The New Orleans Saints emerge from another weekend of football with yet another defeat. Even though the result of this past game against the Green Bay Packers has been the same as it has for the past three weeks, some portions of the team have improved dramatically. Some, however, continue to be a hinderance upon the team’s overall success.
PASS OFFENSE: A
For the first time all season, the Saints’ passing game looked like the unit fans and opponents have been accustomed to seeing over the past few seasons. Drew Brees was excellent, connecting on 35 of 54 passing attempts, amassing 446 yards along the way. He threw three touchdown scores in the game, keeping pace with Johnny Unitas’ consecutive games with a touchdown streak, a record he has the opportunity to break this upcoming week. Brees also took care of the football, as he did not throw any interceptions or have any fumbles. He largely made good decisions with the ball; I can only recall one bad throw by Brees, a dropped interception in the 4th quarter.
The Saints’ wide receiving corps has been criticized largely this season for a multitude of dropped passes, leading to Brees’ subpar completion percentage (he currently sits at 57.6%, which is far from his career average of 65.7%) and the team’s efficiency on third down (New Orleans has converted 43% of their third down opportunities this season, 9th in the league; last year, the Saints converted an absolutely ridiculous 57%). Against Green Bay, those issues were mostly avoided. Overall, the Saints’ wide receiving unit had a nice outing, highlighted by Marques Colston, who led the team with nine reception and 153 yards. Drops didn’t seem to be as large of an issue as it has the previous three weeks of play.
Perhaps the biggest surprise from Sunday, and one of the few positive moments from an otherwise difficult afternoon, was the emergence of Joe Morgan. Morgan’s 80 yard touchdown reception from Brees in the third quarter not only gave the Saints a huge momentum boost, but proved to the coaching staff that he can provide a consistent deep threat for the offense. The deep pass has been lacking from Brees’ repertoire so far this season; hopefully with Morgan’s showing from Sunday, the offense will add this important ingredient back into the game-plan. During the past few seasons, Robert Meachem and Devery Henderson played large roles in establishing a deep threat for the offense, and allowing the short and intermediate passing games to flourish. If Morgan can fill that same role, expect the offense to take off in the weeks to come.
The Saints‘ offense line played well for the majority of the game. Brees was sacked twice Sunday, but was able to avoid pressure for most of the contest. The pocket for Brees was kept relatively clean, allowing for a productive outing. The outside rush of the Packers‘ 3-4 scheme did not seem to faze Brees, as he was able to pick apart the secondary by having plenty of time to look downfield and make the appropriate throw. Overall, the offensive line had a solid showing.
RUN OFFENSE: INCOMPLETE
Due to the contest’s back and forth nature and the fact that New Orleans trailed for much of the game, the Saints’ rushing attack earns an incomplete grade this week. The running game proved to be not much of a factor for the Saints, as the offense quickly abandoned the clock consuming, slow pace of the run for a quicker, more potent passing attack. When the running attack was called upon, it failed to make much of an impact. The Saints’ gained a total of 45 yards on the ground on 19 attempts, good for a paltry 2.4 yards per.
Nonetheless, the Saints still were able to use a short passing game out of the backfield as a supplement. Brees targeted Saints‘ running backs ten times, totaling 60 yards. That 6 yard per reception average kept the defense off balance for most of the game. Add to that a successful intermediate and deep passing game, and New Orleans had a very complete offense.
PASS DEFENSE: D-
Oh, the Saints’ pass defense. Or lack-thereof. The New Orleans Saints’ pass defense continues to resemble a wet paper bag for the fourth straight week, this time allowing Aaron Rodgers the benefit of rebooting his 2012 season. Before Sunday’s game, Rodgers only passed for three touchdowns, threw two interceptions, had been sacked an alarming 16 times, and had only eclipsed the 300 yard mark once all season. The statistical carnage posted against New Orleans’ pass defense goes far in explaining this week’s grade: 31 of 41 passing (75.6% completion percentage). 319 yards. 4 touchdowns. No sacks.
Much of the problem can be found at the defensive line, where pressure against opposing quarterbacks has been virtually non-existent. New Orleans has only registered six sacks this season, many of them coming as coverage sacks. Push from the interior of the line, something that the team tried to address by bringing in DT Broderick Bunkley, has simply been missing. When the Saints try to send the blitz, there is still little success. Missed gap assignments continue to be an issue. The experiment of converting former LB Martez Wilson to a DE has come with mixed results.
The secondary, once considered to be one of the stronger suits of the defense, is starting to become a weakness. Past CB Jabari Greer, depth at the position is shallow at best and extremely young. Patrick Robinson, although a talented player, was absolutely exposed by Aaron Rodgers. He was frequently targeted by the Packers’ offense, and will continue to be a liability in the passing game without a consistent pass rush. His interception of Rodgers shows that he does possess good ball skills and has gobs of athletic ability, but he still represents the unit’s weakest link. FS Malcolm Jenkins has improved over the past few weeks as he becomes more acquainted with the new defense. SS Roman Harper, although great defending the run, defending the pass isn’t his strong suit.
RUN DEFENSE: D+
Although Green Bay’s offense focused mainly on a brazen, consistent aerial attack, the Packers were still able to run the ball effectively against the Saints’ defense. Green Bay was able to gain 102 net rushing yards on 25 carries, good for an average of 4.1 per attempt. Packer RB Cedric Benson provided his team with a good effort all afternoon, allowing for the offense to carry the threat of the run throughout.
Defending the run has been a huge issue for the Saints’ this season. Currently, New Orleans surrenders an average of 186.8 yards per game, dead last in the NFL. Having both the running and passing games as viable options has been instrumental in the success of the Saints’ opponents this season; it has kept an already confused defense more disjointed, leading to miscommunication between players and their respective coaches.
Defensive line push has been non-existent for this team, and remains the single largest defensive issue. The interior of the defensive line has been a major disappointment. Poor gap control has led to opposing offensive linemen getting into the linebacking corp too quickly, leading to positive running gains on almost every designed run. The defensive line, especially the interior, has been physically manhandled all season. This does not bode well at all for the defense, and must be corrected immediately if any truly significant defensive progress is to be made.
SPECIAL TEAMS: D
For the first four weeks of the season, the Saints’ special teams unit has often times been the team’s lone bright spot. On Sunday, the unit produced a lack-luster performance that directly contributed to the team’s demise.
The punting game, usually a hallmark of consistency, failed to make an impact. Thomas Morstead averaged a subpar 36 yards per punt. The return game also did not have a positive impact on the outcome; Darren Sproles was bottled up both as a kickoff and punt returner.
For the second week in a row, K Garrett Hartley missed a potential game winning FG. His confidence, arguably already shaky, has to be totally shattered. A holding call by TE David Thomas and an offsides call on Green Bay allowed for the kick to be respotted not once, but twice. Although it certainly isn’t an excuse, this disallowed for Hartley to get totally focused on his attempt.
COACHING: C-
Although they entered this week’s contest sporting an 0-3 record, the New Orleans Saints are still playing extremely hard and have not given up on any of the coaches, interim or otherwise. Aaron Kromer has done a decent job of in-game decision making. For the most part, Kromer has allowed for both the offense and defense to run as autonomic units. For the first time in weeks, offensive play-calling looks back to normal; it’s clear that Brees is starting to figure out some of the kinks.
On defense, the story has been mind-numbingly more of the same. DC Steve Spagnuolo’s unit is still a work in progress, but it absolutely has to catch up. Players still look as though they don’t know where exactly to line up. Defensive line play has been widely non-existent. If the Saints want to start winning games and get to a level of respectability, the entire defense, from the coordinator to the 3rd string player and everyone in between, needs to improve. And fast.
