The New Orleans Saints saw a familiar face on the sideline in their loss against the Seattle Seahawks. Former offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak is now the playcaller for Seattle. He cruised to a victory in his revenge game, leading a dominating, efficient offense. Things could have gotten worse for the Saints if he didn’t let up in the second half.
Kubiak was hired by the Saints after working in San Francisco under Kyle Shanahan during 2023. Fans had high hopes for his Shanahan-esque scheme. Their hopes were only met with disappointment. Kubiak’s days in New Orleans were numbered after Dennis Allen was fired. This led to the Saints granting him the opportunity to interview for the Seahawks offensive coordinator job before hiring Kellen Moore.
Kubiak undoubtedly had this matchup against his former team highlighted. He came out of the gate firing. He was aided by good field position and a punt return touchdown but still put up 38 points in the first half. This tied the most points the Saints have given up in franchise history, the other time being in 1973.
The Saints couldn’t stop Kubiak until he took his foot off the gas
The Saints defense didn’t have any answers for Kubiak until he let up. In fact, Seattle scored on every offensive possession until the fourth quarter, when the backups came in. It was already utter domination but could’ve been a lot worse.
Part of the problem was the Saints lack of pass rush. They didn’t record a single sack against the Seahawks. This allowed Darnold to play mistake free football, not turning the ball over.
The run defense wasn’t terrible as the Seahawks only averaged 2.7 yards per carry. However, it still wasn’t anything spectacular. Kenneth Walker still was effective, scoring two touchdowns.
It’s hard to picture a more perfect revenge game for Klint Kubiak. No matter what he did, the Saints didn’t have an answer. New Orleans has a lot to improve defensively if they want to avoid games like this in the future.