3 things the Saints need to thrive in the 2021 season

Saints need to thrive in 2021: Long-Kicking Accuracy

Wil Lutz has consistently been one of the best kickers in the NFL. His accuracy percentage and perennially been over 85 percent. However, last year, he dropped below that career average and most of his misses have come from beyond 40 yards.

He took 28 field goals last year and made 82 percent of them. Between 1-19 yards, Lutz didn’t take a field goal. From 20-29 yards, Lutz is 5/6. From 30-39 yards, Lutz is a perfect 10/10, and from 40+ yards, Lutz is 1/3.

As you can see, from the average field goal length, Lutz is automatic at 10/10, but when you go longer than 40 yards, Lutz has had trouble hitting those. For the Saints to have a shot at the Super Bowl in 2022, Lutz is going to have to hit long field goals that could win games.

To win those close games that it may come down to this year without Drew Brees, the team is going to rely on the back of Lutz putting points on the board. If he can get back above 85 percent, then the team has a realistic shot at a title.