Saints studs and duds from week two victory over Panthers

Saints Stud: Tony Jones, Jr., RB

With Alvin Kamara already out and Kendre Miller missing too much practice time due to injury to play, Tony Jones, Jr. found himself on the field this week when Jamaal Williams was hurt. The Notre Dame product began his career with New Orleans back in 2020 but also spent time with the Seattle Seahawks in 2022.

He returned to the Saints this season and has made appearances in both games but made his mark in week two. On 12 carries, he ran for 34 yards which wasn't wildly impressive. He did, however, cross the goal line twice for touchdowns helping to ensure his team got the win.

Saints Dud: Derek Carr, QB

In his first game with the New Orleans Saints, Derek Carr had 305 yards and a touchdown. He did throw a pick, however, and also struggled to get his offense into the end zone.

That was the case again on Monday but he also had just 228 yards with no touchdowns. His completion percentage also went in the wrong direction, falling from 69.7 in Week 1 to 58.33 in week two.

Carr will be the first one to tell you that's not good enough and he will expect more from himself going forward — especially on third downs. New Orleans was just 7-of-16 on third-down conversions and twice had to setle for field goals under 30 yards.

Not all of this is on Carr, but as the quarterback, he's the one that needs to figure out how to get them out of this slump.

More New Orleans Saints news and analysis