardless of who starts at QB (looks like it will be Andy Dalton).

For more Saints articles New Orleans Saints – Full10Yards 

Please let me know your feedback on this article and the others throughout the season, I’m always looking to improve and add things that people want to read about!

I want to try and create as much of a UK Saints community as possible, so follow me on Twitter @SaintsReportUK, for much more Saints content 

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Week Three Saints @ Panthers Recap

Embed from Getty Images

The Panthers are not a good football team, sadly this version of the New Orleans Saints is not either. Penalties, fumbles and generally sloppy play all led to the Saints losing 22-14 in Charlotte yesterday. Quarter by quarter lets see where it all went so badly wrong.

First Quarter

The Panthers started with the ball and the first play foreshadowed what was to come on some of the Panthers biggest plays on offense. A missed tackle. McCaffrey should have been bottled up for a minimal gain, instead rumbled for 14 yards. (PFF credited the Saints defense with 11 missed tackles on the day).

That was it really for this drive, Demario Davis sacked a scrambling Mayfield setting up a third and long, which the Panthers could not convert. After Mayfield and Anderson weren’t on the same page, this was also Paulson Adebo’s first snap of the season and applied solid coverage on the play.

The Saints offense took over at their own 11- yard line. Some more foreshadowing took place on the first play of this drive. The snap went wrong, it went down as a Winston fumble, he did pick it up and run for six-yards but this was just the start of the offense’s sloppy execution.

Sadly, this was one of the offenses better drives, the next play Kamara scampered for 27 yards. Winston completed two nice timing throws to Michael Thomas and the offense looked like there could be some life.

Then some of that sloppiness came back, a false start by Adam Trautman and a weak Chop Block penalty on Mark Ingram took the Saints from second and two on the Panthers 33 to third and 20 on the Saints 49. The chop block penalty was even worse because it wiped out and excellent catch by Michael Thomas that would have given the Saints a fresh set of downs in the RedZone.

Instead the Saints had to punt.

The Panthers went three and out quickly giving the Saints decent field position on their own 30. Helped even more by an unnecessary roughness penalty, giving them a fresh set of downs near midfield. Then the sadness began, Alvin Kamara was stripped, and the Panthers returned it for a TD. This was Kamara’s first fumble since 2020.

The next three Saints offensive possessions amassed a grand total of 9 plays for 8 yards. Led on one drive by two offensive dead ball fouls in a row and Winston not reading the field well.

Second Quarter

The Panthers grinded out a ten-play 40-yard drive which was completed early in the second quarter. Putting them up 10-0. This was a fairly solid drive by the Panthers. Pete Werner, who again looked like the best player maybe outside of Marshon Lattimore on the Saints defense was everywhere this game and was really good on this drive. Justin Evans also made two good stops in four plays. One for a loss on a screen and one for no gain in the running game.

The Panthers added another field goal later in the quarter generally because of the running game. Watching it live it looked like the Saints had this bottle up for the most part, upon review that wasn’t really the case.

The misery and false hope for Saints fans continued. Jameis Winston finally hit on a deep bomb to Chris Olave, who made a great play at the catch point to reel it in. The 49-yard gain had the Saints in business on the Carolina 18. Another nice quick pass to Olave got them to nearly inside the 10. A drop by Kamara on second down and a poor pass from Winston on third. He had Kamara wide open in front of him, instead choosing to throw an incompletion to Landry that was nowhere near him. This left the Saints with a short field goal try to get on the board. Which in true Saints style was blocked.

So, the best drive of the game came up empty for the Saints, who were shut out again in the first half.  Down 13-0 which at this stage felt like 30-0.

Third Quarter

The second half started with the Saints receiving the kick-off. Again, the Saints were penalised, this time a hold during the return. The Saints had to start at their own 16. With the way the offense was playing starting from there felt like 84 miles, rather than 84 yards.

The offense did put together a nice drive though. Started by two nice runs to Kamara, Jameis completed passes to Landry, Thomas, Olave and Tre’Quan on this drive. The pass to Landry wasn’t a great throw by Winston, Landry had to go low and twist to make the catch because the pass was behind him. This caused him to injure his foot/ankle and be out the rest of the game.

Unfortunately, the drive stalled once getting to the RedZone. The Saints struggles with the Blitz continued. On second down the blitz nearly got home, which made Winston throw the ball quicker than he wanted and he looked like he had Kamara on a wheel if he had a smidge longer to let the play develop.

On Third down the Panthers had Jeremy Chinn lined up at the line of scrimmage, no disguise and he just ran untouched to Winston for a huge sack which pushed the Saints all the way back to the 30 meaning it was now a 48-yard attempt. This blitz wasn’t exotic it wasn’t disguised. Winston needed to change the play to something where he could have got the ball out quickly, not a play that was 5/7 step drop. By the time he got to the end of his drop he was sacked.

That sack was huge, the extra distance meant Will Lutz missed it, pushed it wide right. The kick would have been good from closer. Now both times the Saints offense did something it ended in a special team’s error meaning no points. Those six points lost were huge later on.

On the other side of the ball the Saints defense was keeping them afloat, turning the Panthers over on downs, with a nice pass breakup by Demario Davis on fourth down.

Third/Fourth Quarter

Two punts followed, before the Saints offense finally put together a complete drive, two catches each for Chris Olave and Tre’Quan Smith, the Saints marched down the field, 10 plays- 89 yards, capped by a 5-yard TD run by Mark Ingram. This cut the Panthers lead to six points with 12:31 left in fourth quarter.

Fourth Quarter

The next two series were the dagger for New Orleans, first up the Panthers offense. Two plays 67-yards touchdown. The Saints defense finally caved under the pressure the offense had put on them. Two bad missed tackles, first by P.J. Williams, the second by Tyrann Mathieu. Laviska Shenault JR. went 67 yards for a TD on a play he should have been stopped for a minimal gain by two different Saints defenders.

Next series, Winston interception from a tipped pass. Great catch by the big man Derrick Brown though! Always have a soft spot for big guy interceptions. The interception gave the Panthers a short field which allowed them to tack on another field goal.

At this stage the 15 points score difference was too big overcome. The Saints did manage another touchdown, after two great plays on deep balls by Chris Olave and Tre’Quan Smith. Finished off by an amazing catch in the endzone by Marquez Callaway, Callaway did bail Winston out though, he should have never thrown the pass.

Marquez Callaway One-Handed TD Catch – YouTube

The Panthers managed to run out enough of the clock leaving the Saints just 17 seconds to try and score, that was made impossible after Johnny Hekker produced an excellent punt, meaning the Saints would have had to have gone 99 yards in 17 seconds with no timeouts. Winston heaved one downfield which was intercepted.

Thus, ending a very painful watch for all Saints fans and for the Saints organisation who then had to take the long flight to London ready for their game this weekend against the Vikings @ Spurs stadium.

Conclusion

Defense did more than enough to win this game, the offense and special teams just kept shooting themselves in the foot. The offense can’t sustain drives and when it does something seems to go wrong to mean no points.

What’s more frustrating about this offense, is they have the talent, all the WR’s today looked excellent the execution of the offense right now is just simply poor. Penalties, fumbles, uninspiring play caller (at times) and Winston not seeing the field well.

It can’t continue otherwise this is going to be a long and wasted season. Ending in the Eagles having a juicy high first round draft pick (YIKES).

I will be previewing of all and recapping all the New Orleans Saints games this season on New Orleans Saints – Full10Yards

Please let me know your feedback on this article and the rest throughout the season, I’m always looking to improve and add things that people want to read about.

I want to create as much of a UK Saints community as possible, so follow me on Twitter @SaintsReportUK, for much more Saints content and discussion

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Saints @ Panthers Week Three Preview; Key Matchups And More

Neither team had the result they wanted in week two. The Saints fell to Tom Brady’s refs…… I mean Bucs and Carolina lost to an average New York Giants squad (Despite what their record says).

That leaves two teams with a lot to prove heading into to week three and a matchup that both teams need to win.

I’m going to highlight 3 key matchups. who’s playing and who’s not? and of course a score prediction for the game.

Embed from Getty Images

Overview

After two games both teams could easily have different records. New Orleans sit at 1-1. If not for a miraculous fourth quarter comeback in week one they’d be 0-2.  If not for a fourth quarter meltdown in week two they very well could be 2-0. 1-1 feels right so far for a team that have struggled to string together more than one consistent quarter of football, where all three sides of the ball play well and complement each other.

The Panthers have lost two games by a total of five points. They nearly produced a Saints like fourth quarter comeback week one against the Browns if not for a late field goal. Then fell to the Giants after being tied for most of the game.

Both Teams need to find an identity, this not unusual early in the season but this is especially true of the Saints. Are they are run first team, that want to hit the play action bombs off of that kind of team? Are they the quick rhythm, short throws and get the ball in your playmaker’s hands kind of team? It doesn’t seem like they know, but they need work it out quickly.

The Saints lead this series three games to one since Matt Rhule has been the Panthers HC. Those games were all of course under the watch of former Saints HC Sean Payton. Can new HC Dennis Allen keep that good form going? Here’s some of the matchups the Saints need to be on the right side off.

Key Matchups

Panther LB Blitz Vs Saints Pass Protection

The first Panthers matchup last season was a shambles for the Saints. Carolina blitzed them over and over, the Saints couldn’t handle it.  So much so former NFL o-lineman and Twitter legend Brian Baldinger was mystified at how the Panthers ran the same blitz three plays in a row because the Saints couldn’t block it.

Brian Baldinger criticizes Saints’ offensive line miscues vs. Panthers (usatoday.com)

Now, why am I bringing up a meaningless game from last season? Well, the Saints have struggled with the Blitz again this year. In both games so far, we’ve seen Winston sacked by blitzing LBs who were not picked up by the Saints o-line. Two examples here:

Atlanta Falcons week 1 SACK compilation | Highlights | Saints vs. Falcons – YouTube (54 seconds in)

Jayden on Twitter: “First sack of the day comes on a perfectly executed coffeehouse stunt by Lavonte David. Ram bites on the fake – sack https://t.co/tN56rOx8iS” / Twitter

Panthers DC Phil Snow has shown he’s willing to attack your weaknesses and keep attacking them until you prove you can stop them. The Saints did improve in this area week two, but it was still a problem and id expect the Panthers to try and exploit it.

This can’t be a consistent problem for the Saints on Sunday; these plays kill drives and kill your QB. Jameis Winston has four fractures in his back and can’t keep taking shots from free rushers running full speed.

McCaffrey Vs Saints LBs

The Saints secondary should match up well against the Panthers WRs and TE’s. Christian McCaffrey is the x factor.

He’s had an unusually quiet start to the season in the passing game through two games he has only eight catches for 50 yards. Compare that to the first two games of last season his usage in this area is way down. At this stage last season, he had over three times the yards (154) and nearly twice the number of catches (15).

In those games last season, the Panthers were 2-0. This year with McCaffrey’s reduced role in the passing game they are 0-2.

You have to think this usage is something they want to rectify as it’s a proven winning formular.

The matchup they want for McCaffrey is against a LB. The Saints do have the LBs that could hold up in this matchup. Per PFF Pete Werner has a 82.4 coverage grade good for 7th in the league among LBs. Demario Davis ranks 13th with a 76.2 grade.

These Saints LB’s will need to continue this good form on Sunday for the Saints to come out on top.

Davenport Vs ‘ICKY’

Will this finally be the week that Davenport takes over a game? I feel like it has to be. He will primarily be lining up against rookie LT Ikem Ekwonu, who, to put it bluntly has not played well so far.

Ewonu is rated as PFF’s 64th LT out of 65 and has given up 3 sacks and 7 total pressures in the 2 games so far. This should be a matchup Davenport can win and win well.

Davenport and the rest of the Saints rush should have enough time to get to the QB this week. Baker Mayfield’s average time to throw per PFF is 2.89 seconds that’s 0.6 seconds slower than Tom Brady last week and ranks him as the 11th slowest thrower in the league.  9th slowest if you only include starters. It may not sound a lot but that is difference between a pressure and a sack.

If Brady didn’t get the ball out so quickly last week, then I think Davenport would have impacted the game a lot more the stats sheet. He had one QB hit and one QB hurry, which isn’t bad considering how quickly Brady got the ball out.

This Is the week for Davenport to announce himself and show he’s a rising star in the league.

State of the Rosters

It looks like both teams will be close to full strength this week. Despite a lot of Saints players being listed as ‘Limited’ this week, there doesn’t seem to be much concern about them not playing on Sunday.

Saints hope to have training camp MVP Paulson Adebo suit up for first time this season. Allowing Bradley Roby to move into the slot, this was the role the Saints wanted for him after trading C.J. Gardner Johnson. This could be even more important if Marcus Maye can’t play, with Roby in the slot that would free up Justin Evans to cover some of the Maye’s snaps at safety along with P.J. Williams.

Sadly after sustaining a Knee injury in Thursday’s practice rookie Alontae Taylor isn’t going to be able to build on this strong performance last week against Tampa. He is out for Sundays game.

There was a scare earlier in the week for Carolina when McCaffery was added to the report with an Ankle injury. He will play on Sunday per multiple reports and is carrying no injury designation for the game. Donte Jackson was also a concern for Carolina and is questionable but practised full on Friday which is usually a sign he will play.

Score Prediction

This is a big game for both teams, the Panthers must win if they want to have any chance at making the playoffs. The Saints really need a boost before heading off to London for week 4 and really don’t need another division loss on their record.

It should be a get right game for two of New Orleans struggling units. The offensive passing game and the pash rush.

I think we see a better offensive showing this week, but still not perfect. With Winston having a much more consistent game passing with more rhythm. Maybe not consistent for all four quarters as he’s still working his way through his back injury.

The Saints continue where they left off last week and dominate the running game with Alvin Kamara back and leading the charge.

Then the pass rush finally shows some life and registers 3+ sacks on the day.

Score- 26-16 Saints win

I will be previewing and recapping of all the New Orleans Saints games this season on New Orleans Saints – Full10Yards

Please let me know your feedback on this article and the others throughout the season, I’m always looking to improve and add things that people want to read about!

I want to try and create as much of a UK Saints community as possible, so follow me on Twitter @SaintsReportUK, for much more Saints content and discussion.

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Bucs @Saints Week 2 Recap

The Saints fall in the home opener 20-10 against the Bucs. Brady still didn’t do much. The refs were terrible, Winston played with a broken back and the Saints offense gave this game away. Let break down the loss quarter by quarter.

Embed from Getty Images

First Quarter

The Saints offense started this game well, there was much more rhythm and rushed the ball really well with Ingram.  Peat was a pulling guard monster on the opening drive.

The Saints showed a different look with Taysom Hill at QB, wasn’t the conventional QB power. Looked to have a pass option out wide to Deonte Harty, with the option if Taysom didn’t like the pass, to run, he did and ran for a good gain.

The drive stalled and ended in a 31-yard field, disappointing to not get a TD, but it was promising to see the Saints offense have some rhythm, on the ground at least.

Brady and the Bucs started in the worst way possible for them, another Brady turnover against the Saints. Brady fumbled a 4th and 1 snap that was recovered by Demario Davis on the Saints 26. The Saints had a huge chance to put a stamp on the game here, with any points, especially a TD.

Unfortunately, the drive stalled the Saints were on the right side of an unnecessary roughness penalty after the Bucs blitz got home on 3rd down, which kept the drive alive. Before finally, a Taysom Hill run didn’t work, forcing a Saints punt.

An unusual poor punt from Gillikin, he had a real chance to pin the Bucs deep. Instead, the Bucs started with the ball at their own 23.

Second Quarter

Tampa started the 2nd quarter with a 3rd and 6 after a Fournette run and Incomplete pass ended the first quarter.

Tampa dialled up an excellent play to get Evans matched up in the slot against Justin Evans. Evans ran a kind of wheel route from the slot and the Saints defender got caught up in a rub, designed to get Evans clear. It was a really well drawn up play, with the Bucs now in business after the 41-yard completion.

The Bucs were now up to the Saints 30, then the 17 after an excellent run up the middle by Fournette, which turned out to be Fournette’s longest of the game (13 yards).

4th and 1 on the Saints 9-yard line concluded this drive, with Kentavius Street somehow getting into the backfield unblocked and disrupting the run. Leading to Carl Granderson standing tall and stopping Fournette for a loss. Allowing the Saints to take over inside their own 10, with again a chance for the offense to take the bull by the horns.

They didn’t and the offense went 3 and out quickly. This was a ‘what could have been’ drive. Winston looked to have Olave deep down the right sideline. Winston overthrow him on third down ending the drive there.

Getting no yards, also meant the Saints were losing the field position battle (a trend that continued for much of the game). Especially with Gillikin not on top form, the Bucs started again with good field position at the 50. They couldn’t take advantage gaining 1 yard on 3 plays. Mainly because of Pete Werner, Werner had another great game. He was excellent against the run all game and made at least 2 really good plays in pass coverage one on this drive and had a PBU on the Bucs first drive of the game. He has quickly become a key piece to the Saints defense.

Neither offense could do anything to end the half. There were signs on both Saints drives that Winston’s back was limiting him more than we were being told. He had a chance twice to scramble on third down, on he had a real chance to get the first both times but chose to keep his eyes downfield which nearly cost them. As he was stripped from behind on one of the plays, luckily James Hurst fell on it.

The Saints opted not to kick a 57-yard field goal with 28 seconds left and instead punted back to the Bucs. I understand the thought process at the time, up 3 and a miss would have given the Bucs good  field position to try and end the half with some points.  I think Allen needed to show some aggression here and trust Lutz. Points were at a premium in this game.

Brady Knelt, after the punt to end the half.

Third Quarter

Bucs started with the ball in the second half and didn’t do much again. They could get anything going on the ground and it wasn’t much better through the air. You could see Brady getting more and more frustrated with what the Saints were doing in coverage, so much so, Brady broke another tablet on the sideline.

Unfortunately, the Saints offense still couldn’t respond with more failed deep shots to Olave forcing an immediate three and out. What’s most frustrating about these attempts is it looked like Olave had a step on the defender most times, the play was there to be made. Winston just could connect.

Gillikin had another poor punt giving the Bucs another short field to work with. This was a huge factor in this game the Bucs were regularly starting past their 30-yard line, this was very rarely the case for the Saints.

Finally, the Saints defense caved just enough. Brady and the Bucs had finally broken the drought against the Saints and scored their first point in 7 quarters.

 After a very nice rub route concept again got Breshad Perriman open to keep the Bucs offense alive on a third down and long. The Bucs only gained 28-yards on this drive but again because of their field position that was enough to get them into FG range.

Next is where it all started to unravel for the Saints. The offense found rhythm that we hadn’t seen since the very first drive of the game, great runs by Ingram and Dwayne Washington. With some nice completions mixed in from Jameis leading the team all the way down to the Redzone. Until a very nice 9-yard run by Ingram was capped with a killer game-changing fumble. A textbook punch out caused the fumble and, in a game, where any points were like gold dust for the Saints to not punch in a great drive, turned into a huge momentum changer.

Fourth Quarter

The Saints defense came up with another 3rd and short stuff to force a 4th and 1 on the Bucs 19-yard line. When a severely unusual mistake by the Saints special teams kept the drive going, a 12 men on the field penalty, gave Brady another crack.

As was the way Brady still couldn’t move the ball, after a deep attempt to Mike Evans was well covered by Marshon Lattimore as it had been all day. Lattimore had been dominating the matchup again in this one and Brady was frustrated, he marched down the field demanding a flag from the refs and exchanged words with Lattimore.

It was at this point all hell broke loose. Fournette push Lattimore, Lattimore pushed back, nothing unusual nothing to major. Then from the sideline, encouraged by the ‘retired’ former Bucs HC Bruce Arians who for some reason was on the Bucs sideline. Mike Evans came bursting onto the field and flattened Lattimore from Behind. A significant scrum ensued, causing the eyes in the sky in New York, to eject Lattimore and Evans.

This, in my opinion was a joke, Evans came  from the sideline and escalated the whole thing with an unnecessary hit on Lattimore, he and he alone should have been thrown out, with Lattimore and Fournette receiving 15-yard penalties.

This decision from the people who are supposed to be removed from the situation, so they can review footage to get these calls right. As per usual got it wrong, which caused major effects on the game.  See the video below and make up your own mind.

Evans and Lattimore ejected after Bucs, Saints scuffle – ESPN Video

This was where the implosion happened, Winston tried Olave again deep and underthrow him (another sign of the back causing an issue) and was intercepted. Winston went on to be intercepted on the next 2 Saints drives after that. Both were bad throws one was a bad miss to TE Juwan Johnson; the other Winston did not see the Robber (S Mike Edwards) and throw a pick 6. The coverage looked very similar to what the Saints used last season on P.J. Williams’ pick 6 on Brady.

Sprinkle in a Brady touchdown drive in-between aided by some poorly officiated penalties against the Saints and P.J. Williams being in primary coverage for the touchdown when Lattimore would have been if he didn’t get thrown out. That was the end of the contest for the Saints.

The offense did find rhythm to get one TD on the board with nice passes to Mike Thomas and Juwan Johnson and a PI call on another deep shot to Olave, but it was all too little too late.

The final very cruel dagger was, finally, a deep shot to Olave worked for 51-yard gain. It could have given the Saints a small window to come back, but the receiver was judged to have fumbled the ball, as he had not been touched down after completing the catch and then fumbling.

From one angle the broadcast showed it looked like Olave’s foot was touched on the way down, therefore meaning the ruling should have been a 51-yard completion. It was hard to tell though.

Conclusion

The Saints should have won this game, the defense stifled Brady again and the Bucs could do nothing in the run game.

But the offense couldn’t capitalise on the fortunate cards they were dealt, it felt like 13 points would have won this game, I really think the defense could have protected that. Ultimately the offense turned it over 5 times and that isn’t going to beat anyone. Let alone the Goat.

I think the offense will get there, the talk all off-season has been that as OC Pete Carmichael has called plays before, so he will be fine. Well, let’s not forget he had Drew Brees when he called plays before, Brees was effectively an OC on the field who could decide how he wanted to play. I think Pete is still trying to figure his offensive identity with no Brees and no Payton.

Brady made enough plays when needed and the Bucs defense, came up big down the stretch.

Finally note on this game, the officials were horrific, not just calls against the Saints but a couple of the call against the Bucs earlier in the game were awful too. The NFL needs to fix its officiating crisis because too much of their incompetence is having an impact on the results of games.

I will be previewing of all and recapping all the New Orleans Saints games this season on New Orleans Saints – Full10Yards

Please let me know your feedback on this article and the rest throughout the season, I’m always looking to improve and add things that people want to read about. I will back later in the week to preview Saints @ Panthers, so please keep an eye out for that.

I want to create as much of a UK Saints community as possible, so follow me on Twitter @SaintsReportUK, for much more Saints content and discussion

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Week Two Preview Bucs @ Saints- Key Matchups And More

After a bonkers week one victory against the Falcons. The Saints move on to another divisional foe, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Tom Brady leads the Bucs into the Superdome for the Saints home opener, with both teams 1-0.

I’m going to highlight 3 key matchups. who’s playing and who’s not? and of course my score prediction for the game.

Embed from Getty Images

Saints And Bucs Overview

If you’d told me heading into the 4th quarter of Saints Vs Falcons last week that the Saints would end up winning, I might have believed you. As let’s be fair its perfectly believable that the Falcons would blow a 4th quarter lead. Where I wouldn’t have believed you is if you’d told me the offense was the reason the Saints completed the comeback.   

New Orleans looked completely disjointed for 3 quarters against Atlanta, the offense couldn’t do anything either, other than Taysom Hill doing Taysom Hill things. The offense had no rhythm and really struggled to get anything going.

Until the 4th quarter. led by QB Jameis Winston, who completed 13 of 16 passes for 213 yards and two touchdowns. In the 3 quarters before that, Winston went only 10 of 18 for 56 yards. All his playmakers stepped up, with especially encouraging performances from Michael Thomas (after a sluggish first half) and free agent addition Jarvis Landry, who suddenly turned into an elite downfield playmaker.

Josh Norris on Twitter: “29 year old Jarvis Landry becoming a vertical playmaker feels unprecedented considering he had a 6.2 aDOT in the first 4 years of his career” / Twitter

If this version of the offense shows up for the majority of the season, then the whole league will be on notice that this Jameis Winston led team is coming and nobody is safe.

Consistency is key though and the Saints offense needs to prove this week that it can be really good but for more than 1 quarter.

The Bucs enter week 2, coming off a far different game. It all seemed fairly routine for them to beat the Cowboys.  No dramatic 4th quarter comeback required. In fact, the Bucs were only behind for 3 minutes and 57 seconds in the whole game and cruised to a 19-3 victory.

The Bucs barely had to get out of 1st gear, they dominated a Cowboys offense that might have looked as bad as the Saints offense did, only the difference with the Cowboys wad they couldn’t do anything for all 4 quarters. A lot of that comes down to the Bucs talent on defense.

The Bucs stifled the Cowboys passing attack with a mix of speed and aggression in the front 7 and versatility in the secondary, also great preparation as LB Devin White explained here.

Devin White reveals how easy it was for Bucs to figure out Cowboys game plan (thelandryhat.com)

The Bucs leaned on their running game with Leonard Fournette rushing for 127 yards, at 6 YPC. With Brady and the Bucs passing game doing what I needed to do to win the game.

This is a matchup the Saints have dominated since Brady arrived. Especially on defense. Brady in the 4 previous regular season games has been sacked 13 times, fumbled 3 times (lost 2) and been intercepted 9 times. Brady’s Bucs have only averaged 16 points per game (PPG). That average jumps up 25 PPG when the Bucs visit the Superdome, compared to 1.5 PPG when they play at home.

Despite this being a landslide for the Saints since Brady arrived, for the New Orleans to push the record to 5-0, there are certain matchups that I think are key.

Key Matchups

Saints Pass Rush

The age old trop that you must be able to disrupt brady by rushing 4, is a tiresome narrative but, it is completely true and if you do Blitz It needs to be well timed and from a place Brady isn’t expecting.

That last point is a challenge, Brady is in his 23rd NFL season (Much to his wife’s dismay) he’s seen everything at this point, there isn’t much that surprises him. The Saints have managed to surprise him and keep him out of rhythm better than anyone during Brady’s time in Tampa.

Without pressure, Brady will dice you up. New Orleans has done a great job at this previously.  I mentioned earlier how many times the Saints have sacked Brady in their last 4 meetings (13). Which works out at 3.25 sacks per game, if you add in QB hits, then New Orleans have hit Brady on average, 10.75 times a game.

That is a lot of punishment on a QB in his mid-40’s and that is one of the main reasons the Saints have had so much success in this matchup.

Now that context has been provided, let’s take a look at how the Bucs are looking entering this game.

Their O-line is missing some key pieces, all-pro center Ryan Jensen is possibly out for the season and trusted vet LT Donavon Smith could also miss this game, even if he does play it’s likely that he will be in some pain with is elbow. They also have a rookie 2nd rounder starting at LG, who allowed 3 pressures and 3 hurries week 1 Vs the Cowboys per PFF. It seems like the Bucs line can be exploited.

Brady will help by getting the ball out quickly, making it harder for the rush to get home but that does mean shots down the field might be harder for Brady to execute if he doesn’t have time to let the play develop.

The Saints D-line struggled to create pressure week 1 Vs Atlanta, PFF chart the Saints as having 4 hurries and 1 QB hit in that game. That won’t nearly cut it against Brady.

However, this matchup suits the Saints d-line much more. Last week the game plan was to keep contain and make sure there wasn’t easy running lanes for Mariota to escape the pocket. That means the Saints rushers couldn’t truly rush.

With Brady, there is no threat to run that means the Saints can pin their ears back and go after Brady. Which with the Bucs lesser o-line should be a receipt for success.

If the Saints are without Paulson Adebo for a second straight week, the Saints will need to pass rush to produce.

Saints Run Defense

Last week the Saints struggled against a very creative running game. Not just against a very mobile Marcus Mariota but Cordarrelle Patterson gashed them as well.

This week is a much more traditional running game, but a no less successful one. The Bucs ran the ball at will Vs the Cowboys in week 1.

If the Saints d-line, especially the interior struggle again this week it causes very significant issues to how the Saints want to defend Tampa.

Last season the Saints could stop the run in NICKEL, meaning they only had 2 LBs and 5 DBS on the field. This a huge advantage against a team like Tampa. It means that you have another capable defender against the pass. Rather than a slower less capable LB that Brady can exploit.

Last week against Atlanta, the Saints had to switch to their base defense (3LBs) to try and help stop the run.

If they have to do the same this week, it gives Brady a big matchup advantage. As good as Kaden Ellis has played from the SAM LB spot. You really don’t want him on the field for significant snaps because Brady will move players around to isolate them on him or another LB, with 3 LBs on the field it’s a lot easier to that.

Secondly if you can’t stop the run, play-action starts to become a much more credible threat. Brady is a machine when running play-action. Last season Brady completed 96 passes from play-action for 1211 yards, 14 TDs and 2 interceptions good for a 115.4 passer rating and was successful in a small sample size week 1.

The Saints must go back to old ways this week where stopping the run is concerned, otherwise Brady will have a much easier time picking them apart.

The Shutdown Matchups

Marshon Lattimore Vs Mike Evans (if he plays, he will. they always do against the Saints) and Carlton Davis Vs Michael Thomas. These are 2 of the juiciest CB Vs WR matchups in the league. Not just because it’s a matchup of 4 very good players, also because these players simply really don’t like each other.

There’s not holding back in these matchups and the difference between these CB/WR matchups compared to others is these CBs generally do travel. Lattimore and Davis try to matchup with Evans and Thomas on as many plays as possible.

For the most part, the CBs have had most of the success. See below from ESPN who give detail on just how much these players face off against each other.

Fantasy football 2022 Week 2 – Best and worst WR/CB matchups (espn.com)

For the Saints to win, coming out on the right side of these matchups will go a long way to achieving that.

State Of The Rosters

Time to review who will play and who will not and discuss some other key points to take from the final injury report (below).

Saints– Alvin Kamara being listed as questionable is the biggest surprise here, after being limited earlier in the week, Kamara did not practice on Thursday or Friday, this is usually a sign that he would be ruled for Sunday. If he does its likely to be a limited role. I don’t think not having Kamara is as big of a deal in this matchup compared to others. The Bucs usually play Kamara well and I think the Saints strength in this game is with the WR matchup.

I think not having Adebo for this game hurts more than Kamara, even with Chris Godwin not playing the Bucs still have plenty of receiving options. With Adebo back the Saints would have been been able to have their desired starting CBs on the outside, allowing Roby to move back into the slot, in a game where pure coverage skill is what the Saints require. Adebo being back would have allowed the Saints to field their best 3 cover corners.

In regards to the other players listed as ‘questionable’ there seems to be no concern over Jameis Winston and Mark Ingram’s status after being limited all week. I am interested to see if Dwayne Washington or Tre’Quan Smith are active after missing last weeks game.

Bucs– Godwin being out was already pretty much a forgone conclusion. The biggest question entering this final injury report was Mike Evans and Julio Jones’ statuses, after being limited on Wednesday, both were downgraded to DNP. This is usually a sign of a setback. After returning in a limited capacity on Friday, I expect them both to play, though it will be interesting to how healthy they are.

Donovan Smith being listed as doubtful, is interesting. Earlier in the week Todd Bowles said this was going to be a pain management thing for Smith. So this appears to be a true game time decision and a huge one at that. Marcus Davenport against a back up tackle yes please!!!.

Score Prediction

With the Saints d-line having a more static target to aim at this week I think we see a far more improved version of them and see some meaningful pressure on Brady. I especially look for Marcus Davenport to have a dominate game.

With Paulson Adebo out and a lot of new faces starting, I think the Saints secondary struggles a bit more than in previous games. I think Brady will make some big throws with a least a couple of 30+ yard completions but I think the Saints hold firm in the redzone to force some field goals.

Overall, this is of course a tough matchup, regardless of how well the Saints have done in previous meetings. Crucially I think the Saints passing offense is far better than it was in most of those games, and I think Winston and his crew of weapons do just enough in this one.

Score-28-26 Saints Win                                                                                                                        

I will be previewing and recapping of all the New Orleans Saints games this season on New Orleans Saints – Full10Yards

Please let me know your feedback on this article and the others throughout the season, I’m always looking to improve and add things that people want to read about!

I want to try and create as much of a UK Saints community as possible, so follow me on Twitter @SaintsReportUK, for much more Saints content and discussion.

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Saints Win, Recapping The Saints Week 1 Win Over The Falcons Quarter By Quarter.

Embed from Getty Images

Somehow the Saints are leaving week 1, 1-0. With 13:40 left in the 4th quarter the Falcons had a 97.6% chance to win this game according to Next Gen Stats and to some fans giving the Saints a 2.4% chance to win seemed too generous. So, quarter by quarter lets see how New Orleans mounted an unbelievable comeback.

Before going into the breakdown, I wanted to start with an admission. I was wrong, in my preview of this game I made a mistake. I predicted this game based on conventional wisdom and logic. What I should have done was predicted this game based on my years of Saints fandom. This game was ludicrous, as a lot of Saints and more specifically Saints-Falcons games are, especially week 1. I should have known better and will try to not make the same error again!  

Now I’ve got that off my chest lets move onto the breakdown.

Quarter 1

The Saints struggles were clear straight from the opening Atlanta drive. They couldn’t contain the Falcon’s creative running game. Marcus Mariota looked really good on this drive with two 11 yard runs and 1 of 5 yards. Before the Saints defense finally stiffened up after the Falcons inexplicably decided to pass and forcing a field goal.

Unfortunately, this opening drive was an ominous sign of things to come for Saints fans.

Two of my Saint’s breakout candidates for this season featured on the first offense drive. Unfortunately, one is Juwan Johnson who looked to be held on a third down incompletion (more on Johnson later) and the other? Punter Blake Gillikin as the Saints wen three and out quickly. Gillikin did boom an excellent 58-yard punt, that with better punt coverage from Alontae Taylor (who flashed multiple times as a gunner today), would have pinned the Falcons around their own 10-yard line.

More on my 3 Saints breakout candidates here-Three Saints Players That Could Breakout In 2022 (whodathype.com)

The Saints’ defense was much better on the 2nd Atlanta drive, 2 good plays by Marcus Maye, one on what appeared to be a run blitz, he nearly stopped Damien Williams for a loss but couldn’t quite make the tackle, leaving Cam Jordan to clean up the tackle for no gain, after a deep incompletion to Patterson. Maye again made a good play of 3rd down; he quickly recognised a WR screen and broke on it to stop the play for a minimal gain and got the Saints defense off the field.

The ensuing offensive drive was much more promising for New Orleans, they marched 77 yards on 5 plays, taking just 2 Minutes and 2 seconds to punch it in for a touchdown. The success of this drive was down to Taysom Hill and a little help from his friends. Hill started with a 57-yard rumble on 3rd and 1, Hill showed great vision and power on the run juking and stiff arming a Falcon defender on route. Hill did have a massive hole to run through though with great blocks from FB Adam Prentice, LG Andrus Peat who pulled over to the right side and TE’s Adam Trautman and Juwan Johnson.

Hill capped of the drive with another strong 11-yard touchdown run again to the right side, with an even better block from TE Juwan Johnson, he drove his man to sideline, shoutout to Mark Ingram for leading the way as essentially the FB on the play and Erik McCoy showed why the Saints signed him to a new 5 year deal this week, by getting to the second level with ease to clear the backend of the defense.

The momentum was all Saints after this drive, with the next play from scrimmage being a great FF by Peter Werner giving the Saints the ball back in good position at the Atlanta 43.

Pete Werner forces a fumble! – YouTube

Unfortunately, after 2 good Mark Ingram runs (7 and 6 yards) the offense stalled, at this stage of the game the Saints’ passing offense was completely out of sync.  Winston completed 2 of his 6-passing attempts for 6 yards.

This could have been down to Winston’s missed time with his new teammates in the offseason? This could have been Pete Carmichael finding his feet as the play caller? or a mix of both. It also didn’t help the O-line was struggling in pass protection, a theme that would continue (more on that later).  Either way it wasn’t working.

To add to the offensive woes, Will Lutz bonked the 44-yard filed goal attempt of the left upright. Meaning no points off the Atlanta turnover and this spelt a major change in the momentum of this game.

1st / 2nd Quarter  

After the miss, Atlanta went to work on a bully ball 9 play, 66-yard touchdown drive which started at the end of the 1st quarter and ended in the 2nd. Atlanta ran the ball right at the Saints front, Patterson accounted for 53 of the 66 total yards all on the ground. The Saints were missing tackles and did not seem like the same team that had dominated against the run in the 4 years prior. Atlanta took their first lead of the game.

2nd Quarter

This quarter was much of the same after the Falcons touchdown drive. The Saints did show some resistance against the run in the Falcons next drive. But that was short lived.

Meanwhile the passing attack of the Saints was completely out of rhythm and couldn’t get anything going. There were players open but the pass protection could not hold up, especially when the Falcons blitzed. Both James Hurst and Cesar Ruiz gave up quick sacks, killing drives where players were open, Winston just had no time to get the ball out. The Saints gave up 3 sacks in this quarter and 1.5 of those were to Grady Jarrett (a player I highlighted in the game preview).

The Falcons managed 2 field goal drives mainly led by Mariota and Patterson on the ground. With a big completion to rookie Drake London mixed in there for good measure. Saints went into half time in disarray and down 16-7.

3rd Quarter

The Saints started with the ball and showed signs of life. Alvin Kamara started the drive with a nice 5-yard run, his best gain of the day so far. Chris Olave had his first catch of his NFL career with a crucial 11-yard catch on 3rd and 4 to keep the drive alive.

Taysom Hill had another solid 9-yard gain at this point Hill was still looking like the best weapon the Saints had. The passing game started to click, with Michael Thomas finally getting his first catch after being targeted 2 times previously.

The protection issues ultimately let them down, with a big 9-yard loss on a sack from Mykal Walker on, yet again another unpicked-up blitz.

The Saints did manage a 49-yard field goal. After a good gain on 3rd down to Chris Olave. This was needed for Lutz after the miss earlier.

Just when it looked like the Saints could build some momentum, the Falcons marched down the field for a touchdown. Aided by Marcus Maye picking up a pass interference penalty on a pass intended for Olamide Zaccheaus, placing the ball at the Saints 2-yard line.  Zaccheaus was a pest this drive having 2 catches for 20 yards before forcing the PI. The Falcons punched it in with a Mariota run up the gut.

The next offensive series started well and ended in disaster. A nice 15-yard gain on the ground for Kamara to start, ending with Winston avoiding pressure on 3rd down again, desperately shovelling the ball to Ingram who tried to make something happen and fumbled right back to the Falcons.

With a short field the Falcons offense looked to land the decisive blow, with a pass to the London and Mariota scramble the Falcons were inside the red zone. The Saints finally got pressure on Mariota, he escaped and scrambled towards the 5-yard line, a typical play for Saints fans considering how the game was going. When a turning point play came to the rescue, and it was made by the 2 free agent safeties Tyrann Mathieu and Marcus Maye. Mathieu pulled one of Mariota’s arms of the ball and Marcus Maye punched it out, with Mathieu falling on it. It was a textbook play by the veteran duo.

It went from being first and goal at the Saints 5- yard line, already down by 13 to 1st and 10 with no points added to Atlanta’s lead.

Now, this was just the start of the change in momentum, the offense didn’t quite come to the party just yet. The Saints went 3 and out in only 3 plays from the ensuing possession. Saints fans figured the fumble was just a way to give the fans hope and a way for the team to play with their emotions, with the offense still stuck in neutral.

On a slightly brighter side all the punts did give us a chance to see 2nd round pick Alontae Taylor as a gunner, he was really impressive getting down the field in a hurry, just needs to work on finishing the play at the end, after missing a couple of tackles. Also, Blake Gillikin is still a stud.

3rd/4th Quarter

The Falcons got the ball back with 1 minute 40 left in the 3rd quarter on the 50-yard line, after a nice 18-yard return from Avery Williams. Giving them another short field with the chance to put the game to bed with a touchdown.

At this point the Saints seemed so scared against the run they were playing a lot of base defense (4-3) and were still struggling to stop the Falcons rushing attack.  They were quickly inside New Orleans’ 10-yard line after an 18-yard pass to KhaDarel Hodge. Crucially the defense held with help from a Falcons false start and stiff bend but don’t break redzone defense. Forcing Atlanta to settle for a short field goal to go up 26-10 with 12:41 to go in the fourth.

4th Quarter

Now, this where the Saints offense came to the party. OC Pete Carmichael went to the hurry up offense, a staple of Sean Payton’s tenure and it appears Sneaky Pete isn’t too shabby at calling it either.

Starting with a huge 26-yard connection to my guy TE Juwan Johnson, 15-yard pass to Kamara. A beautiful bomb across the middle to Jarvis Landry. Capped off by a bullet pass on a fade route to Michael Thomas in the endzone, we didn’t know yet that would light a fire in CantGuardMike. Just like that, 5 plays 74 yards in just 1 minute and 29 seconds. The Saints finished the perfect drive, at the perfect time, with the perfect 2-point play. A beautiful play design and route by Chris Olave.

For more on where the Saints got this play, see this thread on twitter from NOLA.com writer Luke Johnson: https://twitter.com/bylukejohnson/status/1569090487381893120?s=46&t=pjr8dFRYhDSX-6V-52acFg

Falcons are still up 26-18 with 11:06 left to go. Surely, they can’t blow another big lead, in the 4th quarter, can they? Well…. Let’s see, shall we? They started well and worked they up to their own 45-yard line with a mix of run and pass, the Saints had started to stiffen up against the run which was promising. The Saints’ defense managed to force a punt after a 3rd and 3 run stop by Shy Tuttle and Cameron Jordan.

Getting the ball back on their own 14-yard line, with 07:04 to go. On came a defiant Jameis Winston and the buoyant Saints offense. Starting with a reception from an Ohio State Buckeye (Chris Olave) and ending with a catch from an Ohio State Buckeye (Michael Thomas) Jameis Winston looked locked in, with the Saints completing their longest drive of the game going 86 yards in 8 plays and crucially only taking 3 minutes 27 of the clock. Thomas, Olave, and Landry all looked excellent on this drive, Thomas especially looking back to his best with 3 catches for 50 yards and a TD on the drive.

Unfortunately, the 2-point try this time was not as successful with a direct snap to Mark Ingram going nowhere, you have to wonder why this didn’t go to Taysom Hill? Leaving the Saints down 2, with 03:38 left.

Falcons started strong, rushing for 21 yards on the first 3 plays (Mariota and Patterson again!) the Saints used their first timeout after the 3rd run, leaving 02:03 on the clock. Pete Werner (who had an overall excellent game, 13 tackles, 1 TFL and a FF) made a crucial play to drop Mariota for a loss on 2nd down as the 2-minute warning hit.

With clock stopped at 01:59 the officials decided they weren’t getting enough attention and decided to call a weak defensive holding on Marshon Lattimore on 3rd down, after Mariota air mailed a ball down field nowhere near anyone. Giving the Falcons a fresh set of downs with 01:52 remaining. Ball placed on the Atlanta 49, crucially the Saints had one timeout remaining, stuffed Patterson for minimal gain on first down. 2nd and 9 Mariota nearly get a first down with an 8-yard scamper, leaving it down to 3rd and 1 at the Saints 42.

Mariota fumbled the snap, recovered it but only enough to get back to the line of scrimmage. Hope was still alive for the Saints.

At their own 20-yard line the Saints had 48 seconds left with no timeouts. Winston produced the throw of the game a 40-yard completion to Jarvis Landry down the left sideline, a perfect throw and it needed to be with 2 Falcons defenders in the area. Landry made a spectacular play caught it and ran for a few more yards, before going out of bounds.

The Saints rushed to the Atlanta 40-yard line, to try and spike it as they believed Landry had been ruled down by contact inbounds, meaning the clock was still running. The Saints got set and spiked it, then a flag. The refs had ruled that Landry was not touched and had got out of bounds, meaning when Winston spike the ball inside the pocket, it was actually intentional grounding. Meaning the Saints lost 10 yards and lost a down. This was a confusing sequence, and it appears the refs got it wrong as Landry was touched his way to the ground.

Alas, the Saints completed one more pass the Juwan Johnson for 17 yards. With no timeouts, Winston rushed to spike the ball again, believing he had one more down, due to the intentional grounding this now meant it was 4th and 4 after the spike not 3rd and 4 as Winston seemed to believe. Winston had just given the Falcons a chance to keep one of their timeouts and left 23 seconds on the clock.

Will ‘Big Nutz’ Lutz as he’s known in Saints world drilled the 51-yard attempt to give the Saints the lead 27-26.

Saints’ fans including me, were nervous, we’ve seen this movie before, and we don’t like the ending. With 19 seconds left and all 3 timeouts, the Falcons started at their own 25-yard line. Following 2 straight incompletions, it was 3rd and 10. The Saints got to Mariota and caused a fumble. Typically, the refs blow the play dead, saying the Falcons had called a timeout prior to the snap.

Try again, this time a 1st down completion to Patterson the Falcons weren’t done yet, they used their 2nd timeout. 6 seconds to go the pass was complete for 5 yards and the clock hit zero. That was it the Saints had pulled off the epic 4th quarter comeback. Wait, hang on, nope the refs again after some time, intervened. Stating the Falcons had called a timeout with 2 seconds left. Not only that but they had also judged a 15-yard unnecessary roughness penalty on Marshon Lattimore (admittingly it was a bad play from Lattimore).

Meaning it all came down to this, ‘Mr Automatic’ Younghoe Koo. Had a chance from 63-yards out to snatch victory away from the Saints in heart-breaking fashion.

But there was one final twist, the kick left Koo’s foot at a low trajectory due to the distance and it’s blocked by Peyton Turner! Saints Win and this time it counted!

Conclusion

The Saints came back when they had no business doing so and in true Saints fashion gave all their fans all they could handle.

I tweeted at halftime that this was a game the Saints just needed to find a way to win, and they did just that, with a bit of help from the Falcons yet again blowing a double-digit 4th quarter lead.

Finally, shoutout @ATLFalconsUK who had this glorious twitter exchange with me during the 3rd quarter!

The Saints will need to be a lot better next week in the home opener against the Bucs. But, if the team from the 4th quarter shows up all game/season long. This is going to be a fun one.

I will be previewing of all and recapping all of the New Orleans Saints games this season on New Orleans Saints – Full10Yards

Please let me know your feedback on this article and the rest throughout the season, I’m always looking to improve and add things that people want to read about. I will back later in the week to preview Bucs@ Saints, so please keep an eye out for that.

I want to create as much of a UK Saints community as possible, so please follow me on Twitter @SaintsReportUK, for much more Saints content and discussion