Penalties were an early problem for the New Orleans Saints in 2022, but they deserve some credit for cleaning it up. After drawing 34 fouls in their first four weeks, an average of 8.5 penalties per game, Dennis Allen’s team was fouled 8 or more times just twice through the rest of their schedule — taking 8 penalties for 49 yards and 10 fouls for 74 yards in road losses to the Arizona Cardinals and Pittsburgh Steelers. They posted 6 or fewer penalties in every other game.
In the end, New Orleans ranked 16th around the league with 99 penalties for 841 yards (a year ago, they finished at 23rd with 98 fouls for 811 yards). So who led the team in fouls? Are there problematic areas and trends that can be worked on? Here’s the list of players who drew four or more flags in 2022:
1
CB Paulson Adebo (7 penalties on 812 snaps)
- Defensive holding (6)
- Defensive pass interference (4)
2
C Erik McCoy (5 penalties on 799 snaps)
- Offensive holding (2)
- False start (2)
- Ineligible receiver downfield (1)
3
LG Calvin Throckmorton (5 penalties on 462 snaps)
- False start (5)
4
CB Marshon Lattimore (4 penalties on 415 snaps)
- Defensive pass interference (2)
- Unnecessary roughness (1)
- Defensive holding (1)
- Disqualification (1)
5
CB Alontae Taylor (4 penalties on 663 snaps)
- Defensive pass interference (2)
- Defensive holding (2)
- Illegal use of hands (1)
6
LT James Hurst (4 penalties on 975 snaps)
- False start (2)
- Illegal use of hands (1)
- Offensive holding (1)
7
RT Ryan Ramczyk (4 penalties on 937 snaps)
- False start (3)
- Offensive holding (1)
8
CB Chris Harris Jr. (4 penalties on 375 snaps)
- Defensive holding (2)
- Unnecessary roughness (1)
- Illegal contact (1)