The New Orleans Saints came out with a victory over the Carolina Panthers. Yet another impressive performance from Tyler Shough resulted in the Saints' first consecutive wins of the season. Additionally, both of those wins came against divisional opponents, looking for a playoff berth. .
This is undoubtedly the high point of the season. It's the first time that the Saints have taken momentum from one game and carried it over to the following game. You want to stay measured and not make any proclamations despite the rush of the last two games.
If it's one thing that will bring Saints fans back down, it would be the post game injury report. The Saints saw multiple key contributors go down due to injury, and Kellen Moore didn't have any updates after the game.
Injuries continue to mount up for the Saints as Tyler Shough can't catch a break.
The injury bug struck mid-game with some major injuries throughout the game, and they all had a direct impact on Shough. Over the course of this game alone, Shough lost his most target wide receiver, and arguably safety blanket, his starting running back and a starting offensive lineman.
Devin Neal, Devaughn Vele and Cesar Ruiz all went down with injuries versus the Panthers. Shough went down with a back injury on an attempted fourth down conversion. He didn't miss any time, though, after a trip to the blue tent.
Vele and Neal were massive injuries for two big reasons. Neal went down after the Saints best drive of the game. New Orleans held the ball for over 11 minutes, and Neal capped off the drive with a touchdown. It was his second touchdown in as many games, and it was also the last time we saw Neal on the day.
You could say Neal went out with a bang, but he really started with a bang. Neal felt primed to be the spark the Saints needed again, as he started much faster than he had in recent games. His 7 carries for 28 yards helped power the Saints' early success. The departure took away a player who is proving he can carry the load.
The same can be said for Vele. He was clearly Shough's go to receiver for most of the game. His size flashes in tight windows. The rapid ascension in his rapport with Shough has been stunning to watch. Vele has quickly become an offensive focal point, like fans wanted all year
Ruiz suffered an ankle injury. He differs from the other injuries, as he isn't a skill position or attention grabbing player, so his absence is easily overlooked. He's also not a player many fans are frustrated about gone, but his injury pushed William Sherman into the lineup. That left New Orleans with backups all across the interior..