{"id":52116,"date":"2018-11-09T20:25:54","date_gmt":"2018-11-10T01:25:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lwosonnfl.ms.lastwordonsports.com\/?p=52116"},"modified":"2021-03-12T17:04:37","modified_gmt":"2021-03-12T22:04:37","slug":"five-blueprints-to-the-super-bowl-for-the-2018-new-orleans-saints-part-three-keeping-drew-brees-upright","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2018\/11\/09\/five-blueprints-to-the-super-bowl-for-the-2018-new-orleans-saints-part-three-keeping-drew-brees-upright\/","title":{"rendered":"Five Blueprints to the Super Bowl for the 2018 New Orleans Saints, Part Three: Keeping Drew Brees Upright"},"content":{"rendered":"

This is my third installment in my series of blueprints<\/a> necessary for the New Orleans Saints<\/a> return to a Super Bowl. This feature is focused on the protection upfront. For Drew Brees<\/a> <\/strong>to have success, the offensive line must be able to keep Drew Brees from pressure. These are the guys that don’t get much notoriety in the newspapers. But the offensive line is crucial for the whole year to provide adequate protection. Also, lessening the hits on Brees could convince Brees to stay around a bit longer.<\/p>\n

Part III Keeping Drew Brees Upright<\/h1>\n

Good Teams Provide Protection<\/h2>\n

There is clear evidence that protecting the quarterback leads to wins. In fact, the correlation can be directly tied to wins and losses year after year. Looking at the last ten years can be good sample of statistics to provide a really good insight into the performance of an offensive line. And how that impacts the seasons’ success.<\/p>\n

Take a look at just the 2018 stats for quarterback stats alone.<\/a>\u00a0The number of hits allowed so far by the New Orleans Saints is 26 through eight games. That is the\u00a0lowest\u00a0<\/strong>number for all NFL teams. Also, take a look at the sack numbers. The Saints sit at a total of nine<\/strong> so far. The number one team is none other than the New Orleans Saints. The other teams that are close behind are the Los Angeles Chargers<\/a>, Pittsburgh Steelers<\/a>, Kansas City Chiefs<\/a>, and the New England Patriots<\/a>. Coincidentally, all those teams fall in the AFC Conference. And those teams just happened to be atop of the AFC standings.\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n

Not far behind with 17 sacks allowed are a plethora of teams:\u00a0Washington Redskins<\/a>, Cincinnati Bengals<\/a>, L.A. Rams<\/a>, Chicago Bears<\/a>, Carolina Panthers<\/a>, and the Baltimore Ravens<\/a>. Likewise, all these teams are playoff contenders in 2018. Also, the Saints have beaten three of these teams too. This weeks game against the Bengals will also be a test for the defensive line of the Saints. The pressure has to start being a part of attacking the quarterback. Pressure disrupts the offense and tend to force unwanted mistakes.<\/p>\n

Keeping Brees Untouched<\/h2>\n

Sacks are not the only measure\u00a0for the protection of the quarterback. Keeping the defense from touching the quarterback also leads to a direct link to successful teams. This is a just a snippet from Pro Football Focus on their assessment of the Saints from 2017 to coming into this season.<\/p>\n