The Minneapolis Miracle, which took place exactly a year ago today, was the type of play that can scar a unit for years. Anyone could sense the depth of pain inside New Orleans Saints safety Marcus Williams as he spoke following his missed tackle on Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Stefon Diggs.
Cornerback Marshon Lattimore looked deflated as he offered words of support for his fellow rookie teammate in the defensive backfield. Defensive end Cameron Jordan lamented that he and the defensive line were unable to reach quarterback Case Keenum on the play.
While 100% of the blame was cast on Williams, it was clear that the Saints defense collectively felt responsible for the Diggs touchdown. After all, Williams had made a key interception earlier in the game that sparked a Saints comeback. If he had also been able to tackle Diggs in bounds on that final play, he would’ve undoubtedly received the game ball.
A year later, the Saints defense had a chance to seal a win on the exact same stage against the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles, who New Orleans would have played last year for the NFC title if they had survived Minnesota. This time, the Saints secondary rose to the occasion and capped off an excellent three-quarter performance with a Lattimore interception on the Eagles final drive.
Here’s an in-depth look at how the play of the Saints secondary unfolded over the course of the win over Philadelphia.
New Orleans Saints Secondary Gets Redemption in Victory Over Philadelphia Eagles
Early Struggles
The Eagles looked unstoppable as they executed two long touchdown drives in the first quarter. By the end of the quarter, quarterback Nick Foles had completed eight of nine pass attempts for 113 yards, gaining 12.5 yards per pass attempt and generating a near-perfect 155.8 passer rating. It was eerily similar to the Vikings start a year ago when Keenum easily picked apart the Saints early on and led his team to a 17-0 advantage.
The first Saints coverage error occurred on a third and one on the Eagles first drive. Saints cornerback Eli Apple failed to recognize a rub route concept run by Eagles tight end Zach Ertz and wide receiver Nelson Agholor. As Ertz went out into the flat, Apple followed his receiver inside rather than switching off to Ertz, and inadvertently cut off safety Vonn Bell, who was initially assigned to Ertz. The tight end picked up the first down and gained 11 yards.
A few plays later, Foles completed a deep touchdown pass to Jordan Matthews with cornerback P.J. Williams in coverage. The Saints were actually in a decent position to break up the pass. Marcus Williams diagnosed the throw quickly and came over to give support over the top, but he took a bad angle and ended up in pursuit of Matthews. P.J. Williams struggled to locate the ball, giving Matthews the extra step he needed to reach the end zone.
On the next Eagles drive, Foles took advantage of off coverage and completed passes to underneath receivers for consecutive first downs. Clearly, the Saints didn’t want to get burned by another deep Eagles pass, but it didn’t help a few plays later on a third and seven.
Lattimore was step for step with wide receiver Alshon Jefferey on a go route, but Foles underthrew it so his receiver could make a leaping catch over the cornerback. Lattimore had a word with Marcus Williams after the play, indicating that he expected help from the safety over the top, which would have allowed Lattimore to stay underneath Jefferey and potentially make a play on the ball. Foles scored a rushing touchdown two plays later.
The start couldn’t have gone much worse, but like last year against the Vikings, a Saints interception seemed to flip the game and generated a better effort in coverage.
Clamping Down
On the Eagles third drive, Foles went after Lattimore with another deep jump ball, this time to Ertz. As the cornerback dropped into a deep zone, he pushed Matthews inside and traveled downfield with Ertz. Foles had the look he wanted, as an out and up route by Ertz gave the tight end inside leverage. However, Lattimore watched the ball as he moved underneath Ertz and made a beautiful leaping interception on a slightly underthrown Foles pass.
On the Eagles last two drives of the first half, New Orleans forced two punts as they held Foles to 3 of 6 passing for 29 yards. The Saints had the opportunity to make further adjustments in coverage at halftime, and it didn’t take long for the changes to show up.
In the second quarter, Foles had completed a shallow fade to Jefferey with Bell in coverage for a first down. Bell had bumped Jefferey off the line, but lost track of the receiver as he watched Foles’ eyes. Philadelphia ran a similar concept on their first drive of the third quarter on third and four. This time, Bell made sure he didn’t lose Jefferey as he looked for the ball. Jefferey got his hands on it, but Bell immediately pulled the ball out.
The Saints also made noticeable adjustments in the way they defended passes to running backs in the flat. Eagles running backs Darren Sproles and Wendell Smallwood were used frequently on delayed screens and routes into the flat, often chipping a defensive lineman on their way out. Sproles and Smallwood combined for 25 receiving yards on three catches on these plays in the first half.
In the second half, New Orleans worked to crush the pocket and keep the running backs trapped in the backfield. Davis often spied the running backs in the second half, and he was quick to pick up a Sproles or Smallwood route when they did escape the backfield. On a couple of third down plays in the fourth quarter, Foles eyed Sproles, but the back was covered both times. Foles ended up throwing incomplete passes to other targets. Sproles had just one catch for two yards in the second half, and Smallwood wasn’t targeted again.
In the secondary, New Orleans made a better effort to disrupt Eagles routes and consistently beat their receivers on contested catches. When the Eagles took over down six points with 2:58 left in the game, Foles had thrown for just 72 yards since the first quarter.
Bending, but Not Breaking on Final Eagles Drive
It was up to the Saints defense to seal a trip to the NFC Championship game for the second year in a row. This time though, Philadelphia had better field position, and much more time left on the clock than Minnesota had last season.
On the first play, Foles threw the ball into the turf as the Saints got good pressure. The receivers had no chance to finish their routes against the Saints backed up zone coverage. Sproles was open on a swing route on the left side, but Foles never saw him.
On second down, P.J. Williams lined up across from Ertz, but slid inside just before the snap for a blitz. Foles recognized the shift and hit Ertz on an intermediate dig route, moving Philadelphia to the Saints 42-yard line. Deep routes on the outside had stretched the Saints secondary while an Agholor post from the slot occupied the linebackers.
Pressure by Marcus Davenport forced an errant Foles throw on the next play, but Davenport was penalized for roughing the passer, and suddenly the Eagles were on the Saints 27-yard lie with 2:25 remaining.
Three quarters of great Saints defense was fading away. At that moment, they looked destined for a late-game postseason collapse for the second year in a row, and the fourth time in the last decade.
After Sproles was stuffed for no gain, the Eagles appeared to move even closer to the end zone on the next play. You could see Jefferey running free underneath the Saints almost immediately. Foles waited a split second to throw it to him, at which point linebacker Alex Anzalone was closing in on Jefferey. It’s unclear if Jefferey felt Anzalone coming, but regardless, the pass went right through his trusty hands and into Lattimore’s.
New Orleans needed a mishap by the Eagles to survive, but at least they capitalized on it. This year, they made the big game-ending play that’ll be replayed for years to come.
Next Step
The Saints won’t have long to celebrate this defensive triumph. Next week they face a Los Angeles Rams team with one of the most productive and balanced offenses in the NFL. Philadelphia had some success running the ball early against New Orleans but rushed just three times in the second half for six yards. As the Eagles abandoned the run, the Saints secondary was able to consistently play the pass.
New Orleans won’t have this luxury against the Rams. Alongside All-Pro running back Todd Gurley, the Rams added C.J. Anderson as a relief back. Together, they gained 238 rushing yards in their win over the Dallas Cowboys on Saturday. Suddenly, the league’s second-most productive and high-scoring offense looks even more dangerous.
The Saints young secondary likely gained a ton of confidence with this win, and that’ll be key for the challenges they may face in the coming weeks. A year after the Minneapolis Miracle, the Saints secondary proved they can handle postseason adversity, and seal a win when called upon.
Main Photo:
Embed from Getty Images
