Week 9’s game is a matchup the New Orleans Saints should win handily. A battered, bruised, and bad Chicago Bears team is coming to town with a backup quarterback under center and few weapons around him. But this isn’t a game the Saints can overlook with the bye week off on the horizon.
It’s an important game for several players on their squad. A productive afternoon against the Bears would be great for their stock as the season continues. Whether it’s due to a sophomore slump or too many mental mistakes, a big game would be great to see from these four Saints players:
1
Chris Olave
Olave admitted this week that he’s been in a bit of a slump, dropping too many passes and experienced too many missed opportunities when the ball has gone his way. He hasn’t eclipsed 100 receiving yards in a single game since doing so twice in the first three weeks. A get-right game against a Chicago secondary that’s missing some players would be big for him. Rashid Shaheed doing so much with so many fewer targets than him might warrant a shakeup in the rotation if Olave can’t turn it around.
2
Andrus Peat
Peat was coming off the bench to start the season after James Hurst took his job at left guard, but he’s emerged as the team’s best option at left tackle, a position he hadn’t played in years. Hurst will be back in the lineup this week but it’s unclear whether the Saints will kick Peat back inside or let him stay out at the left tackle spot. Wherever he’s lining up, Peat must make the most of his opportunities. He’ll be a free agent in the spring and could cash in if he can play well enough for teams to believe he can start at left tackle.
3
Jordan Howden
The fifth-round rookie got the starting nod last week while Marcus Maye was shaking off an illness and hamstring issue, but he’s arguably played well enough to remain in the lineup next to Tyrann Mathieu. Another strong performance against the Bears on Sunday could help ensure he stays in that role. Maye has a hefty salary cap hit in 2024 and the Saints drafted Howden hoping he could develop into a starting-quality safety; he might already be there. A big play or two and more mistake-free football will go a long way towards strengthening confidence in the young pro.
4
Blake Grupe
It’s been a roller coaster ride for Grupe. The first-year kicker has bounced back and forth between encouraging performances and dispiriting games almost every two weeks, and the Saints only asked him to kick a single field goal last week (which he nailed, from an admittedly short distance). The best thing Grupe can do is stay out of the spotlight by going out there and kicking an accurate ball. More missed kicks and squandered scoring opportunities will just lead to more skepticism that Dennis Allen made the right choice in trading away Wil Lutz, who has missed half as many field goals through eight games.
