Help is on the way for the New Orleans Saints

It’s been a weird start to the season for the New Orleans Saints, who have blown out the Packers and Patriots but then lost to the Panthers and Giants.

Injuries have certainly been a big reason as to why we’ve seen such a variety of performances from this squad but what NFL team isn’t dealing with injuries? It’s something the good teams find a way to get past, no matter how difficult it might be.

Fortunately, six players on IR are eligible to return this week, and having any of them back would be a huge help for New Orleans.

The most important potential returning player is Wil Lutz, who has yet to play this season after getting placed on IR. He was eligible to return last week but it’s not surprising the Saints didn’t want to rush him back considering he’s been battling an abdomen injury.

New Orleans trusted Aldrick Rosas to be their temporary kicker and with little room for error, Rosas hasn’t been great. He’s only knocked through one field goal on four attempts, so Lutz’s return is highly anticipated.

Defensively, NOLA has been incredibly banged up, missing Kwon Alexander, Ken Crawley, Marcus Davenport, who are all on injured reserve.

Alexander was a key free-agent signing this offseason because of what he can do against the run and we saw how desperately missed he was in the loss to the Giants. He’s been injury-prone throughout the course of his career but worked hard to come back from a season-ending injury. His elbow injury forced him onto IR

Crawley might not be the best in coverage but he’s a veteran who knows this system and this is a team that needs help at the cornerback position. He could also help in getting Paulson Adebo out of a starting role, as the rookie corner has been struggling.

Davenport is the pass-rushing threat the team is missing right now and after an impressive preseason, fans are excited to see what he can bring to the defense. Tanoh Kpassagnon and Payton Turner have been playing well in Davenport’s absence but it’ll be great to have him back in the coming weeks.

On offense, it’s not difficult to see how badly the wide receivers have been struggling. Getting Tre’Quan Smith back should help tremendously, as he can be the WR1/2 that the team desperately needs. Marquez Callaway and Deonte Harris are doing what they can but it’s definitely been rough and Smith is going to be a treasure in this offense when he can return.

At tight end, Nick Vannett should be on his way back soon. He was one of the few free-agent signings this offseason and was injured during the preseason. Initially, it was only supposed to sideline him for a few weeks, but here we are heading into Week 5 and he hasn’t played a snap yet.

Vannett’s return won’t necessarily mean he’ll become a huge part of the offense but he can help out with blocking, which could lead to Adam Trautman and Juwan Johnson getting more involved in the receiving game. Right now, Trautman has been helping block for the majority of the games.

New Orleans Saints should get some injured players back

All teams are experiencing injuries, as that’s the nature of the NFL. For the Saints, however, getting these six players back should help them immensely.

Will this be enough to get the team back on track?

Fans certainly hope so.