Klint Kubiak’s not-so-secret ingredients to making the Saints the best offense in NFL

No one expected the New Orleans Saints to drop 47 points on the Carolina Panthers in Week 1 of the season. Even after seeing that, no one predicted the Saints would go into AT&T Stadium and drop 44 on the Dallas Cowboys. People expected offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak to make New Orleans better offensively, but no one predicted New Orleans would have the best offense in the league.

Now, everyone’s left asking, how? For the most part, the Saints offense has the same players it did a year ago. Derek Carr is still quarterback, Alvin Kamara is still the running back, Taysom Hill is still everywhere, and Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed are still the top two receivers.

The biggest personnel differences are ones that were perceived as negatives during the offseason. Michael Thomas is no longer with the team, and the offensive line lost three starting lineman, including three-time All-Pro right tackle Ryan Ramczyk, who’s sidelined with a knee injury.

So how exactly did Kubiak transform the Saints from an inconsistent, average offense to a starting unit that scored on its first 15 possessions this season? The answer is surprisingly simple. The combination of accountablity and play action is what’s fueling New Orleans’ current offensive explosion.

Klint Kubiak has created a culture of accountability for the Saints

Accountability is something that’s surprisingly uncommon in professional sports. You’d think people at the highest level are always doing things right, and that their colleagues will call them out when they aren’t, but that’s not the case. Coaches and players make that clear everytime they speak.

Fortunately, that’s no longer an issue plaguing New Orleans’ offense. Since Kubiak joined the team, the offensive leaders have repeatedly spoke about his refreshing level of accountability and pursuit of perfection. Kubiak makes sure things are being done the right way, and to the best of players’ abilities.

When players approach the game with that mindset, it makes the execution of Kubiak’s system even better. His system is also another reason the offense has taken a leap.

Play action has worked wonders for Saints offense

The system Kubiak brought to New Orleans isn’t anything new; it’s an iteration of the Shanahan offense. His most recent stop was passing game coordinator for the San Francisco 49ers in 2023, and his father is Gary Kubiak; it’s no surprise his offense comes from the Shanahan tree of offensive philosophy that’s also responsible for productive offenses like the 49ers and the Miami Dolphins.

A staple in this offensive system is play action. Teams like to establish the run and then use play action to open up the offense. That’s exactly what New Orleans has done through two weeks. Alvin Kamara has been rolling, and that has opened up the door for a lot of play-action success.

But, play action isn’t some foreign concept Kubiak is introducing to the NFL. However, he is reintroducing it to the Saints, and that’s important when you wonder why this offense looks so much better than it did last season. In 2023, New Orleans was dead last in play-action rate at 14.4%. Through two games this season, the offense is using play action at a 52.3% rate, which is currently first in the NFL.

Play action has proven to be good in general, but it’s especially something you should utilize as an offense when your quarterback is Derek Carr, a notoriously good play-action quarterback. NFL analyst Mina Kimes recently explained how Carr had the best QBR in football last season on play-action plays, the Saints just rarely used them. It makes sense he’s playing at an MVP level since the team is doing what he does best.

The other thing play action is helping out with significantly is New Orleans’ young offensive tackles. Everyone has been baffled by the performance of the offensive line, considering Trevor Penning’s past struggles and the fact Taliese Fuaga is a rookie. Expectations were low for the team entering the season because no one knew how the two inexperienced tackles would hold up.

However, one of football’s oldest philosophies remains true: it’s much easier to pass protect when you can run the football. Klint Kubiak has done a tremendous job of neutralizing the pass rush for his young tackles.

A close examination of the film will reveal that both Fuaga and Penning are still vulnerable in pass protection at times, but because of New Orleans’ balanced attack, and use of play action, edge rushers aren’t able to pin their ears back and get after the quarterback. The moment they try, Alvin Kamara is going to whistle by them for a big gain.

It’s obviously still early in the year, and things are going to get tougher as teams get more tape of this new Saints offense. But if the offensive line can continue to fire off the ball and carve out running lanes for Alvin Kamara, Klint Kubiak will be able to continue dialing up the right plays to get points on the board.

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