The Klint Kubiak era started with a bang on Sunday as the New Orleans Saints demolished the Carolina Panthers 47-10. You could see the Black and Gold engine gaining steam with each possession. By the end of the first quarter, the Saints had two touchdowns and a field goal on their three turns with the ball. Meanwhile, Carolina had a turnover and a punt with their two tries. By the end of the first half, New Orleans was up 30-3.
Carolina had the ball to begin the second half and needed to put points on the board badly. Instead, Bryce Young tossed an interception which led to another Saints touchdown. The Panthers managed to make it 37-10 as Young ran in for a score. New Orleans then took seven minutes off the clock on their next possession which ended in a Blake Grupe field goal with 13 minutes left in the game. The Saints tacked on another touchdown and the game was over.
The Saints were the better team in every aspect of the game on Sunday. Some may say, "well, it's the Panthers and they stink." That may be true, but we all know in the NFL, there are no gimmes and as soon as you start playing down to your competition, that's when the wheels can fall off. It was good to see the offense clicking immediately under Kubiak as the Saints set a franchise record for Week One with those 47 points.
Spread the Wealth
Derek Carr spread the ball around on Sunday and found a nice mix of getting everyone involved and keeping everyone fresh. His 23 attempted passes went to eight different players, and no one had more than five. Alvin Kamara carried the ball 15 times as Jamaal Williams had 11 totes and Taysom Hill had five. Chris Olave only had two catches which probably upset his fantasy owners, but this game went a long way to show the league that the Saints aren't dependent on one wideout.
Defensive Player of the Year, Alontae Taylor
I'm kidding of course, but if the season ended today, he would have an argument. Taylor had three sacks (a Saints record for a defensive back), a pass defended, and a couple of tackles. Demario Davis added a sack as well as he seemingly is aging backwards. Will Harris and Jordan Howden picked off passes which kept the Saints' offense working with a short field. It also kept the Carolina defense on the field for an inordinate amount of time.
Big Speed Shaheed
Rashid Shaheed looked like prime Percy Harvin against the Panthers. He had a 59-yard touchdown catch and a 47-yard punt return which the Saints cashed in on the next play. In all, he had 166 all-purpose yards. Blake Grupe was automatic on Sunday. He nailed all five of his extra points and four of his field goals including a personal-best 57-yarder.
X-Factor
As I mentioned in my season preview of the Saints, the offense will depend a lot on the offensive line as there are three new starters. It seems that question was answered, at least for the time being. Carr was only sacked once and had ample time to throw on most of his snaps. Trevor Penning looked good at right tackle. The star though was rookie Taliese Fuaga. The behemoth on the left side was throwing defenders around like they were stuffed animals. He was the highest-rated rookie tackle this week.
Johnnie's Three Stars
1st Star: The Offensive Line (especially Fuaga) They were ranking as the best O-Line in football this week by PFF
2nd Star: Rashid Shaheed (166 all-purpose yards, 5 catches for 73 yards, 4 returns for 93 yards)
3rd Star: Alontae Taylor (3 interceptions (Saints DB record), a pass defended, and 2 tackles)
Up Next: @ Dallas Cowboys 1:00 EST
The Saints go on the road to face the Cowboys in their home opener after they took it to the Cleveland Browns this week. Dallas is the early favorite (-6.5 (-110), -285 ML on DraftKings as of Tuesday). The offensive line of the Saints will have to continue to play well keeping Carr upright and blowing open lanes for Kamara and Williams. New Orleans will also have to keep the pressure on the Cowboy offense. It will be a little tougher as Bryce Young and Diontae Johnson are not anywhere near as talented as Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb.
Final Score: New Orleans Saints 31, Dallas Cowboys 27
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