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The miraculous defensive turnaround of the Saints may have lasted only one season, but if Monday night is a clue, they may not need a dominant defense to become a dangerous team in the playoffs. That's how prolific, explosive and historical this offense of the Saints is now that it is finally at full strength.
Drew Brees is the leader of all time in passing yards. Mark Ingram is back and scores touchdowns. Michael Thomas is in the top receivers of the NFL. Alvin Kamara is still Alvin Kamara, probably the most dangerous in the back. Add to that the versatility of Taysom Hill on the third trials and in the red zone, the verticality of Ted Ginn and / or Tre Quan Smith, as well as the reliable hands of Cameron Meredith. These players could have a Super Bowl caliber alignment without even considering the other side of the ball. .
Who needs a defense when you have this whole offense?
On Monday night, the saints welcomed the Redskins to the Superdome of New Orleans and proceeded to their destruction. The final score? 43-19.
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At the end of the third quarter, the Saints led 40-13. Ignore what happened next, because everything was useless. From that moment on, the only question was whether the Saints would give Brees the opportunity to launch his 500th career touchdown (they did not do it) – that and if Teddy Bridgewater would see the land (he did it, very briefly).
The Saints are now 4-1, their only loss in a result of the first week can be attributed to the very real and very frightening phenomenon known as FitzMagic. The Redskins, meanwhile, are 2-2, but are still in contention because of the bad state of the NFC East.
We'll be arriving soon at the Redskins and NFC East. First, we need to talk about the Saints, because they are starting to look like the team we thought we were after leaving Hail Mary after winning the NFC Championship title a year ago.
Brees, who broke Peyton Manning's passing yards in the first half, had 363 yards and three touchdowns for a perfect pass score of 153.2. Ingram, on his return, scored two touchdowns. Thomas caught four passes for 74 yards in what should be considered a game down. Hill took a linebacker on a conversion to third downhill and scored a touchdown in the red zone.
Do you think that the accounting of Thomas, Ingram and Kamara is difficult enough? Keep this:
It was the total domination of an offensive saints operating at its peak. They totaled 450 yards on offense before their last knee down, totaling 27 runs and generating a huge game after big game. That said something that Thomas felt like a reflection after Monday night, and he still generated 74 yards. That said also that Kamara was an afterthought, and that the saints were always doing what they wanted with the Redskins.
And about this defense. In fact, he held up well and did well to keep the Redskins level on goals and big turnovers. One of the touchdowns they allowed came after a breakaway that set the Redskins deep within the Saints' territory. Alex Smith was sometimes annoyed by the rush in the pass, while Cameron Jordan, Sheldon Rankins and rookie Marcus Davenport both carried a bag.
And they almost scored a touchdown.
A week ago, the Saints limited the 18 goals to the Giants, but we call this successful outing more of the Giants 'offensive than less of the Saints' defense. They launched another strong game on Monday night. Maybe the defense of the Saints may have become the monster that it was a year ago?
It's more like the version of the Saints we fell in love with a year ago. That is why many of us (like myself) chose them to represent the NFC at the Super Bowl at the start of the season. Is the defense still a concern? Of course. But if the defense can continue to improve during the season and become a solid unit by the end of the season, the Saints will build with this offensive a team that no one will want to face in January.
The Saints may not be as stacked on both sides of the ball as the Rams, for example, but they will play in almost every playoff game with the best of two-quarters – one of the best quarterbacks in history. NFL. It is important.
On this note …
The Brees record night
Brees came into play with a chance to beat Peyton Manning's record for most passing yards in the history of the NFL. With 71,740 yards passing before the game, Brees needed 99 to double Brett Favre and 201 to double Manning. He needed less than half to break the record.
Brees passed Favre early in the second quarter. Before half-time, he broke the record almost perfectly, throwing a 62-yard touchdown pass.
The NFL paused in the game as Brees' teammates stormed the field before heading to the sideline to join his family.
The ball is in Canton.
And the reign of Manning is over.
By the way, this is not the only record that Brees has.
In addition to his excellent start to the season, Brees was 26th out of 29 for 363 yards, three touchdowns, no choice, and a pass mark of 153.2 against a defense coming in, ranked third against the pass by DVOA. Yes, you read that well: Brees has launched as many hits as unfinished.
It's the ultimate criminal that he has never earned MVP. Remarkably, even after this beginning of the year, it is only one of the elements of the conversation between MVP and Patrick Mahomes and Jared Goff.
Brees deserves consideration.
NFC East is rotten
The east throne of the NFC is up for grabs. The Kingsroad is wide and open, without threats as teams such as the Giants, Eagles and Cowboys jostle aimlessly. A win Monday night would have strengthened the status of favorite of the Redskins in the division. Instead, this has strengthened NFC East's status as a truly bad division, devoid of a good team.
Giants are a mess. Cowboys are harmless. The Eagles are nothing like a Super Bowl champion. The NFC East is anyone's division. Before Monday night, only the Redskins seemed interested in winning the division. Maybe their 2-1 start was a mirage.
After all, think about what they did before the season and ask what would make them consider them a competitor.
Smith was not terrible in the first period, but he was not good. It was, however, awful in the second half. You have already seen this near the sixth choice above. Check out his escapees later in the third quarter. Also note that it is Davenport who forced the roll. The Saints have paid a high price for the fishing, but if he ends up becoming the next big NFL smuggler, the award will have been worth it.
Smith finished 23 of 39's out of 39 for 275 yards, no touchdowns, a choice and a passer rating of 69.9. He rushed for a touchdown late in the first half, but even then, a return would seem far-fetched.
No one should overreact to this performance. Smith is a quarterback in the NFL long enough to know that he's usually better than that and there's a good chance he's still being a good, not a good, quarterback for the rest of the season. It's just not good enough to stay with Brees when Brees is at its best.
Now, this last element concerns players who plan to win in the playoffs. The teams usually have to beat the NFL Brees, Bradys and Rodgers, and Smith has never been able to beat this type of quarterback in the playoffs. Kansas City.
Their defense was just as worrying – if not more worrying.
Sloppy Redskins' defense helps Brees
The crime of the saints is already close to nothing. They do not need help, but that's what the Redskins decided to do, offering the Saints their first 13 points in penalty form.
In the first Redskins defensive series, they thought they would force a stop, but on the third run, Josh Norman was called to hold in high school. Four games later, the Saints started the score with a touch of Ingram (they missed the extra point, however).
On the second Redskins defensive series, they thought they would force another stop by dismissing Brees, but Montae Nicholson denied Ingram after the game, resulting in a 15-yard penalty that gave a new set of tries. On this same series, the Redskins were called to stay in the end zone, which preceded the second touchdown of the Saints who pushed the lead to 13-0.
Giving Brees a second chance through penalties is an easy way to lose NFL games.
Sanctions are not the only reason why the Redskins were shaken in defense. Another problem concerned all wide open receivers operating downstream. Washington allowed passes of 62, 46, 35, 31, 28 and 23 yards. Related: Brees averaged 12.5 yards per attempt.
Welcome, Mark Ingram
Ingram who missed the first four weeks due to a suspension, returned Monday night, as if the saints' offensive against Brees, Kamara and Thomas needed more weapons.
When entering the game, no one really knew how much the saints used it. They already have Kamara rolling. Ingram has been gone for a month. Maybe they would bring him back immediately and let him go after their week off.
They went with the opposite approach. Ingram started and in the first set of Saints, he carried the ball three times for eight yards and captured a 28-yard display, which prepared him for his two-yard run.
Welcome, Ingram.
Ingram missed a pass after catching a pass but managed to recover the free ball by beating two Redskins defenders who were closer to the ball. The fumble is obviously not positive, but getting it back on its own territory was a huge game.
Also a huge game: his second touchdown, which extended their lead to 14 points in the first period.
Last year, only Todd Gurley rushed for more than Ingram's touchdowns. He still has a lot to do after missing the first four games, but given the explosive nature of this attack and the eagerness of the Saints to represent him, do not be surprised if he always ends up somewhere in the top half of the ranking. .
Kamara Stock: low, low, low, low
Let's check out the fantastic stock of Kamara.
In the first four games – without Ingram – Kamara averaged 23 hits per game. On Monday, he had nine touchdowns for 39 yards.
Do not panic. Maybe the saints just wanted to give Kamara an extended break after driving hard for weeks 1-4. Kamara is too damn good to be featured in this sequel. But with Ingram again in the picture, the Kamara stock is down, as it should be.
The Saints have two half-stars. They will use both.
Tre Quan Smith breaks out
Ted Ginn was inactive with a knee injury, but the Saints still pulled out a receiver in the big game. Smith, who captured the Brees record pass, also went off for a 35-yard touchdown.
He scored 111 yards and two scores on just three catches.
Concussion for Marshon Lattimore
Last years Defensive rookie of the year collided with his own teammate in the first quarter and did not get up. After making his way to the sideline, he entered the medical tent. Later in the first shift, he returned to the locker room for a concussion. He did not return.
Lattimore, who played a key role in the defensive resurgence of the Saints a year ago, has not been able to match his rookie year production, but if the Saints need to improve their defensive system they will need him on the ground and in good health. .
The good news is that they do not play next week, leaving Lattimore plenty of time to recover.
And after?
Not much for the Saints, who will enjoy Week 6 before a long and difficult game against the Ravens, Vikings, Rams, Bengals and Eagles – five teams who think of themselves as playoffs.
As for the Redskins, they recover the Panthers and Cowboys before going to New York to face the Giants. This is a good part of the games in which they must win at least two wins if they really want to win the division.
You will find our live-blog of the game below.
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