{"id":147062,"date":"2023-09-19T19:00:34","date_gmt":"2023-09-19T23:00:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/?p=147062"},"modified":"2023-09-19T18:45:48","modified_gmt":"2023-09-19T22:45:48","slug":"saints-defense-week-2-week-derek-carr","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2023\/09\/19\/saints-defense-week-2-week-derek-carr\/","title":{"rendered":"Saints Remain One-Trick Pony In Week 2 Win"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Saints Week 2 win on Monday Night Football felt all too familiar. With a stifling secondary, a frustrating lack of offensive rhythm, and some clutch Carr in the game\u2019s final moments, it was much of the same from last week\u2019s battle with the Titans. But while it wasn\u2019t pretty, the Saints again pulled through in the fourth quarter, moving to 2-0 for the first time since 2013. Here are three key takeaways from the 20-17 primetime win.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>[cta id=4013 type=cta]<\/p>\n<h2>Three Key Takeaways From Saints Week 2 Win<\/h2>\n<h3><b>Offensive Red Zone Woes Continue<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Derek Carr arrived in New Orleans with a history of struggling in the red zone. Through his first two games, unfortunately, he has yet to do much to change that narrative. The Saints once again had to settle for first-half field goals after twice reaching inside the ten-yard line.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Carr shouldn\u2019t shoulder all of the blame here, however. Protection issues carried forward from last week\u2019s game and prevented the offense from finding its rhythm, But the two third-down misses the Saints had before settling for field goals were simply poor execution.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Saints finally broke through in the third quarter of their Week 2 win with a sustained drive that ended in six.\u00a0 They began to lean heavily on the run and eventually capitalized with a short touchdown. It was the type of drive they absolutely need to be seeing more of. Featuring a bomb to Olave mixed in with a punishing ground attack, it was a rare bright moment for an otherwise dull day offensively.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">CHRIS OLAVE JUST NEEDED ONE \u270b<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/SCtop10?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">#SCtop10<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/0l4ISAT6Ve\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/0l4ISAT6Ve<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/SportsCenter\/status\/1703944012736938172?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">September 19, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While results so far have been disappointing, there are some signs of hope on the horizon. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nfl.com\/news\/saints-rb-alvin-kamara-suspended-three-games-for-role-in-february-2022-incident-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">return of Alvin Kamara<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2023\/04\/12\/kendre-miller-nfl-draft-profile-team-fits\/\" target=\"_self\">Kendre Miller<\/a> should add some much-needed juice to the running back room. Jamaal Williams had been forced to carry the load leading into this game, and didn\u2019t even last past the first half. He\u2019s proven to be an excellent short-yardage back in the past but doesn\u2019t have nearly the receiving prowess that Kamara brings. A healthy group here would be a big boost, in addition to Carr hopefully slowly finding his groove. Ultimately, red zone execution needs to be a point of emphasis moving forward. Continuously settling for three will cost this team games if this doesn\u2019t improve quickly.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>Granderson, DL Continue Applying Pressure<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If there was any reason to be concerned in the defense heading into 2023, it was the defensive line. With Cameron Jordan another year closer to the end, Payton Turner\u2019s struggles, and offseason departures, the unit was a massive question mark. And while it\u2019s certainly still early to make any declarations, there has to be some relief as to how this group has performed through two weeks. Four sacks won\u2019t light up the stat sheet, but they managed consistent pressure and generally <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2023\/09\/17\/saints-week-2-carolina-panhters\/\" target=\"_self\">made life difficult for Bryce Young<\/a> in the Saints Week 2 win.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Highlighted by a crucial strip-sack from Carl Granderson, the line again made its presence felt throughout. Granderson\u2019s moment was another instance of him shining this year. If he can string together these flashes into consistent play, he may be headed for a big-time season. In a contract year, he appears to setting himself up for a nice payday this offseason. The Saints were in similar circumstances following Trey Hendrickson\u2019s elite 2020 season. They decided not to pay him and made the ill-fated decision of rolling with Marcus Davenport. There\u2019s a long season left, but seeing how Granderson\u2019s progresses could force the front office into another tough decision.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">CARL GRANDERSON WITH THE STRIP SACK ON BRYCE YOUNG<\/p>\n<p>So many turnovers in these games right now. <br \/> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/SKxQPztaLw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/SKxQPztaLw<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; JPAFootball (@jasrifootball) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/jasrifootball\/status\/1703931085250265415?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">September 19, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Besides Granderson, many others on the line also had their moments. Cam Jordan continued his nice start to the year and hasn\u2019t shown many signs of slowing down. Bryan Bresee seems more comfortable with each passing week and nearly had a game-changing sack-fumble if not for a penalty in the secondary. Being able to generate consistent pressure with three or four would be a huge positive surprise for this defense. If the line can continue to build, the potential of this defense grows that much more.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>Taysom Time<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With the signings of Jamaal Williams and Foster Moreau, Taysom Hill appeared potentially to be an odd man out offensively. With Williams slated to handle short-yardage and goal-line situations, much of Hill\u2019s utility as a runner looked to be redundant. And with Moreau and Jimmy Graham in the tight end room, it was hard to envision Hill contributing anything significantly out of his \u201ctight-end\u201d position.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Monday was a strong reminder of just how valuable Hill still is to this offense. After Williams left with an injury, Hill stepped into a de-facto RB2 role behind Tony Jones. He picked up 75 yards on just nine carries, including his final one which sealed the Saints Week 2 win. The Saints like their matchup advantage on Hill running QB-power, and it was no surprise why. He picked up chunk play after chunk play on his runs and probably should have been used even more. Two drives that ended in punts were the result of incomplete passes on third-and-short, where Hill could certainly have helped.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Hill package still comes with its caveats, of course. There still needs to exist a threat of a pass when Hill plays to avoid becoming too predictable. The Saints also don\u2019t want to unnecessarily pull Carr and the rest of the offense out of a rhythm. But sometimes, it simply comes down to Hill\u2019s physicality outmatching the defenses\u2019. Whether it be a potential aid to red-zone issues, or a \u2018break glass in case of emergency\u2019 call for breaking the offense out of a funk, it\u2019s clear that Hill still can make a significant contribution to this offense.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><em>Universal Responsible Gambling Disclaimer:<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Ages 21+. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Main Photo: Stephen Lew &#8211; USA Today Sports<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A key figure on the defensive line shines again. This and other key takeaways from the Saints Week 2 win over the Carolina Panthers<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4840,"featured_media":147198,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[1573,1178,8995,231,1584,9833,301,10104,7659,9036],"class_list":["post-147062","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-saints","tag-alvin-kamara","tag-cameron-jordan","tag-chris-olave","tag-derek-carr","tag-jamaal-williams","tag-kendre-miller","tag-michael-thomas","tag-rashid-shaheed","tag-saints-featured","tag-trevor-penning"],"modified_by":"David Latham, Managing Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/147062","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4840"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=147062"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/147062\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/147198"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=147062"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=147062"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=147062"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}