The New Orleans Saints are sitting at a 2-7 overall record after a devastating loss to the Carolina Panthers. This defeat spurred a coaching change, with them firing Dennis Allen and promoting Special Teams coach Darren Rizzi. This weekend, we’ll get to see what Rizzi can do as the head coach when going up against a tough divisional rival in the Atlanta Falcons. There’s a lot to talk about with this matchup, so let’s get into it.
Injuries Still A Massive Factor
There were many Saints fans hoping for a change of head coach, and they finally got their wish. Allen is no longer the coach, allowing Rizzi to take over to try and inspire some level of confidence despite the season seemingly lost. Rizzi has already said that the team will be implementing several changes, including adding a mandatory “activation plan” for the players before practice to get a sweat on beforehand. This should, hopefully, help with the devastatingly long injury report that keeps on growing. Coming into this matchup, we will not be seeing Kool-Aid McKinstry, Chris Olave, Lucas Patrick, and Cedrick Wilson. We also might not see Jamaal Williams for the second straight week due to him getting downgraded to out during Friday’s practice. All in all, the report could have been worse. Flipping to the Falcons, they got good news with Drake London, Kyle Pitts, Chris Lindstrom, and Grady Jarrett all anticipated to play. London was one player that wasn’t certain to suit up due to a hip injury he suffered last week, though he should be ready to go.
New Orleans Is Missing Too Much At Key Positions
Looking at the Saints, the injuries and absences feel just too much to overcome. On offense, even with Derek Carr, the weapons are severely depleted. There won’t be Chris Olave, Rashid Shaheed, Bub Means, or Cedrick Wilson available to catch the football. I heavily anticipate that we’ll see Alvin Kamara and Taysom Hill touch the football a ton throughout the game. Otherwise, the offense won’t get much moving. On defense, the team is going to be without Marshon Lattimore (thanks to the trade to Washington), Paulson Adebo, Kool-Aid McKinstry, and possibly Rico Payton. If Payton misses, that makes four cornerbacks that won’t be available. Alontae Taylor can only do so much against weapons like London, Darnell Mooney, Pitts, and Ray-Ray McCloud. It is just a horrendous matchup.
Falcons Hold A Major Advantage
One thing that stands out for the Falcons is their ground attack. Yes, the passing game has improved under Kirk Cousins, but the ground attack is where the Falcons do the most damage. When the Falcons can run the ball effectively, then they can basically do whatever they want through the air. Late in the previous matchup against the Saints, Atlanta had two back-to-back strong drives where they ran the ball on almost every single play. Those both ended up heading deep into opposing territory. If this team is able to attack the weak Saints defensive line with their rushing attack, then they can split this game wide open straight away and control the clock. As a Saints fan, this is the worst-case scenario given how poorly the team has tackled during this seven-game losing streak.
Saints Just Don’t Have Enough Right Now
My final thoughts are that the Falcons are likely to come away with the win here. However, there is some nuance to this discussion. In the NFL, it isn’t uncommon for a team to play above expectations the week after their head coach gets fired. This is mostly due to the players feeling guilty that their coach was removed due to poor play on the field. Of course, it isn’t a guarantee that the Saints will play up to expectations, though it needs to be mentioned anyway. New Orleans will put up a great fight here under Rizzi, but the struggles that they’ve had on the defensive line and in the passing game are going to show up here and cost them this matchup.