The New Orleans Saints will battle the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium in Week Two in a game that is sure to create plenty of offensive fireworks. In their last four matchups, the winning team has scored 48, 49, 52 and 52 points, marking the first time in NFL history that two teams have played four consecutive games where the winner scored 48+ points.
New Orleans Saints Week Two Keys to Victory
The Saints vs. Giants matchup in Week Eight last season was a thriller, boasting combined stats of 141 plays, 1,024 yards, 101 points and an NFL record of 13 touchdown throws (Drew Brees threw seven of these, finishing the game 39 of 50 for 505 yards). While both offenses have proved to be explosive in the past, little could be said about either team’s defense. The Saints ranked 31st in the league, with only one defense worse than their own: that of the New York Giants. Since that time, both teams have drafted two defenders with their first three draft picks and picked up veterans in free agency – so far yielding a Giants win and a Saints loss. If the Saints are going to win the ball game this Sunday, there are several things that need to happen.
Offense: Keep the Giants Pass Rush at Bay and Win the Time of Possession
Brees was on fire in the season opener. He threw for 423 yards with zero interceptions and four touchdown passes, exploiting the Oakland Raiders defense and finishing with a quarterback rating of 131.3. The Saints offensive line restricted the Raiders and Khalil Mack, one of the top pass rushers in the game, to one sack and a few rushes and hits.
Brees and his receivers should see comparable success this week. The Giants do not have as impressive a pass rush as the Raiders, but they do have a defensive backfield that is able to provide time for their rushers to get the quarterback. Brees will need to stay aware of the countdown clock and get his passes out quickly.
Last year, the G-men ranked second-worst in plays allowed (69.1 per game) and a week ago they let the Cowboys accumulate 75 of them. The Saints will be better suited swaying pass-heavy rather than running into a wall, but this won’t do much to win the time of possession, which will also be essential in this game. The challenges this week for the Saints will be with Terron Armstead and Zach Strief’s ability to give Brees more time and with the offensive line improving their blocking overall.
The Saints will also need to open up holes for Mark Ingram to make play action a possibility, as he will be instrumental in gaining more time of possession. Last week he had 12 carries and was extremely effective with them, rushing for 58 yards. Ingram will play a key role in keeping the Saints defense off the field, which will allow the team to score enough points to keep the game close.
Defense: Match Up Against the Giants Receivers and Put Pressure on Eli
While Brees and his offense played a great game in Week 1 against Oakland, the defense was mediocre. They allowed the Saints to lose the game despite scoring 34 points with 507 yards of total offense. The Saints defensive line will need to avoid allowing plays similar to Jalen Richard’s 75-yard touchdown run last week, which exposed a collapse in the front, the middle and the secondary.
Overcoming last week’s pitiful showing will be tough as the Saints struggle to construct a group able to restrain one of the better receiving units in the league. The Saints lack a pass rush and individual defensive backs to keep up with the type of passing game they are heading into. The loss of Delvin Breaux, their number one cornerback, only adds to their troubles. Outside of Breaux, their defensive backs are young and many of them are only seeing their first action this year.
The Saints defensive backfield will need to be able to take on the Giants receivers this Sunday. Odell Beckham Jr., a football prodigy known for his one-handed catches, and Victor Cruz, a seven-year veteran, are going to pose a serious threat to the Saints. If New Orleans isn’t careful, Beckham Jr. could end up playing against one of the easiest matchups since the last time he played the Saints. (He finished with eight receptions for 130 yards and three touchdowns.) Last week we saw how fast the Giants can score when they have the ball, which was only 54 plays against Dallas. The Saints are going to need to pick up turnovers to get the Giants off the field and give the Saints offense an extra possession or two.
New Orleans is also going to have to learn how to put pressure on the quarterback – and fast – otherwise there will be no hope for keeping up with the Giants offense. This has proven to be a difficult task for the Saints in the past. They have worked on improving this area through the additions of Sheldon Rankins and their second-year pass rusher Hau’oli Kikaha last season, but both were injured before the regular season began. They added Paul Kruger to boost their pass rush but were still unable to generate any pressure on Raiders quarterback Derek Carr. Granting too much time to Eli in the pocket will be devastating for New Orleans. They will have to work out different ways of pressuring Eli and enticing him to make bad choices when throwing the football or else the Saints secondary will be slaughtered.
The New Orleans defense is looking very bad and any improvement in this area is going to be next to impossible this week. Their fragmented and disorganized secondary will have their work cut out for them and if they are unable to match up, it will most certainly result in a second Saints loss.
Special Teams: Produce in the Return Game and Kick Coverage
Last week, the Saints return game was weak. Although Marcus Murphy didn’t fumble, he also didn’t do much else. Tommylee Lewis looked good in the preseason but he didn’t play against Oakland. If he can get his turn, he could be impressive and possibly provide the life the Saints need to squeak out a win.
There is no question about Thomas Morstead’s ability to provide strong punt coverage for the Saints, but rookie kicker Wil Lutz is still uncertain. In his NFL debut game last week, he missed two field goals, a 50-yard attempt and a shot at a 61-yard game winner. It was a lot to expect for the first game of his NFL career. However, the 2015 matchup between the Saints and the Giants came down to a last-second game-winning field goal and it is highly likely that the team who possesses the ball last this Sunday will be in a position to kick a field goal to win the game. Expectations are high and Lutz will have to come through.
Conclusion
Since 2009, 54 teams have started 0-2 and only four of those teams were able to make it to the playoffs. An 0-2 start will be nothing new for the Saints. This would be the fourth time in five years. If this happens, it isn’t difficult to believe that the record will be indicative of things to come. In the meantime, there seems to be little hope for one Giant loss in week two.
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