[ad_1]
CHARLOTTE, NC – The New Orleans Saints offensive set a new low for distance traveled during Sean Payton’s time. And Jameis Winston posted the worst passer rating of his career, throwing his first two interceptions of the season.
But Payton and his players refused to blame their dismal 26-7 loss to the Carolina Panthers that they were missing eight assistant coaches due to COVID-19 protocols – or missing nine starters due to injury or suspensions – and were moved for three weeks in the aftermath of Hurricane Ida.
“Offensively, in particular, it’s as poor as we’ve been for a long time here, and it starts with me,” Payton said. “We have to do a better job. Our protection plan was not good enough. But that had nothing to do with whether we were running out of coaches or missing or COVID [situation].
“It would all be an apology. They played better than us today and deserved to win the football game.”
Running back Alvin Kamara concurred with the advice after the Saints were limited to 128 total yards – a mind-blowing flop just a week after outscoring the Green Bay Packers 38-3 in Game 1 of the season.
“It wasn’t about anyone’s absence. I think it was our responsibility to keep playing without the coaches around,” Kamara said after being limited to 5 rushing yards in eight carries. .
“There is no handicap. We don’t get an extra second on the game clock because we don’t have coaches; we don’t get an extra delay because there is no no coaches. That’s what it is. There’s one more game to play. All the coaching staff could have been gone – they weren’t going to cancel the game. You have to continue. “[Now] you have adversity and you have to find a way to react and respond. It’s ours. It is our responsibility to do better. “
The Saints were without eight assistants on Sunday after testing positive for COVID-19 throughout the week: receivers coach Curtis Johnson, tight ends coach Dan Roushar, running backs coach Joel Thomas, coaches from the defensive line Ryan Nielsen and Brian Young, offensive analyst Jim Chaney, offensive assistant Declan Doyle and special teams assistant Phil Galiano. Offensive line coach Brendan Nugent missed the week of training before being allowed to return on Saturday.
The Saints also lost an impressive five starters to injuries between Week 1 and Week 2 (center Erik McCoy, cornerback Marshon Lattimore, safety CJ Gardner-Johnson, defensive end Marcus Davenport and linebacker Kwon Alexander).
And they have been training in the Dallas / Fort Worth area for over three weeks due to power outages in the New Orleans area and other issues caused by Hurricane Ida.
But the issue that plagued them the most on Sunday, according to Payton and the players, was their lack of communication and the lack of an effective plan for Carolina’s relentless blitz.
According to ESPN Stats & Information research, the Panthers pressured Winston on 18 of his 28 pullbacks (64%), which was the third highest pressure rate for any defense since ESPN began tracking the pressure in 2009.
Under pressure, Winston was 4 of 13 for 54 yards with two interceptions and four sacks.
“We didn’t handle the communication well enough, we didn’t handle the pressures well enough and we didn’t train him well enough,” said Payton. “We had seen it on tape, and obviously we got more and we didn’t handle it well.
“So we clearly didn’t work well enough and effectively enough, and it kind of bit our butt today.”
Winston also criticized himself for not communicating well enough with the line – which is a work in progress given former Saints quarterback Drew Brees used to handling protections before injured center McCoy is only taking the lion’s share of protection calls this year.
Second-year Saints offensive lineman Cesar Ruiz (a varsity center) did a solid job replacing McCoy last week after slipping from right guard. But nothing went well for the Saints’ offense in Week 2.
Both Winston’s interceptions were desperate pushes onto the pitch late in the first half and late in the game, when the risks made sense. But he didn’t use that as an excuse.
“I still have to make some good decisions,” said Winston, who completed just 11 of 22 passes for 111 yards and a 26.9 passer rating. “They came at awkward times. I don’t want to have us in this position in the first place, but I still have to take care of the football.”
The Saints will play against the New England Patriots in week three before finally returning home to New Orleans to practice and host the New York Giants in week four.
“Just keep fighting,” Winston said of his post-game message. “We have to put this one behind us. We will improve. We will step up our pace. I will improve from a communication point of view and become more efficient on the first and second downs.”
[ad_2]
Source link