Red zone woes have been one of the largest points of emphasis through the offseason for the offense. It was the initial thing in joint practice with the Jacksonville Jaguars that calmed some of the concern of early camp struggles. The starting offense has done their part to keep fans from overreacting to Saturday's struggles, but it still serves as a reminder of what they can’t do inside the 20.
The Saints got inside the red zone three times against the Los Angeles Rams, and walked away with 0 points. Instead, Spencer Rattler threw a 100 yard pick 6, Ty Chandler fumbled the ball and Tanner Brown missed a 39 yard field goal. It was an all around abysmal day, but those moments stuck out because they took points off the board.
The failure in the red zone hits too close to home to treat like it doesn’t matter at all. The Saints were one of the worst teams in the league inside the 20 and if they want to reach the newfound expectations around the team, they’ll have to fix that issue.
At least the Saints starters seem to be figuring out the red zone
It’s easy to try to write it off because the starters didn’t play. The Saints are hoping Rattler and the now-injured Chandler don’t have to be big contributors in that role. Signs point to Brown looking for work elsewhere.
It is indeed less of a big deal because the players involved. If this hadn’t been an issue dating back to last season, it would be a relative non story. However, it did, and fans need more than “it was the backups” to believe it won’t be an issue again.
Luckily, the starters have given fans that in joint practices. Red zone woes are deeper than players. They also go back to coaching and play calling.
Play calling and execution were both on point with the starters in joint practices. That is the true reason fans can dismiss the poor red zone performance in the game vs the Rams.
We saw Shough connect with Bryce Lance multiple times versus the Rams. Chris Olave was a problem all over the field, and that included the red zone. They have done their part in practice, but until it translates into game action there will be questions.
They only scored touchdowns on 20 of their 45 red zone possessions. And honestly, that number represents a larger issue of the Saints inability to finish possessions after crossing midfield. They regularly stalled out, but the opportunities inside the 20 are most documented.
The 44.4% red zone touchdown rate was lower than even the New York Jets. To even make it to the league average 57.1%, the Saints would need to have converted six more of their red zone visits into touchdowns.
It was a real problem for the Saints that appears to be improving. The struggles on Saturday, backups or not, serve as a wakeup call on the importance of correcting the flaw.
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