It’s tough to find much to complain about after the New Orleans Saints’ dominant win over the Carolina Panthers. A 47-10 landslide is a heck of a way to make a statement in Week 1. The offense was nearly unstoppable and the defense was locked in. But it wasn’t a perfect game.
As head coach Dennis Allen acknowledged afterwards, they can’t afford so many penalties and unforced errors against a better opponent — especially a Super Bowl contender like the Dallas Cowboys, who will play host in Week 2. So just how bad was it, really?
The Saints go into Week 2 with the second-most penalty yards (95) from the third-most fouls (10) among the league’s 32 teams. The offense was flagged five times for 45 yards while the defense drew 3 penalties for another 25 yards; the special teams units were also hit with 25 yards from a couple of infractions.
Here’s the full breakdown:
- S J.T. Gray: kick catch interference (15 yards)
- C Erik McCoy: unnecessary roughness (15 yards)
- DE Payton Turner: unnecessary roughness (15 yards)
- RT Trevor Penning: offensive holding (10 yards)
- LT Taliese Fuaga: offensive holding (10 yards)
- WR Bub Means: offensive holding (10 yards)
- CB Paulson Adebo: defensive pass interference (5 yards)
- DE Chase Young: defensive offsides (5 yards)
- TE Foster Moreau: illegal shift (5 yards)
- QB Derek Carr: delay of game (5 yards)
That’s three pre-snap penalties (two on offense, one on defense). If there’s a silver lining — there are actually two — this is something the Saints can control. We’ve seen them play disciplined football before. At the same time, their next matchup is with the league leader in penalties. The Cowboys were fouled 11 times last Sunday, costing them 85 yards, which was the fourth-most yardage total of the weekend.
So be prepared for more penalty flags to fly on both teams this Sunday. Cleaning up bad habits doesn’t happen overnight. So long as the Saints put in the work this week and players do a better job keeping their heads, it could be enough to tip the scales in their favor. But you have to think the Cowboys coaches are thinking the exact same thing.
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