By Ross Jackson
After a tough loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, the New Orleans Saints look to have crashed back down to Earth. The team will look to rebound next week against the Atlanta Falcons, as will several players who are looking to bounce back from their individual performances in Week 3. The offense took the brunt of the grading downturn over at Pro Football Focus (PFF) with only one player on that side of the ball, wide receiver Chris Olave, ranking in the Top 5.
Top 5
WR Chris Olave – 90.3
DE Carl Granderson – 88.9
LB Willie Gay Jr. – 85.9
CB Paulson Adebo – 79.9
CB Marshon Lattimore – 72.7
Olave had a great game catching all six of his targets for 86 receiving yards and a wide open touchdown catch. He also assisted in converting on three third-and-long opportunities in the passing game, as well. However, Olave has been of great value as a run blocker and taking up the attention of defenses. New Orleans would love to see more games like this one between him and quarterback Derek Carr, whose connection was about the only thing that consistently went well for the Saints’ offense against the Eagles.
The Saints have three players with at least three sacks already this season, a good boost from last year’s numbers. Aside from cornerback Alontae Taylor (3.5), Granderson’s are most notable. The Saints have only had veteran defensive lineman Cameron Jordan on the field for 40% of snaps, meaning they must like what they are seeing from Granderson and fellow edge defender Chase Young. Granderson’s active playmaking as a pass rusher and run defender have propelled him to the top of the snap share list at the position, and he’s making good on those opportunities.
After playing the most snaps he has played so far for New Orleans, Gay Jr. finds the third spot in the Top 5. He was targeted just once in 12 coverage snaps, allowing a catch but for only two yards, per PFF. He also recovered the fumble that was forced on a sack of Jalen Hurts by Granderson. The linebacker showed some nice things in his uptick, now it will be interesting to see if he sees more snaps on defense moving forward or if this jump was purely game situation related.
Adebo was rewarded in his grading for his first penalty-free game of the season. The cornerback is extremely physical, so the penalties are ones you’re willing to take on as a team because of what that aggression leads to. While he did not have an interception this week, he did play great in run support with three run stops. Despite allowing eight catches on nine targets, he only allowed 4.5 yards per reception. He played very well at the catch point, making stops immediately and not allowing for much real estate after the catch.
Making his return to the field after being held out last week with a hamstring injury, Lattimore rounds out the Top 5. The star cornerback played 49 coverage snaps and was targeted just twice, allowing one catch for 14 yards and no yards after the catch. He surrendered just a 72.9 passer rating when the ball was thrown his way
Bottom 5
OL Oli Udoh – 43.3
DT Bryan Bresee – 40.7
OL Trevor Penning – 40.1
S Jordan Howden – 32.8
TE Juwan Johnson – 29.6
As for the bottom five, it should not be surprising to see a pair of offensive linemen on this one. Udoh was thrown into the mix at left guard after starting center Erik McCoy left with a groin injury. The line’s new configuration struggled as typical starting left guard Lucas Patrick moved to center and played out of position. Patrick fared well, but Udoh and Penning were graded out low. Penning’s penalization for blocking a player out of bounds likely dipped his score as well.
Bresee is again a surprising player to see in this bottom tier as he contributed two sacks on the day. But perhaps his down-to-down looks were less consistent than the grading model liked compared to his highlight moments. Head coach Dennis Allen credited Bresee’s play in his Monday media availability.
“I think he’s doing some good things in the pass rush,” he said. “And I think there’s still some room for improvement there. I think he’s done some good things defensively, both in the run game and in the passing game.”
As for Johnson, his play was impacted by the Eagles’ front and their defending of the run game as well as the injury to McCoy which impacted the team’s pass blocking dramatically. Johnson and fellow tight end Foster Moreau both looked to have carried on a big role in protection. Johnson ran only 13 routes. His lowest individual grade (12.3) came from pass blocking in particular.
NOTE: Technically speaking, defensive end Isaiah Foskey (76.1) and Payton Turner’s (73.3) special teams ratings would have put them in the top-5. But typically grades on the offense and defense are prioritized. So this mention is to serve as an acknowledgement of both player’s contributions on special teams.
