It wasn’t the prettiest win, but the New Orleans Saints pulled it off against the Carolina Panthers on Monday night. It’s always nice to win a rivalry game. It’s even better to do it in front of a national audience on your own terms with your offense on the field in the final minute.
So we’ve got some important questions to answer while analyzing the 20-17 win: What went right? What went wrong? And what’s the bottom line?
What went right?
The defense showed out. They held the Panthers to 239 yards on 56 snaps — an average of just 4.3 yards per play. For context, the Houston Texans ranked last in the NFL with 4.7 yards per play last season. Carolina converted only 4 of their 14 third downs (28.6%, which would also have been worst in the NFL last year). Bryce Young was sacked four times and nobody managed to get going on the ground; Miles Sanders led the team with 43 rushing yards. The Saints didn’t allow a touchdown until there were 1:16 left in regulation.
There isn’t much to say positively about the offense, but some efforts deserve a shoutout. We’ll start with running back Tony Jones Jr., who was called up from the practice squad for his 20th career game and was thrust into the starting role after Jamaal Williams left with a hamstring injury; Jones responded by scoring his first two touchdown runs in the NFL. Good for him after he bounced around the league with Seattle and Denver before returning to New Orleans this summer.
Taysom Hill deserves mention, too. He led the team with 75 rushing yards on just 9 carries while also throwing an 8-yard reception, catching a pass, and playing a ton of reps on special teams. There aren’t many athletes like him in this league, and this was a great showcase for him.
Okay, one more positive note on the offense before we’ll turn critical: second-year receivers Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed stepped up in some critically important moments. For the second week in a row they’ve both caught passes for gains of 40-plus yards. The offense can lean on them. Additionally, Michael Thomas showed up early on with several huge catches. He’s on his way back. Derek Carr needs to do a better job getting each of them the ball.
What went wrong?
The offensive line was a serious liability again this week. Derek Carr was sacked four times (three in the first half) and pressured often, and the Saints struggled to open room to run up front. They’re playing too poorly for a unit with as much time, draft picks, and hefty contract extensions invested in it. Benching guys or moving them out of position won’t help them execute their assignments or win one-on-one blocks. The starting five are who they are, but they must do a better job. They aren’t meeting expectations.
That brings us to Carr, whose stat line this week (21-of-36 for 228 yards with an interception) is decidedly less impressive than what he posted last time. Carr made a very poor decision to throw into traffic on his interception, and he misaimed several passes that soared behind his receivers. He held the offense back at times, and that can’t happen. This team doesn’t have a margin for error wide enough to account for that.
And now let’s talk about Pete Carmichael Jr. The Saints’ offensive coordinator made some puzzling decisions, especially in short yardage situations, getting away from the run when it was working to get greedy and aim for passes too far downfield. He has a lot of mouths to feed with this assortment of weapons but he can’t get too cute in high-leverage moments like that.
And what's the bottom line?
The Saints are 2-0 for the first time by 2013. Dennis Allen is now 9-10 as their head coach. They’re a flawed team, but they’ve done enough to win a couple of close games against opponents who are not great matchups for them — the Panthers and Titans both boast talented defensive fronts who can get home without blitzing, taking advantage of the issues plaguing the Saints offensive line and Carr’s poor instincts under pressure.
And New Orleans is undefeated through Week 2 for the first time in a decade. It’s tough to believe they have a sustainable formula right now. Carr must get more comfortable in the offense and do a better job connecting with his receivers and leaving the red zone with six points instead of three. The offensive line is holding this team back right now (but some positive signs are there; left tackle Trevor Penning didn’t need as much help to hold up his side of the line as last week). Enough time against vulnerable opponents can help them iron out those wrinkles.
And brighter days are ahead. Next week the Saints will travel to face a banged-up Green Bay Packers team that was outclassed by an awful Atlanta Falcons squad. After that, they’ll return home to place the upstart 2-0 Tampa Bay Buccaneers — with Alvin Kamara taking the field for the first time this season. 2-0 is what it is. Each win buys more time to improve.
