Tag: NFL

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Week 8: Rookie Standouts

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We’re almost at the halfway point of the season, and as expected, many rookies are getting opportunities due to trades, injuries, and inconsistent form. Here are three rookies that stood out this week.

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Isaiah Likely, Tight End – Baltimore Ravens

As discussed in my first ever Full10Yards article, Isaiah Likely was the Ravens’ second tight end drafted on Day 3, but in minicamp and OTAs, he had already started to separate himself from the pack. The biggest issue that Likely would face, though, is being behind two-time pro bowler and all-pro Mark Andrews.

So, when Andrews, who was already dealing with a knee injury, landed awkwardly on his shoulder and was ruled out after 10 snaps, it was Likely’s time to shine, and shine he did. Likely slotted straight into Andrews’ shoes, catching six of his seven targets for 77 yards and a touchdown, in which he showed great body control to keep himself in bounds. With Andrews now dealing with multiple injuries, this breakout couldn’t have come at a better time for the Ravens.

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Malcolm Rodriguez, Linebacker – Detroit Lions

The Lions are currently sitting at the bottom of the pile in the NFL overall standings, and despite some initial optimism spurred on by their stint on NFL Network’s Hard Knocks, they look to be yet again not getting anywhere near the postseason.

It’s not all doom and gloom, however, as Aiden Hutchinson has already made this list before, and though production has slowed, he’s still been a disruptive force. Now you can add Hard Knocks’ favourite Malcolm Rodriguez to the list.

He was arguably the best defensive player for the Lions in Sunday’s loss to the Miami Dolphins, as he recorded his first-ever NFL sack, jointly led the team with seven tackles, and recovered a fumble forced by fellow rookie Kerby Joseph.

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Garrett Wilson, Wide Receiver – New York Jets

With questions swirling about the future of Jets quarterback Zach Wilson after another rough showing, it’s another Wilson who took the headlines this week. Garrett Wilson made the most of his limited targets (seven) and showed exactly why he should be the team’s number 1 receiver and should be targeted more often, especially seeing as the Jets threw the ball 41 times.

Against a New England Patriots cornerback unit that includes rookies Jack Jones and Marcus Jones, both of whom are in the top ten for the lowest completion rate, Wilson took his lowly seven targets, caught six of them, and recorded an impressive 115 yards, making him the 2nd Jets rookie ever to have two 100 yard plus games in a season, behind Ring of Honor member Al Toon.

Honorable Mentions

Sauce Gardner (New York Jets), Greg Dulcich (Denver Broncos), Martin Emerson (Cleveland Browns), Ikem Ekwonu (Carolina Panthers), Tomon Fox (New York Giants)

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Five Things: Week 8 – New York Giants at Seattle Seahawks

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With the Giants falling to an uninspiring 27-13 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, they can still go into their bye week holding their heads up high thanks to their surprising 6-2 record. Let’s look at five things that stood out:

Mistakes Punished

When you are part of a team that has won five of its six wins this year by less than a score, you need to make sure that the fundamentals are sound, and the mistakes are kept to a minimum. Unfortunately, that was not the case on Sunday, and ultimately, it cost the Giants the game.

Though there were mistakes that led to penalties, coverage issues, and protection, the one that basically ended things for the Giants was a second fumble off a punt by Richie James. After catching the punt on the 21-yard line, James decided to return it up the field. He collided with a crowd, but instead of securing the ball with both hands, he cupped it with one and the ball broke loose again. The already leading Seahawks took the gift and bought their offence back out on the 32-yard line. Two plays later, Kenneth Walker III took advantage of some lackluster defending to walk in for the game’s last score.

Up and Down Adoree

If Adoree Jackson had come out of the game at the end of the third quarter, you probably could have said he was the best Giant out there today. Carrying on his pro bowl caliber start to the season, he had a couple of pass breakups and single-handedly helped the Giants get their first points on the board after he caused a Tyler Lockett fumble, which he recovered at the two-yard line. Unfortunately, what followed in the fourth quarter was not the high standards that Jackson holds himself to.

For starters, he was completely outrun on a 33-yard pass from ex-Giant Geno Smith that Lockett was unable to secure for what would have been a walk-in touchdown. The Giants survived, and Seattle settled for a field goal. Lockett, however, made sure he had his revenge on the next Seattle drive. He hit him with a double move and breezed into the endzone, but this time he secured the ball for the go-ahead touchdown.

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Return to the Field

If there was one heart-warming moment from Sunday’s game, it was the return of Giants offensive lineman Nick Gates. Early in the 2021 season against Washington Gates suffered such a horrific leg break that NFL refused to show any replays of it. What followed was a grueling 410 days in which Gates would go through seven total surgeries due to complications and would even be told that he could end up facing amputation. Once he was passed that even his gritty determined attitude shone through as he vowed to return to the field this season and he stuck to his promise.

Though Gates only suited up for five snaps across the total sixty-five taken by the offense you could see that the former captains’ hunger had not wavered in the slightest. Due to the length of time, he has been out, there was bound to be some “field rust” so the Giants were clever using his only as a jumbo tight end to assist with blocking.  He did make one key block however in the touchdown run by Saquon Barkley and despite ending up on his back celebrated by kicking and punching the air like an excited turtle. Redemption achieved.

Gano and Gillan

With the special teams unit having a nightmare with the two fumbles as well as poor coverage on both kick and punt returns (when it was returned), the offence not really clicking in the ground or air game and the defence struggling with the Seahawks wide receivers despite being able to sack Smith three times, you would be hard pressed to find any players that shone, but there were and it’s likely to be the two players you want to see the least.

Graham Gano continued to be pretty much automatic with his field goal attempts as he made both his attempts, one from 31 yards and the other from 45 yards. Gano this season has made 17 of his 19 attempts and is a perfect 4 for 4 kicking from over 50 yards.

His kicking buddy Jamie Gillan had what was probably his best punting game this season as he punted for an average of 53.7 yards on six punts, including downing two inside the 20 and one 69-yard boomer that was almost downed at the one.

The Tomonator

With the injuries piling up for the Giants, the rookie class from this year has been thrust into the limelight, and luckily for the Giants, most of them have been able to make plays when called upon. Although there were slow days for Wan’Dale Robinson and Kayvon Thibodeaux, there were two such rookies that had stellar days.

Fifth rounder Micah McFadden had slowly seen his snap count decrease over the last three weeks to the point where he had made none in the last two, but he had a breakout game here, recording his first career sack along with four tackles (one for a loss). However, there was one rookie that stood above all the others.

Tomon Fox, the Georgia native who went undrafted as a free agent, was tied for the team lead on tackles with eight and had to two tackles for a loss despite only playing 27 of the 64 snaps the defense faced. It’s extremely likely that if he continues to play this way, his role will increase dramatically.

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Five Takeaways From A Perfect New Orleans Saints Win Against The Raiders

This was the team the Saints fanbase expected to see this season an efficient offense led by Alvin Kamara. A stifling defense led by an aggressive pass rush and a physical, playmaking secondary. 

The Saints beat the Raiders 24-0 on Sunday, therefore there are plenty of things to take from this game that could show the Saints are starting to turn a corner and could make a significant run at the NFC South division title.

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Is the Secondary Fixed? 

Once the strength of this defense, the secondary has not been that so far this season, after Sunday’s game against the Raiders has that changed? not just yet but Sunday was a very encouraging start.

After giving up the most big plays in the league through seven weeks one good performance doesn’t change the narrative but this performance certainly helps and if it continues the Saints secondary will be the dominant force we all expected.

Dennis Allen-led defenses have taken a while previously to get going, generally playing a lot better in the second half of the season than in the first. That could be the case here as well. Allen famously struggled with Malcolm Jenkins’ role after the Saints brought him back, but once they figured it out later in the season the defense took a big step. 

That could easily be the case with Tyrann Mathieu, he looks to be playing a lot more around the line scrimmage rather than back-deep, with Maye taking more of the deep safety responsibilities and that fits Mathieu’s skill set a lot more at this stage of his career. This role allows Mathieu to roam and make plays which is exactly what he did in this game, with an interception and a dropped pick-six after he broke on a route and just couldn’t make the catch.

The second massive improvement has been the rookie second-round pick, Alontae Taylor starting at outside corner. Taylor has been nothing short of excellent on the outside, in his two games so far he’s played significant snaps against DeAndre Hopkins and Davante Adams and barely given up catches to either (zero catches on three targets against Adams this week). Taylor competes like hell on every rep and is always making plays on the ball. 

When Lattimore comes back he and Taylor will be a scary tandem on the outside if Taylor continues to play this way.

DA also has more of his starting players in the secondary back which appears to be helping massively, in previous weeks he’s not been able to be as aggressive as he planned with depth players playing meaningful snaps, even more, reinforcements should be in the way. P.J. Williams is expected to return from IR this week and Marson Lattimore is expected back this week or maybe the week after.

The D-Line Played Its Best Game Of The Season

The Saints defensive line was flat-out dominant yesterday against the Raiders, per PFF they had 22 total pressures on Sunday ( 5 sacks, 5 QB hits and 12 pressures) which is 6 more pressures than their season best and pressured Derek Carr on 41.4% of his dropbacks, that was largely due to stellar play up front.

This dominance was in large part due to some new faces stepping up. Payton Turner had 5 total pressures which included 2 sacks. one of those sacks is explained here, it was a really smart play from the second-year player, which is really encouraging to see. (https://twitter.com/dlinevids1/status/1586801847653703680?s=46&t=DaCVhJvxXdNAfvdEekywFA) 

David Onyemata had 3 pressures including 1 sack. Shy Tuttle chipped in with 2 pressures, Malcolm Roach had 1 although it seemed like he had more. These are all players that weren’t stepping up earlier in the season, especially Turner, fingers crossed this is a career-changing game that gives him the confidence to push on and show why the Saints drafted him in the first round a year ago.

Marcus Davenport looked to have one of his more dominant games with an emphatic TFL on 3rd and 1 to deny a jet sweep attempt to Adams.

(https://www.neworleanssaints.com/video/marcus-davenport-davante-adams-saints-raiders-2022-week-8-nfl-highlights) 

He also had a sack wiped away because of a defensive holding penalty and he looked like he was around Carr all day, somehow PFF only charted him with 1 pressure. We will agree to disagree on that one, Davenport looked dominant all game.

The D-line didn’t just dominate in rushing the passer, they also returned to their old ways against the run, Josh Jacobs rushed for 441 yards in the three games before Sunday. The Saints held him to 43 yards, apart from one rogue 16-yard run, that stat line would have looked even better, there were still some missed tackles which you saw on Jacobs 16-yard run, but for the most part, it looked much better this week. There seemed to be an emphasis on swarming to the ball, something the dominant Saints defenses in the previous year have prided themselves on.

If this version of the d-line turns up every week this defense will be one that strikes fear into every opponent and the Saints will win a lot more games than they lose down the stretch.

Andy Dalton Looks To Be The Right Choice At QB

Dalton isn’t perfect, he was lucky not to be picked off yesterday on a very strange pass down the right sideline, other than that throw Dalton does all the right things that this offense needs.

He gets the ball out quickly, he recognises the blitz and doesn’t let it beat him and most importantly he feeds the team’s playmakers with every opportunity. 

Alvin Kamara is back to old ways with Dalton at QB (More on Ak shortly) I firmly believe Dalton’s ability to distribute the ball to his playmakers on time in rhythm is the reason he stayed the starter. This is something Winston has still not proven to be able to do.

Dalton finished with a 73.3% completion percentage that would have been even better if not for 2 drops, on very catchable passes by Chris Olave and Taysom Hill.

Since Dalton has taken over as the starter in week 4 the Saints are sixth in the league in EPA per play, with the weapons the Saints have all they need from their QB is efficiency and limited mistakes, Dalton provided that in spades yesterday.

The Saints O-Line Is Really Really Good

In my matchups to watch article, I highlighted the need to keep Maxx Crosby in check, the Saints more than achieved that, the Saints held Crosby to zero pressures,. Crosby was still effective in the run game, and had 5 total stops per PFF (Defensive Stops – tackles that constitute a “failure” for the offense) . But those stats lines are a win for any o-line against a player like Crosby.

The Saints line only gave up 2 pressures all game and these were only pressures, Dalton was not touched at all.

The Saints running game was a focal point of the offense again and that was because of the offensive line. They bullied the Raiders up front, and the Saints ended the day with 32 rushes for 136 yards, averaging 4.3 YPC.  Those stats would have looked a lot better if not for some obvious runs at the end of the game going for very little as the Saints were running out the clock.

This line is a serious reason for optimism for years to come- more on that here https://whodathype.com/2022/10/26/saints-offensive-line-in-dark-season/ 

They were excellent again today, especially RG Cesar Ruiz and RT Ryan Ramczyk who like one of the best right sides of an o-line in the league.

Alvin Kamara Is The Best Player On The Team

Alvin Kamara Stepped up this week in more ways than one, not just with a vintage AK performance (158 total yards and three TDs) but he stepped up as the team’s leader in the locker room.

AK gave a spirited speech in the locker room after the loss to Arizona last Thursday and again spoke up throughout the week in the media. DA committed after the game that he stepped up as every great leader does with actions not just words.

He was the best player on the field on Sunday two his third touchdown (a 36-yard catch) was prime Kamara as he split the Raiders defense and he didn’t even look like he got out of third gear. 

All three of AK’s TDs here- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGG3OyqzWq8

Kamara is the heartbeat of this team and he should stay that way for years to come.

Conclusion 

This was the best-case scenario for the Saints coming out of their ‘mini bye’ they didn’t get the players back they hoped but produced their best performance of the season which gives the team and their fans hope.

The Saints now have another long week, with the next game on Monday night Vs the Ravens, with the hope they will get more key players back and make a real push for the NFC South title.

For more Saints articles- https://www.full10yards.co.uk/saints/ 

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 and Instagram @SaintsReportUK, for much more Saints content and discussion.

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NFL Halloween Special

We’re in Week 8 of the NFL season and it’s also Halloween weekend. So that feels as good a time as any to take stock and assess how everyone’s doing. Who’s scaring the living daylights out of the opposition? Who is spooking us out with their unexpected success? Who’s full of tricks and treats? For a bit of fun, I’m seeing which costume some of our favourite players and coaches should be dressing up in this weekend…

WEREWOLF – Carson Wentz

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On a normal Sunday afternoon, one particular quarterback is a mild-mannered individual and doesn’t really get – or deserve – much of our attention. But at night, under the bright lights of a primetime night game, he’s a man possessed, a beast howling at the full moon. And I’m talking about Washington’s Carson Wentz.

Wentz’s all-round stats are fairly middle of the road so far. After six games, he’s 18th in passing yards and 9th in touchdown passes, and he has thrown the fourth-most interceptions. But back in Week 6, on Thursday Night Football, the Commanders beat the Chicago Bears 12-7. As the score suggests, it was an absolute dog of a game and Wentz only mustered 12 of 22 for a measly 99 yards. However, don’t let that take away from the fact that the victory took Wentz’s record on TNF to 7-0: that’s the best Thursday night stats across any career in NFL history!

His previous six Ws all came while at Philadelphia, with whom he beat the Giants (x3), Jets, Panthers and Packers – averaging over 240 yards and boasting an impressive 15:2 touchdown to interception ratio. So Carson Wentz is the GOAT (of Thursday Night Football). Barking.

WIZARD – Joe Burrow

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The Cincinnati offense got off to a slow start this year, dropping to 0-2 with an all-new O-line that needed time to gel and a quarterback recovering from an urgent off-season appendectomy. But the 4-3 Bengals have taken four wins from the last five, and are now starting to look more like last year’s model than the less-impressive 2019 and 2020 editions.

The latest two-game spell, in which they scored 65 points against the Saints and Falcons, has seen Burrow in magical form, going 62 of 79 (78.4%) for 781 yards, six passing touchdowns and two rushing scores. Four of those passing TDs went for over 30 yards, with two going for 60.

Like a professor at Hogwarts, one flick of Burrow’s wand seems to make amazing things happen at the moment, so let’s see what sorcery he can provide against divisional rivals Cleveland on Monday’s Halloween Night special. He could conjure up another high-scoring win or it could all go up in a big cloud of smoke now that Ja’Marr Chase is out with a fractured hip.

ZOMBIE – Nathaniel Hackett

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Poor old Nathaniel. Everyone has such high hopes for Denver this year, with their high-octane attack being rounded out with the arrival of Seattle QB Russell Wilson in a blockbuster trade. But things have not gone well and, at the time of writing, there’s a real chance they could fall to 2-6 with a loss to the Jaguars at Wembley today.

Hackett is an offensively minded coach, having been an OC at Green Bay, Buffalo and today’s opponents Jacksonville, yet his offense has spluttered and fizzled. He’s taken stick for bad clock management (I wonder if he remembered to change his clocks last night) and his team rank dead last in points scored per game.

Broncos GM George Paton publicly gave his “100% support” a few days ago but more worryingly, CEO Greg Penner stopped short of guaranteeing the under-fire first-time HC will see the season out. Unless things turn round dramatically, Hackett feels like a dead man walking.

GHOST – Micah Parsons

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If you’re an opposing HC or OC, the last thing you want to see is Micah Parsons appearing out of nowhere to take your QB down. The Dallas Cowboy won Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2021 and earned First-Team All-Pro and Pro Bowl honors. His speed and strength helped him tally 13 sacks, 30 QB hits, 20 TFLs, three forced fumbles and three passes defended last years, and he’s already on pace to improve all those marks this year, with eight sacks, 14 QB hits, nine TFLs, two forced fumbles and two passes defended in just seven games. The guy’s a banshee.

His positional versality means that Parsons has a spooky habit of ghosting in undetected. This weekend, the interior linebacker goes in search of Bears rockslinger Justin Fields, the most-sacked QB in the league (27 in seven games). I have a feeling Fields will be haunted by Parsons all night.

DR FRANKENSTEIN – Brian Daboll

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There’s no doubt that Brian Daboll, the first-year Head Coach of the New York Giants, has had a monster start to the season. After the departures of GM Dave Gettleman and HC Joe Judge, it seemed like the former Bills OC was inheriting a bit of a mess. And yet he’s managed to take all the disparate components that were lying about and cobble them into a 6-1 team, their best start in 13 years. Other than Saquon Barkley, the cast is hardly stellar – Daniel Jones, Sterling Sheppard, Darius Slayton, Richie James, Daniel Bellinger – and yet he’s made the whole noticeably greater than the sum of its parts

Admittedly, he didn’t have to do much to be an improvement on Judge, but it appears his communication and relationship-building skills lie at the heart of the team’s transformation. Remember, this franchise went 4-13 last year, their fifth straight season with double-digit losses, and finished dead last in the NFC East.

With four 4th-quarter comebacks under his belt already, he’s definitely given this corpse of a franchise a jolt. No wonder he’s second favourite in the Coach of the Year stakes, just behind the (unbeaten) Eagles’ Nick Sirianni.

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5 things to look out for in Week 8

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Week 8 sees Josh Allen and Aaron Rodgers meet on SNF, and the Jacksonville Jaguars return to London

1. Russell Wilson will start for the Broncos against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Wembley

Denver Broncos QB Russell Wilson is good to go on Sunday in London, after missing last week’s home game against the New York Jets with a hamstring injury.

Both the Broncos and the Jaguars are 2-5 but aren’t out of the playoff hunt just yet, one win may be the catapult needed to make a late push.

The Wilson-less Broncos were second-best in Sunday’s loss, whilst Jacksonville fell short in a close game at home to the Giants.

2. The New York Jets – New England Patriots rivalry is back!

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For the first time in years, the Jets-Patriots rivalry is meaningful, 2022 is the first time since 2001 that the Jets have had more wins than their rivals over in Boston at this point in the season.

New England has got a QB competition on its hands after Bailey Zappe’s impressive play whilst Mac Jones was injured, the latter is expected to start again, but don’t be surprised to see the former when things are going south, like on Monday night.

All signs are pointing towards a tight, low-scoring affair, exactly as the in-form Jets like it, their defense has been one of the best in the league so far this season.

3. Reigning Super Bowl Champions looking to get right against a division rival

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Sean McVay’s Los Angeles Rams come back from their bye at 3-3 but are in desperate need of a win against the 49ers if they want to be crowned NFC West champions, for the second season running.

The 49ers currently hold the tie-breaker over the Rams having already beaten them this season back in Week 4, if they drop another loss in this one it may come back to bite them in a tight division race.

Kyle Shanahan has beaten McVay’s Rams in eight of the twelve meetings since both became head coaches in 2017, last year the Rams were swept by the Niners, but won in the NFC Championship game.

4. Will Geno continue his outstanding season against the 6-1 Giants?

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Every single New York Giants game has finished within one score this year, expect that to continue as they visit the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday.

Both Geno Smith (SEA), and Daniel Jones (NYG), have been impressive so far this season, especially when helped out by both teams’ efficient rushing attacks, being two of the best teams to watch in the NFC.

Two top 10 picks in the 2022 NFL Draft will collide in this game as Kayvon Thibodeaux and Charles Cross battle in the trenches.

5. Josh Allen and Aaron Rodgers meet on SNF

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Sunday Night Football sees the 3-4 Green Bay Packers travel to Orchard Park to play the 5-1 Buffalo Bills.

It’s not looking pretty in Green Bay now that the Packers have lost three straight for the first time since 2018.

Buffalo are fresh and were on a three-game win streak before their bye, the most impressive victory was their last, beating the Chiefs at Arrowhead.

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Analysing Three Key Saints Matchups To Watch in Week Eight

The Saints are thoroughly in win-now mode, yes, they are only one game back from the division lead, but they must start taking advantage of that and winning games.

I think there are three key matchups for the Saints must win on Sunday.

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Hunter Renfrow and Davante Adams Vs Saints Slot Defender/S

With Bradley Roby on IR the Saints options for slot defenders are not great.  Generally, Justin Evans and Chris Harris Jr have been the options.

Per PFF whilst covering the slot, these are their stats:

Justin Evans– 77 coverage snaps, 20 targets, 15 receptions for 165 yards, 85 of those yards have been after the catch. One touchdown allowed, passer rating when targeted of 115.6

Chris Harris Jr– 38 coverage snaps, 8 targets, 8 receptions for 72 yards, 41 of those yards have been after the catch. Zero touchdowns given up, passer rating when targeted 104.2.

That does not make for pleasant reading when the Saints have Davante Adams and Hunter Renfrow next up on the schedule. 

When playing in the slot:

Hunter Renfrow– 77.3% of his targets this year have been when he’s is lined up in the slot. 17 targets, 12 receptions for 111 yards, 51 of those yards are after the catch, he’s forced 4 missed tackles so far this year and 5 of his catches have resulted in first downs. 

Renfrow has fumbled twice however and Raiders QB Derek Carr has thrown an interception when targeting him in the slot.   

The key thing with Renfrow is limiting the yards after the catch., which is something this Saints secondary has really struggled with. Renfrow’s average depth of target in the slot is 5.2, if the Saints limit the YAC that number 5 yards a catch is far more manageable.

Davante Adams -is a different situation altogether.

Only 27.6% of his snaps have been played from the slot, but has been targeted 16 times, and made 15 receptions for 169 yards and a touchdown, the one incompletion was an interception.  Adams has been a monster after the catch, 97 of his yards have been YAC. He’s also forced 6 missed tackles from the slot and 9 of these 15 catches have resulted in a first down.

Adams is a different situation because the hope is that Marshon Lattimore will be back and should shadow Adams, even when he goes into the slot. Lattimore doesn’t always follow his man into the slot, but I think that’s a must in this game if Lattimore plays.

I’d also like the see the Saints give rookie Alontae Taylor a run in the slot, ideally you would keep him on the outside, Roby’s injury could force their hand. At this stage you need your best players in the secondary on the field, however, they achieve that it doesn’t matter. 

I can’t face another week of Justin Evans getting picked on in coverage.

Right Side Of The Saints Line Vs Maxx Crosby

Maxx Crosby is a game wrecker, truly one of the elite players in the league at his position. He is everything the Saints want Marcus Davenport to be, big, physical, long, athletic and flat-out dominant.

Per PFF Crosby has totalled 30 QB pressures this season (including sacks) which he has 6 of. His 30 total pressures is the fifth most in the NFL. He’s also a demon in run defense, Crosby has totalled 19 defensive stops in the run game ( Defensive Stops mean – tackles that constitute a “failure” for the offense) that is second most in the league across all defensive positions, not just defensive lineman.

He primarily lines up on the left side of the defensive line, which for the Saints would be Ryan Ramczyk and Cesar Ruiz’s side of the line. This should be the stronger side of the line for the Saints and Ryan Ramczyk needs to show why he’s the highest-paid RT in the league this game.

Rookie contract Ramczyk would stonewall his opponent in these matchups which is why the Saints quickly locked up the former first-round pick to a massive contract. However, Ram has struggled more than usual since suffering a significant knee injury that cause him to miss time last season. The repercussion of that was described this offseason. It was explained early in training camp that Ramczyk would likely be on a ‘load management plan for the rest of his career to make sure his knee holds up.

So far that has worked with him taking every Wednesday off in practice, meaning Ramczyk has played every snap for the Saints, however, he has not been as dominant in pass protection as you would usually expect.

Next to him is the new and improved Cesar Ruiz I discussed his massive improvement in more detail here – Three Up/Down After the Saints Dismal Loss on Thursday Night (whodathype.com)

The Saints Offensive Line Is A Sign Of Hope In Dark Season (whodathype.com)

Whether it’s Andy Dalton or Jameis Winston starting at QB it’s shown that pressure can derail this offense and throw off all timing and rhythm. It’s also caused plenty of turnovers.

Either way, you slice it the Saints have the talent to limit Crosby however they must have a plan for him going into Sunday’s game, otherwise, he could be an absolute game-wrecker.

Saints Run Defense Vs Josh Jacobs

Josh Jacobs has looked like one of the best backs in the league in recent weeks, if not the best. In his last three games, he has rushed for 441 yards and scored six rushing touchdowns.

Usually, this wouldn’t be a problem for the Saints since 2017 their defense has been a top 2 unit in the league against the run. However, this year that is not the case, so far, they have allowed 4.6 YPC, which ranks 19th in the league.

They have also given up several massive run plays, Kenneth Walker ran for a 69-yard touchdown, Eno Benjamin had a 45-yard run for the Cardinals last week etc… these were plays you simply haven’t seen from the Saints run defense for several years. 

There’s one very easy statistic that shows the issues the Saints are having. Below is the starting defensive line’s average depth of tackle in the run game:

  • Marcus Davenport (3.2 yards)
  • Shy Tuttle (3.8 yards)
  • David Onyemata (4 yards)
  • Cameron Jordan (1.2 yards)

What this shows is three of the starting defensive line are getting pushed back significantly against the run last season all three were around 2 yards. Cam is still doing what he’s always done and playing stout strong run defense the problem is with the rest of the line.

Honestly, I don’t know what the coaches can do to fix this, this stat shows it could be a player problem so without adding more talent this could just be the reality of this season’s unit.

If you want to look at this in a cheerier light, then you could argue they’ve shown before to be a dominant line against the run with the same players, so they could turn it around, I hope that’s the case.

For more Saints articles- https://www.full10yards.co.uk/saints/ 

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 and Instagram @SaintsReportUK, for much more Saints content and discussion.

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Week 7: Rookie Standouts

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With teams favoured in the offseason like the Packers, Bucs, and Broncos continuing to struggle, whilst the two written-off New York teams are shocking everyone, this NFL season seems to get stranger and stranger. In week 7, these were the rookies that stood out. 

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Kenneth Walker III, Running Back – Seattle Seahawks  

Running back seems to be a position I give a lot of love to, but the numbers some of these rookies are putting up are incredible. Unfortunately, Bryce Hall is now done for the season after his heartbreaking ACL injury, so the rookie rushing title seems to be between previous standout Dameon Pierce and this week’s standout Kenneth Walker III. 

Walker was thrust into the lineup after Rashaad Penny’s unfortunate season-ending injury, and the second rounder out of Michigan State has made the most of his opportunities. Against the Chargers, Walker was steadily working his way towards another 100-plus yard game before his blistering 74-yard touchdown run in the middle of the 4th quarter, which saw him hit 22.09 miles per hour, the fastest speed by a ball carrier this season. 

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Sam Williams, Edge – Dallas Cowboys 

In a defence that already has reigning defensive rookie of the year Micah Parsons, Dorance Armstrong and Demarcus Williams, the last thing the league wanted to see was another Dallas defender breakout, but that’s exactly what Sam Williams did despite playing less than a quarter of the defensive snaps against the Lions   

On a day where the Cowboys shared the wealth around with four different players recording a sack, Williams helped himself not only to his first ever career sack but followed it up with the smoothest strip sack and fumble recovery you will ever see, which effectively sealed the game for Dallas. After beating Penei Sewell around the edge, Williams seemed to literally take the ball out of Jared Goff’s hands before he even realised it was gone. 

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Jaquan Brisker, Safety – Chicago Bears  

Coming into Monday night’s game against the New England Patriots, few thought that the Chicago Bears’ defence would have much luck against the returning Mac Jones (and later Bailey Zappe), but that could not have been further from the truth, and two of the reasons why were Jaquan Brisker and Kyler Gordon. 

The former Penn State man, Brisker, gets the nod here due in part to there being two parts to his incredible interception of Jones that had a slight air of revenge about it. Early in the second quarter, Jones took off on a run, and as he slid down, he curiously raised his foot, which connected with Brisker in a certain sensitive area. Brisker’s revenge was swift and sweet, however, as mere minutes later he recorded his first career interception with a stunning one-handed grab that showed both his athleticism and anticipation skills. 

Honorable Mentions

Sauce Gardner (New York Jets), Coby Bryant (Seattle Seahawks), Aiden Hutchinson (Detroit Lions), Chris Olave (New Orleans Saints), Dameon Pierce (Houston Texans)

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Fantasy Recap – Week 7

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Welcome to the fantasy recap and this week we had to survive without the Bills, Eagles, Vikings and Rams so it was a tough week to get through. Throw in a massive trade, some major injuries and strange coaching decisions and it added up to the usual FF mayhem. He’s who thrived, who nosedived and who has arrived on the scene this week.

NB: Scores based on PPR leagues

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Fantasy Stars:

Andy Dalton (NO) – 30cmp/361yds/4tds/3int + 4rsh/21yds 30pts

I gave Joe Burrow the nod here last week and he was top dog once again but to switch it up I’ll pick this week’s QB2. That was Andy Dalton. The Red Rifle had a game he’d want to forget when it comes to real life since he threw 3 interceptions and lost the game to Arizona, but his fantasy score was tremendous.

Austin Ekeler (LAC) – 9rsh/31yds/1td + 12rec/96yds/1td 36pts

Ekeler is the clear RB1 on the season currently and in some scoring formats, tied for the league lead. After a mediocre start (we are still talking double digits every week though) he’s not dipped below 24 since week 3. Most receivers would love 12 receptions so his usage there as a running back is incredible, especially when you consider he caught every target he got.   

JaMarr Chase (CIN) – 8rec/130yds/2tds 33pts

Now Joe Burrow is fully mended the Bengals offence looks hard to stop. Chase had the biggest day as you can see but Tyler Boyd was the WR2 and Higgins was still in the top 24 and got 90+yards. Boyd had the most yards at 155 but only made the endzone once. But if you played The QB, RB, 3WR and TE from the Bengals this week, you’d have scored 145pts.

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Surprise Packages:

Justin Fields (CHI) – 13cmp/179yds/1td/1int + 14rsh/82yds/1td 20pts

Fields has steadily increased his fantasy output but is still yet to complete more than 15 passes in a game this season. He’s now has consecutive weeks with 80+ rushing yards but this was the first time since week 2 that he found the end zone on a rushing play. Daniel Jones also deserves a mention here for hitting 29pts with 202 passing yards and 107 rushing yards.

Eno Benjamin (ARI) – 12rsh/92yds/1td + 4rec/21yds 23pts

There were a lot of good running backs this week where you could argue that it’s a surprise but they were predictable. I think the surprise this week has been just how well some of the narratives went for backups ascending to starting roles. Gus Edwards, Raheem Mostert, Rhamondre Stevenson, Kenneth Walker, Travis Etienne, Deonta Foreman, Chuba Hubbard the list goes one. But to me Benjamin stuck out as James Conner had been pretty poor so far and the RB position in Arizona looked a bit suspect. Benjamin ripped up that narrative and made a case to be the long term starter. Also credit Antonio Gibson for being a top 16RB this week despite having Brian Robinson and all the narratives against him.

Mecole Hardman (KC) – 4rec/32yds/1td + 2rsh/28yds/2td 28pts

The Chiefs brought in Juju and MVS and yet this week it was Hardman who had the big day. I say big day, he hit paydirt 3 times despite only tallying 60yards overall. Juju was just behind with 25pts but had 124yds and 1td and MVS had 111 yards to get 14pts. There were so many surprises at WR this week though. Marquise Goodwin stepping in for Metcalf, Parris Campbell becoming a target monster, DJ Moore returning from the shadows, Ray-Ray McCloud, Darius Slayton, Kalif Raymond and Damiere Byrd were all top 24WRs this week. How?

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Disappointments:

Lamar Jackson (BAL) – 9cmp/120yds/0td/0int + 10rsh/59yds 11pts

I was spoiled for choice in the surprises section, but there was no end of options in the disappointment section too. Jared Goff scoring 2pts (with no injury), Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers losing to backups, Mariota coming crashing down after last week, Matt Ryan losing his job, Dak Prescott not returning to a fanfare or even Derrick Carr struggling to start… But this week I have to go for Lamar on a rare down week. No TDs, 179 total yards and yet the Ravens still won.

AJ Dillon (GB) – 4rsh/15yds + 0rec/0yds 2pts

What on earth is going on in Green Bay? They were meant to have a 2 headed monster RB committee with Dillon and Aaron Jones and that would help with their weaker receiving corps. Excluding week 1 he’s not scored double digit fantasy points and this was his lowest total to date. The other notable were Leonard Fournette only tallying 26yrds and 5pts against Carolina. Ouch.

Drake London (ATL) – 1rec/9yds 2pts

I usually ignore players who left through injury, hence why Amon-Ra St Brown and DK Metcalf aren’t featured here. Nor do I put players you’re not likely to have played like Skyy Moore scoring his second -3pt game of the season. Others were banged up or scored in the 5s and 6s but this week’s mention goes to Drake London. The rookie started the season so well and with so much hype, but since week 3 he’s not scored above 7.5pts or had more than 4 receptions or found the endzone.

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Waiver Wire pickups:

BYE Weeks: KC, LAC

QB – Jameis Winston (If Healthy) (NO) – With only 2 bye weeks this week you would think it would be much easier but it really isn’t. The Broncos, Titans, Colts, Browns, Patriots, 49ers, Jets, Falcons, Steelers and Panthers don’t have a playable QB between them for the time being and there are a host more where, without even looking at the matchup, you still cringe and think better of it. Winston has options and a reasonable matchup against the Raiders, but he has to be healthy first.

Other QB Options – Mills vsTEN, Heinicke @IND, G.Smith vsNYG.

RB – Michael Carter (NYJ) – With Breece Hall out for the season with an ACL tear, Carter will now be joined by former Jaguar James Robinson. He will need some time to adapt but Carter began the season well and should see plenty of work, especially when Zach Wilson is doing precious little in the passing game. Gus Edwards, the Panthers RBs and Khalil Herbert also need to be considered.

WR – George Pickens (PIT) – It’s slimmer pickings (excuse the pun) this week at WR but I think it’s your last chance to grab Kenny Pickens off waivers if he’s there as he looks to be the #1 and the Steelers future. Claypool and Johnson are trade candidates so his value will only rise. Alec Pierce, Parris Campbell, Donovan Peoples-Jones, Isaiah McKenzie and Zay Jones are also options.

TE – Harrison Bryant (CLE) – I’ve barely mentioned Tight Ends this week despite it being national Tight End week but really they all followed type this week. The good ones were great and the others were just meh. One major note was David Njoku getting injured and probably missing 2-4 weeks which means Harrison Bryant will see a large uptick in work as it’s a position that sees good usage in Cleveland.    

DST Options – Commanders @IND, Colts vsWAS, Ttians @HOU, Jaguars vsDEN.

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Five Things: Week 7 – New York Giants at Jacksonville Jaguars

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For the third week in a row, the Giants overturned a 4th quarter deficit to find a way to win and improve their record to 6-1. Let’s take a look at five things that stood out this week:

Coming of Age

Although Saquon Barkley finished yesterday’s game with 110 yards rushing, he made 40 of those yards in the clock-churning final offensive drive that ended in a field goal. For the rest of the game, the Giants’ offensive fortunes rested on one man’s shoulders: Daniel Jones. 

Multiple times this season, Jones has shown the grit, determination, decision-making, and game management that many Giants fans have been waiting to see since he stepped into Eli Manning’s shoes, and it’s not too farfetched to say that this season Jones looks very much like Manning in his breakout season. 

Yesterday, Jones looked the part in both the passing game and the rushing game. Despite six drops from his wide receivers, he completed 19 passes from 30 passing attempts for 202 yards and a touchdown and repeatedly took advantage of open space as he ran for a career high of 107 yards and a touchdown, becoming the first Giants quarterback to rush for over 100 yards in 76 years  

Close Out the Game! 

One concerning part of the game that hopefully isn’t the start of a trend was the inability to close out the game due to lapses in concentration. On both offence and defense, we made avoidable mistakes that would have either settled the game or at least made it much more comfortable than it was. 

The first one was a bizarre play call from our offence on 3rd down that saw Barkley run out towards the side-line. In what should have been an opportunity to run the clock down to 25 seconds before making a field goal attempt, Barkley was pushed out of bounds, which stopped the clock at 1:07, plenty of time for the Jaguars to attempt a comeback  

The refs (more on them later), intent on driving the heart rate of Giants fans through the roof, found two questionable calls that negated two huge plays from the defence and that led to the Jags being able to extend their drive toward the crazy final play of the game. 

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The Final Play(s) 

In what felt like the longest minute and four seconds ever, it all came down to one last set of downs. 

After a long completion on 4th down, coupled with a roughing the passer call, the Jags quarterback, Trevor Lawrence, took his position on the Giants’ 17-yard line and, with sixteen seconds on the clock, had ample time to break Giants fans’ hearts. His first throw thrown towards Zay Jones was broken up by Adoree Jackson, and his second sailed over Marvin Jones’ head. 

With seven seconds left, it all came down to one play, and it almost paid dividends. Lawrence, with an empty backfield, took the ball and almost immediately threw a dart to Christian Kirk. Kirk secured the ball in the air and seemed destined to fall into the endzone before Fabian Moreau, who was having another outstanding game, stopped him dead on the one-yard line. Xavier McKinney and Julian Love both smothered Kirk to keep him out of the endzone as time expired. 

Come On Ref! 

In what seems to be a weekly occurrence in the NFL, the referees decided that they wanted to be a bigger part of the action, and it was the Giants’ turn to see some questionable calls and no calls both for and against them. 

Mistakes were rife throughout the game, but nothing highlighted how inconsistent the officiating crew were more than a pair of hits on the quarterbacks that ended up yielding differing results. In one drive, Daniel Jones, albeit awkwardly slid down and was clearly hit late by the Jags’ Cisco; no flag. Yet earlier in the half, Dexter Lawrence slightly pulled on Trevor Lawrence’s jersey, causing him to stumble to his hands and knees; flag thrown. 

As previously mentioned, there were also questionable calls in the Jags’ final drive, but the worst of the day was the horrendous face mask and eye poke on Daniel Bellinger that was not deemed worthy of a flag despite Bellinger having to leave the game on the cart  

Beyond a Joke 

I feel like this point has been copied and pasted from week to week, but yet again, in what seems to be the norm for the Giants, the injuries are piling up again. 

In the first half alone, we had offensive linemen Evan Neal and Ben Bredeson and tight end Daniel Bellinger leave the game and not return, whilst in the second half, Adoree Jackson briefly left the game for a concussion check that came back negative. 

As mentioned in my previous point, Bellinger had his eye poked, which ended with the rookie heading to the nearest medical facility. After the game, it was revealed that he would have to visit an ophthalmologist and would likely need surgery. Luckily, both Neal and Bredeson seem to have avoided season-ending injuries, but both are being evaluated for MCL sprains that will keep them out for a few weeks at the very least. 

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5 things to look out for in Week 7

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Tua Tagovailoa’s return to action on SNF against his former Head Coach Brian Flores is the highlight of Week 7

1. Will the Baltimore Ravens throw away another game in the fourth quarter?

Baltimore has now lost three close games in the fourth quarter, with last week’s collapse against the Giants with the ball in Lamar Jackson’s hands perhaps being the worst.

They’ve got a big chance to get right when they welcome the 2-5 Cleveland Browns on Sunday, a team who are fighting to stay alive in the race for the AFC North

One thing we do know is it’ll be tight, all of the Ravens home games have been decided by three points or less this year, with them only being victorious once.

2. In form Colts in need of a win as they face off with the Tennessee Titans in key AFC South duel.

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The Indianapolis Colts are welcomed by the Titans for the second of their two annual matchups, this one may well decide the AFC South.

Tennessee got out to an early lead in their Week 4 fixture, managing to hold on for a 24-17 victory after a late Indy comeback, meaning the Colts need to respond to prevent Mike Vrabel’s team from having a tiebreaker.

Matt Ryan had one hell of a game against Jacksonville last week, his Colts offense are now starting to find a groove but a loss here would put them at a real disadvantage of winning the division.

3. Russell Wilson out with a hamstring injury, Brett Rypien will start against the New York Jets

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Nathaniel Hackett’s Denver Broncos’ start to the season is getting worse by the day, as Russell Wilson is now set to miss Sunday’s game at home to the Jets with the hamstring injury he sustained on MNF.

The two top defenses are the stars of the show, as both the Broncos and the Jets defenses are within the top 10 of the league according to PFF (Denver 5th, New York 8th.)

Robert Saleh’s Jets are one of the hottest teams in football right now after back to back wins over the Dolphins and Packers.

4. CMC returns to Southern California as a San Fransisco 49er

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Christian McCaffrey should suit up for his first game in gold and red after he was acquired via a trade from the Carolina Panthers on Thursday night, he’ll be a big boost for a 49ers team that looked off the pace in Atlanta last week.

A second, third, and a fourth round pick is a steep price for the ex-Stanford running back who can’t stay on the field, but if he can stay healthy he’s a real asset and may be the piece San Francisco need to win a championship.

Their opponents, the Kansas City Chiefs, are on the back of a tight loss to Buffalo at Arrowhead where their defense did well to limit Josh Allen and co to only 24 points.

5. Flores and Tua meet again as the Miami Dolphins host the Pittsburgh Steelers on SNF

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Tua Tagovailoa makes his return to the football field for the first time since he left the game in Cincinnati with a horrific concussion, since then his Dolphins have moved from 3-0 to 3-3.

The third year quarterback has his former head coach Brian Flores on the opposite sideline, it’s not secret that they didn’t get on so he’ll be out for revenge.

Mike Tomlin and Flores’ defense stepped up in their win over Tampa Bay on Sunday, the Pittsburgh defensive line against the Miami offensive line should be a great battle, especially with Terron Armstead looking good to go.