The Saints rank among worst teams in opponent’s QBR
The Saints have played two future Hall of Fame quarterbacks, but there’s no excuse for being absolutely dominated by every QB they’ve faced.
Through three games, the New Orleans Saints give up the ninth-worst opponent’s quarterback rating. At 107.7, there’s only a handful of teams that have been torn up by quarterbacks worse than the Saints.
They also rank in the bottom half of the league in opponent’s passing yards per game. While there is some excuse in the fact that two of the three quarterbacks they’ve faced are future Hall of Famers.
However, even Derek Carr, who is more than likely not going to end up in Canton, tore the Saints to shredding, leading his offense to a 34-point outing on Monday Night Football. Carr had 284 yards and three touchdowns in their terrific Week 2 performance.
That same defense then got Aaron Rodgers in Week 3 and there was a similar result. Rodgers went for 283 yards and three touchdowns. Even with Davante Adams on the sideline, the Packers still ran the Saints off the field.
The Saints only decent defensive performance was in Week 1. They held the Bucs to 23 points. It was Tom Brady‘s first game with a new cast and no preseason, so it makes sense that they struggled to get anything going.
As for the Saints, it shouldn’t matter who the opponent is. They need to be better. Cam Jordan does have a sack so far this season, Marcus Davenport has yet to take the field, meaning the pressures on the quarterback just haven’t been there.
The secondary has been terrific despite several large-yardage penalties. The Saints give up the most yardage per game, and it’s not even close. The second-highest team is at 82 yards per game. The Saints give up 110.
That certainly plays a part in the team’s lack of success. If you can’t stop an offense and get them off the field, you certainly keep a quarterback in check for 60 minutes.
Needless to say, New Orleans must be better, and it will partially start with improving their defense.