Week 12 came and went for the New Orleans Saints, and it did so with plenty of chaos and fanfare. Despite controlling the game for most of the outing, the Saints made enough mistakes and created enough opportunities for the Carolina Panthers to fight their way back into it. But the important thing to remember is that the Saints did win, proving their resiliency. Here are our six biggest takeaways from Sunday’s victory.
Too many penalties to ignore
There’s no excusing how poorly the Saints executed against Carolina, especially on defense. They committed 18 penalties on Sunday, though six were either declined or offset by the Panthers’ fouls. Still, at the end of the day a dozen penalties for 123 yards is impossible to overlook. All of those mistakes and self-inflicted wounds — like Cameron Jordan’s uncharacteristic personal foul — kept the Panthers in the game even after the Saints took a substantial lead, and New Orleans has got to clean up its act. That’s easier said than done with such a quick turnaround for Thursday night’s game with the Atlanta Falcons. This Saints team may just be a sloppy bunch. This is their third game in a row in which they’ve drawn nine or more penalties.
The Jared Cook breakout is here
It took some time, but now we’re seeing what the Saints were so excited about over the summer. Cook has hit a groove with Saints quarterback Drew Brees, catching six of his eight targets against the Panthers for 99 yards and a touchdown score. His numbers in New Orleans’ three games since the bye week are impressive, a combined 14 receptions on 20 targets (70% catch rate) for 206 yards and two touchdown catches. And that’s without the 42-yard catch-and-run called back by a dubious offensive pass interference foul. Cook can make plays down the seam and win above the rim on jump balls, and the Saints need to keep giving him opportunities to put defenses on their heels.
Offensive line depth is getting tested
Left tackle Terron Armstead exited with a high-ankle sprain and is working to return on a week-to-week basis, which isn’t great. This coincides with left guard Andrus Peat’s six-week absence after surgery on his broken arm. The Saints will have to start backups at both spots on the left side of their line — Nick Easton has filled in well at guard, but tackle is a question mark. The Saints have a tough decision to make there, with their best options being journeyman guard Patrick Omameh or untested rookie left tackle Ethan Greenidge. They could also flip star right tackle Ryan Ramczyk to the side he played in college, but that might make things worse by introducing even more instability.
The defense badly misses Marshon Lattimore
D.J. Moore went into this game as the Panthers’ top wide receiver, with just one touchdown catch on the year and 779 receiving yards (a rate of 77.9 per game). With Lattimore injured, the Saints assigned P.J. Williams to shadow Moore throughout the game — and they got burned for it. Moore punished Williams with some nice routes and streaking speed after the catch, proving too much for the Saints’ next-man-up to handle. He ended the game with six catches, 126 yards, and two touchdown grabs. They can’t get Lattimore back into the lineup soon enough.
Why did Alvin Kamara get more runs than Latavius Murray?
Kamara ended the game with 54 rushing yards on 11 carries, a healthy rate of 4.9 yards per attempt. But take out his longest run (a 30-yard scamper) and that average drops to just 2.4 yards per rush. That’s mediocre by every measure, though obviously that big play and his resume show why the Saints kept giving him opportunities.
Compare that to Murray, who was give only seven attempts. He turned those into 64 yards, a rate of 9.1 yards per carry. Subtract his longest rush (a 26-yard touchdown on the opening drive) and he’s still picking up ground at 6.3 yards per attempt. He was clearly the hot hand to ride with on Sunday, but Saints coach Sean Payton put him on ice after that initial success. Maybe Payton was focused on getting Kamara up to speed, even to the detriment of other players?
Michael Thomas is still “that dude”
Thomas had the quietest 10-catch, 101-yard day in the history of the NFL. He was too good for the Panthers secondary to cover and outplayed them whenever the Saints gave him an opportunity, but it’s easy to overlook his contributions because those numbers have become expected of him. But between his touchdown strike to extend the lead late in the third quarter and a 24-yard back shoulder reception to set up Wil Lutz’s game-winning field goal, Thomas had just as big a part to play in this victory as anyone else. He’s the best wide receiver in football right now, and it’s important to remember that every time he takes the field.
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