Credit: Steven Bisig-Imagn Images
By Ross Jackson
There wasn’t much to write home about in a positive manner coming out of the New Orleans Saints’ big loss to the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday. Pro Football Focus released their grades from the game, showing the expected lower lows than higher highs.
Here are the top five and bottom five graded players that saw at least 15 snaps on either offense or defense:
Top 5
LB Demario Davis – 77.8
CB Quincy Riley – 76.0
TE Jack Stoll – 75.0
DE Chris Rumph II – 72.2
CB Isaac Yiadom – 69.0
Davis continues to have a great start to the season. He eclipsed double-digit combined tackles for the second week in a row with 11, trailing only fellow linebacker Pete Werner (13) for the game lead. He was credited with one missed tackle, but five stops in the run game. A very active day for the veteran linebacker.
The rookie cornerback, Riley, appeared in just 18 defensive snaps, but forced the Saints’ only turnover on the day. He punched a ball out in the fourth quarter from a Seattle ball-carrier which was recovered by Werner. Riley is known for his ball skills and takeaway production in the passing game, but has always received high praise as a willing contributor against the run. During his defensive debut, he showed why.
Stoll caught the team’s lone touchdown catch on a 13-yard toss from quarterback Spencer Rattler, but beyond that he also saw high marks as a blocker, particularly when staying back to protect the passer.
Rumph was one of just three defenders to produce a pressure on Seahawks passers Sam Darnold and Drew Lock, one of just two defensive linemen. He also added four combined tackles while dropping back into coverage four times without drawing a target.
After being targeted seven times and surrendering 80 receiving yards as the closest defender last week, Yiadom was targeted just once resulting in an eight-yard gain against Seattle. He also graded out well as a tackler, not credited with a missed tackle in the game.
Bottom 5
CB Kool-Aid McKinstry – 27.7
DT Davon Godchaux – 29.1
S Justin Reid – 31.6
DE Fadil Diggs – 34.7
OL Torricelli Simpkins III – 35.7
It was a rough game for McKinstry who has had a challenging start to the season. As the closest defender in coverage, he was credited by Pro FootbalL Focus ith four targets for three catches, 71 receiving yards and a passing touchdown allowed, surrendering a passer rating of 156.3. He was also dinged for a pair of missed tackles. McKinstry is looking to get things back on track after performing very well throughout training camp as one of the team’s standouts.
Godchaux’s only major stat logged in this game was one hit on the quarterback, which Pro Football Focus credited but the NFL doesn’t appear to have on their end. No tackles logged against a Seahawks team that didn’t run the ball much until the end of the game when starters were taken out. The game’s situation and flow as well as Seattle’s outside run scheme effectively took Godchaux out of his strength as a run-stopper.
Reid had a tough game not even considering stats. He was checked for a concussion and ultimately cleared following going through the protocol. But getting there was a first for the safety who had his helmet come off and then took a cleat to the face. He re-entered the game afterwards. His grade suffered because of his coverage attributions which include three catches and a passing touchdown allowed as the closest defender.
A pair of rookies round out the list with Diggs getting no pressures, but only rushing the passer twice while spending most of his time facing rushing plays later in the game. He was also whistled for a penalty. Meanwhile, Simpkins saw his debut as a starter. He was flagged once and is credited with giving up five total pressures including four hurries and a hit in protection. He is the lone offensive player among the qualifying bottom-five grades.
