The New Orleans Saints exited Monday night’s matchup against the Atlanta Falcons with clear blemishes. The team’s defense, both rushing and passing, took a beating while the perimeter of the offensive line struggled to protect quarterback Tyler Shough.
Meanwhile, some of the team’s biggest names and its passing attack again shined despite a tough 45-24 loss in Week 4. Here are the highest- and lowest-graded players with at least 20 snaps from Monday night’s game, rated by Pro Football Focus.
Highest-Graded
- WR Devaughn Vele – 77.2
- EDGE Chase Young – 77.1
- WR Chris Olave – 76.6
- EDGE Cameron Jordan – 76.2
- OL Cesar Ruiz – 74.8
Vele, Young, Olave and Jordan have been constant contributors for the team, consistently producing and/or leading their respective units. Seeing them sit atop the highest-graded players serves as a standard that the team is likely trying to replicate across its roster.
Jordan and Young, However, who were both spotted in the open locker room, were visibly frustrated with the Monday night loss after the game. No player was likely to be an exception to that. The two ends didn’t pile up stats against Atlanta, and combined for a pressure a piece as they often drew more than their fair share of the attention from the Falcons’ protection efforts.
Meanwhile, Vele and Olave continue to record receiving yards in the passing game with Shough. Vele found the end zone late, helping to bolster his grade.
Ruiz continues to be productive and reliable in pass protection on the interior. The Saints are credited with surrendering 23 pressures to the Falcons, with only one being linked to Ruiz. He and center Erik McCoy were the only two offensive linemen credited with fewer than four pressures responsible for after the game.
However, it was Ruiz’s 76.2 run blocking grade that lifted his overall score. The Saints ran three times between Ruiz and McCoy, totaling 16 rushing yards (5.3 per carry) and a rushing touchdown.
Lowest-Graded
- CB Quincy Riley – 28.0
- DL Khristian Boyd – 29.4
- DL Vernon Broughton – 29.4
- CB Kool-Aid McKinstry – 29.5
- DL Davon Godchaux – 30.2
The Saints’ defensive line and secondary took a beating against Atlanta. The three players at the bottom of the grade chart contributed six of the team’s 15 credited missed tackles by the analytics site. Four of those missed tackles belonged to Riley, who had the roughest day of the bunch.
Riley was credited as the nearest defender on four receptions for 58 receiving yards and a touchdown. He surrendered a 123.8 passer rating when targeted. It may have been his most challenging game as a pro since entering the league last season.
Godchaux, Broughton and Boyd combined for no pressures that were charted with Broughton and Boyd each averaging a depth of tackle of five yards and 4.5 yards respectively. Godchaux, who appeared for 21 total snaps, including 14 rushing downs, did not register any statistics.
McKinstry was mostly beat up for being whistled for a pair of penalties and allowing two receptions for 60 receiving yards as the nearest defender, including the Falcon’s longest passing play of 37.
