With the lead in the NFC South up for grabs, the Saints face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in a critical divisional matchup. Stopping the big play threat of Josh Freeman and the Bucs power running scheme will be paramount as the Saints try to erase bad memories from an embarrassing loss from a week ago.
Pass Defense
In their previous meeting, Buccaneers QB Josh Freeman was able to pass for 303 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Most of that yardage came on a 65 yard strike to WR Arrelious Benn in the second quarter. WR Mike Williams, the top target for Freeman a year ago, also had a very good game, catching 6 balls for 59 yards.
One glaring statistic from the Week 6 matchup? Freeman had no interceptions. The Saints defense has not created turnovers at a high enough rate. Forcing Freeman to throw questionable passes will make this game more manageable for New Orleans. A consistent pass rush from the defensive line and preventing the big play in the secondary will be key if the Saints want to stop Tampa Bay’s passing game.
Run Defense
Top runner LaGarrette Blount, who did not play during the last Saints-Bucs meeting, is expected to start this week. Not good for the Saints, who gave up 109 yards to Earnest Graham in Week 6. Blount is bigger, younger, and a better overall back than Graham, and stopping him will be the biggest challenge for the Saints defensively.
As we saw last week against Steven Jackson, the Saints run defense has problems against larger, more physical running backs. Tampa Bay knows this and will try to pound the ball early and often in order to wear down the defense and keep the Saints offense off of the field by controlling the clock. The interior of the defensive line will need to have a better showing than last week in order for the Saints to be successful. Keeping the rotation of Ellis, Rogers, and Franklin fresh will certainly help.
Matchup to Watch
Josh Freeman vs. Saints secondary. The Saints need to create turnovers in order to win this game. The Dome will be loud and hostile, creating the perfect environment for Gregg Williams to send blitzers at Freeman in passing situations. The secondary needs to step up this week in order for the Saints to win. If not, Tampa Bay has a strong chance of upsetting the Saints.
