The New Orleans Saints will try for their first win of the season as they face the Carolina Panthers this afternoon. After dropping the first game of the season last week, the Saints look to have a better performance defensively against their division rivals. In order for New Orleans to come back home with the win, the defense must rebound from last week’s dismal performance.
Much is expected from Panthers' QB Cam Newton during his second year in the NFL.
PASS DEFENSE
Washington rookie QB Robert Griffin III had a field day against the Saints’ defense, torching the New Orleans secondary for a very impressive 320 yards and 2 touchdowns. He completed 73% of his passes, dumping the ball off quickly to his receivers and keeping the ball moving down the field. The Saint pass rush, which was so prevalent during the preseason, rarely made Griffin III flinch. Although the defense was able to sack the speedy Griffin III twice, he looked very comfortable running the offense.
This week, New Orleans faces another physically gifted quarterback with a similar skill set in Cam Newton. Much is expected for Newton’s second professional season, and Carolina has been somewhat of a playoff sleeper pick by many this season. Along with the explosive Steve Smith at wide receiver, the Panthers feature a talented tight end in Greg Olsen and a nice pass catching option at running back in DeAngelo Williams. The Carolina offensive line is very talented, anchored by Pro Bowl left tackle Jordan Gross.
In order for the Saints to slow the powerful Panther passing attack, some fundamental tasks must be handled. First, the pass rush must be re-established. Both DE Cameron Jordan and Will Smith must have good outings and must provide a consistent outside rush. This will not only force Newton to make untimely throws, but force him to stay within the pocket, keeping his world-class mobility at bay.
Secondly, the Saints’ defensive coaching staff needs to be able to make better in-game adjustments. Washington was able to operate deep into last week’s game with quick flare and screen passes; New Orleans didn’t really make any true adjustments until the 3rd quarter, and by that time the game was starting to get out of reach. Carolina might try the same philosophy this week, counting on high percentage, quick passes to get positive yards, making drives extremely manageable and sustainable. Making sure the defense can adapt to whatever plan of action the opposing offense ends up taking will be the responsibility of DC Steve Spagnuolo. Let’s hope he is a little quicker to react this week.
Although the aforementioned Steve Smith is questionable for today’s game, expect the Panthers to try to stretch the field at times. During the offseason, Carolina added WR Louis Murphy from Oakland, who, at times last season, emerged as a deep threat. Making sure the big play is eliminated should be a point of emphasis for a Saints’ defense that was burned multiple times last week.
RUN DEFENSE
Last week, Washington was able to run the ball very effectively, keeping the Saints‘ defense on their heels for much of the afternoon. The Redskins were able to run the ball for 153 yards last week, effectively managing much of the game from a time of possession standpoint and keeping the Saints’ offense on the sidelines.
By looking at the Panthers‘ rushing statistics from a week ago, it would seem that both Carolina and New Orleans shared the same game-plan. The Panthers only gained 10 total rushing yards on 13 plays against Tampa Bay last week. DeAngelo Williams (who killed my fantasy team) ended up with negative yardage. To make matters worse, power back Jonathan Stewart is listed as questionable today, making his status up in the air.
Like the Saints, Carolina will try to get some sort of a rushing game established early. This should be an easier task for the team than it was last week, as they have the advantage of being at home. The Saints‘ run defense needs to step up in a large way in order for New Orleans to emerge victorious. The interior of the defensive line must be able to set the tone early by becoming more physical than the Panther offensive front. Gap assignments for the linebackers needs to be addressed; last week, Redskin RB Alfred Morris was able to find huge holes as the Saints‘ linebacking corps was often times caught out of position.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
DE Cameron Jordan
Jordan actually had a very productive outing last week from a tackling perspective, as he amassed a total of 11 stops against the Redskins. That same production will be needed today, as Carolina will try to establish a ground game early on. Jordan will also be needed as a pass rusher, an area of his game that has seen improvement since this time last year.
SS Roman Harper
Oh Roman. Although he is such a great player in stopping the run, the Saints’ starting strong safety is still a liability against the pass. Today, Harper will be faced with the challenge of slowing TE Greg Olsen. Harper needs to make sure he is aware of the play action pass, especially if Carolina is running the ball effectively. Moreover, Harper might also be given the responsibility of containing the explosive Newton if and when he decides to run the ball.
CB Patrick Robinson
Poor Patrick Robinson was exposed last week against Washington, as he was burned for multiple deep passes. In order for the Saints to win this game, Robinson will need to be able to blanket his receiver with more consistency. Keeping the Panthers’ deep threats muzzled will go a long way in helping keep the score manageable.
PREDICTION
The Saints will come back strong after a long week of practice. After watching the multiple mistakes and miscues that plagued the team a week ago, New Orleans will establish a nice interior running game with Pierre Thomas and Mark Ingram, forcing Carolina’s defense to stretch thin. Drew Brees will get back on track, passing for over 300 yards and 3 touchdowns, limiting his interceptions to just one. The defense, absent a week ago, will pressure Cam Newton into throwing 2 interceptions, one of which will clinch the game late in the fourth quarter. Saints will win in a close one.
Saints 30, Panthers 27
