We’ve seen the New Orleans Saints take a big jump up the board in Week 6 NFL power rankings after they took care of business at home against the red-hot Seattle Seahawks, with an average climb of 4 spots in various power rankings from around the league’s media landscape. Whether it’s national outlets or fan blogs, there are a lot of observers buying what the Saints are selling after a hard-fought win.
But they’re still 2-3. New Orleans has a lot of things to clean up, figure out, and smooth over before they’ll be seen as a truly competitive squad again. Here is where they stand against the rest of the NFC South after surveying 15 different Week 6 power rankings and averaging their placements:
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 5.9 (+1.0)
- New Orleans Saints: 19.8 (+4.1)
- Atlanta Falcons: 23.1 (-1.7)
- Carolina Panthers: 31.9 (-1.6)
And here is what each of those different power rankings had to say about the Saints;
Touchdown Wire
Ranking: 25 (Last week: 30)
Author: Mark Lane
Author’s take:
“New Orleans wasn’t jetlagged following their heartbreaking loss in London last week. Taysom Hill was an integral part of the Saints rebounding with a victory over the Seahawks. New Orleans may not be the top team in their division, but they are starting to put together a foundation to be a formidable team later on in the schedule.”
USA Today
Ranking: 19 (Last week: 27)
Author: Nate Davis
Author’s take:
“Talk about putting a new spin on the tight end position, Taysom Hill threw a pass Sunday, rushed nine times and even returned three kickoffs … but didn’t catch a single ball.”
The Ringer
Ranking: 20 (Last week: 19)
Author: Austin Gayle
Author’s take:
“The Saints are very lucky the Seahawks defense is one of the worst in the NFL. Geno Smith outplayed Saints QB Andy Dalton at every level, but the Seattle defense made Alvin Kamara and Taysom Hill look like real-life superheroes. Kamara totaled 194 yards on 29 touches, including a 10-yard rush to ice the game with less than two minutes to play. And Hill averaged 12.4 yards per carry (!!) on nine rushes and threw a 22-yard touchdown to tight end Adam Trautman on his only pass attempt. Even when a healthy Jameis Winston and Michael Thomas return to the lineup, no defense left on the Saints’ schedule is going to let that happen.”
The Athletic
Ranking: 21 (Last week: 14)
Author: Bo Wulf
Author’s take:
“Trade idea: Commanders edge rusher Casey Toohill
The Saints have the worst pressure rate in the league, according to Pro Football Focus, and the fewest quarterback hits (27). That doesn’t say much about the best-laid plans of trading up for Marcus Davenport and letting Trey Hendrickson go, but que sera sera. They’re also cap-tight enough that any serious investment is impossible, so how about a lottery ticket? In terms of quarterback hits per pass-rush snap, Toohill is, unbelievably, the second-most productive pass rusher in the league through five games.”
NFL.com
Ranking: 16 (Last week: 18)
Author: Dan Hanzus
Author’s take:
“That was it. The idealized version of the Taysom Hill Experience. The Saints’ jack of all trades was at his very best against a porous Seahawks defense, rushing for three scores and throwing for another in a 39-32 win. His final touchdown, a breakaway 60-yard jaunt with less than six minutes to play, was the difference-maker, as New Orleans snapped its three-game losing streak. With Jameis Winston and Michael Thomas sidelined, Hill got help from Alvin Kamara, who piled up 194 yards of total offense and looked — for the first time in quite a while — like, well, Alvin Kamara. He remains the Jenga piece of the Saints’ attack — the whole thing topples over without the running back doing his thing.”
CBS Sports
Ranking: 18 (Last week: 24)
Author: Pete Prisco
Author’s take:
“They pulled out a fun, high-scoring game against Seattle, but what has happened to their defense? Give credit to Taysom Hill for helping them win Sunday.”
Bleacher Report
Ranking: 21 (Last week: 25)
Author: NFL Staff
Author’s take:
“Offense hasn’t come especially easily for the New Orleans Saints in 2022—at least not consistently. But Sunday against the Seahawks, the Saints got one of their best offensive showings of the season—from a likely and unlikely source.
The likely source was star running back Alvin Kamara, who returned to the lineup after missing last week’s loss in London to amass almost 200 total yards. The unlikely source was tight end Taysom Hill, who eclipsed 100 rushing yards, scored three touchdowns on the ground, threw a touchdown pass and even returned kicks
After the victory, Saints quarterback Andy Dalton praised Hill’s unique skill set while talking to reporters.
After New Orleans dropped three straight games, the win was badly needed to keep its season afloat. But things get quite a bit more difficult from here. Starting with next week’s home date with the reigning AFC champions, the Saints play three straight against 2021 playoff teams, followed by a matchup with the first-place Baltimore Ravens. Following that are meetings with the Rams, 49ers and Buccaneers.
It’s a brutal two-month stretch—one that’s going to be awfully hard to navigate without falling too far off the pace in the NFC South.”
Sports Illustrated
Ranking: 21 (Last week: 28)
Author: Conor Orr
Author’s take:
“Here’s a promise you can take to the bank: If the Saints continue to be weird and give Taysom Hill 10 touches per game, I will move them up five spots on the power rankings each week regardless of whether it results in a win or a loss. This is what they should have been doing four weeks ago.”
Pro Football Talk
Ranking: 22 (Last week: 27)
Author: Mike Florio
Author’s take:
“Every once in a while, the Saints remember what they have in Taysom Hill.”
Yahoo! Sports
Ranking: 17 (Last week: 19)
Author: Frank Schwab
Author’s take:
“Taysom Hill stole the show with three rushing touchdowns and a passing touchdown, but perhaps more important to New Orleans going forward was Alvin Kamara having his best game of the season. Kamara had 103 yards rushing, 91 yards receiving and looked like he’s over the injuries that have held him back early this season. That’s great news for the Saints.”
ESPN
Ranking: 17 (Last week: 24)
Author: Katherine Terrell
Author’s take:
“The Saints have been their own worst enemy this season, committing turnovers at inopportune times (they are last in the league in turnover differential) and have had key penalties set them back. The Saints aren’t good enough right now to overcome these mistakes, and with injuries to key players like Jameis Winston, Michael Thomas, Chris Olave and others popping up, they need to be as perfect as they can be on offense in order to have a chance at making the playoffs.”
Bleeding Green Nation
Ranking: 18 (Last week: 22)
Author: Brandon Lee Gowton
Author’s take:
“The Saints were buoyed by Seattle’s punter forgetting to punt the ball and Taysom Hill inexplicably going off for 112 yards and three touchdowns on the ground. Probably not the most sustainable way to win!”
NBC Sports Chicago
Ranking: 24 (Last week: 26)
Author: Josh Shrock
Author’s take:
“Taysom Hill got the Saints off the mat Sunday, but New Orleans still has a lot of questions to answer on defense.”
Sporting News
Ranking: 23 (Last week: 28)
Author: Vinnie Iyer
Author’s take:
“The Saints went marching all over the Seahawks’ weak run defense with plenty of not-so-secret rushing and passing weapon Taysom Hill as the entire offense rediscovered its true necessary identity under Dennis Allen.”
Pro Football Focus
Ranking: 21 (Last week: 21)
Locked On NFL
Ranking: 14 (Last week: 21)
LOCKED ON NFL POWER RANKINGS – Week 6!
Biggest movers:
📈#TogetherBlue 20➡️12
📈#Saints 21➡️14
📈#TakeFlight 27➡️21
📉#BroncosCountry 17➡️26
📉#DUUUVAL 15➡️23
📉#FinsUp 11➡️17https://t.co/BGP9b2N8kd pic.twitter.com/zpE7D9kwT4— Locked On Sports (@LockedOnNetwork) October 11, 2022
