By Ross Jackson
When starting a rookie quarterback for the first time, it isn’t a shock to see some adjustments on offense.
But one thing the New Orleans Saints said they would not do during rookie quarterback Spencer Rattler’s NFL debut is “dumb down” their offense. Even though they didn’t simplify the scheme, there was one major difference in how they deployed one of their most present elements.
New Orleans ran motion on just 43 percent of snaps on Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. That marked the first time all season that they dipped under 50 percent.
While that dip in frequency was surprising to offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak, there was a reason for the shift.
“That wasn’t a part of the plan,” Kubiak said. “But we probably used more quick counts in the game. So, you can’t motion with that.”
The Saints opted for tempo over motion on a greater basis of snaps than is typical for their game plan, it seems. Tempo has a lot of benefit, much like motion. But moving players pre-snap does give a quarterback a certain amount of information, depending on the purpose of the motion, that can be valuable. The motion allows the signal caller to start diagnosing coverage and can potentially lighten boxes by moving defenders out of the middle of the field. As head coach Dennis Allen highlighted, it can be a compromise with a rookie passer.
“When you change the picture for the defense.” Allen said during his Monday media availability. “It changed the picture for the quarterback a little bit too. Is it hard to motion with a rookie quarterback? Well it depends on what you’re trying to do.”
Allen also acknowledged that losing wide receiver Chris Olave early, a stymied rushing attack and getting into “drop back mode” in the second half all had impacts on motion calls, as well, especially as the deficit opened up in the final quarter.
Motion will be an interesting metric to keep an eye on against the Denver Broncos on Thursday night. It does not seem that the Saints are interested in toning down the offense for Rattler. Kubiak said that he was pleased with the way the rookie handled the game plan. However, they will continue tailoring the system to fit his skill set, which differs from starting quarterback Derek Carr’s.
Kubiak also said that he feels comfortable opening the playbook up more for Rattler in his second game. How much is left to open up when it is said to never have been dumbed down is the question. Perhaps we’ll see when the team takes the field Thursday night.
