Tag: Alontae Taylor

Saints vs. Cowboys features 3 of the NFL’s top 5 sacks leaders

The Saints offensive line has to be ready for a Cowboys defense who had two players register multiple sacks in Week 1, plus Micah Parsons:

You may see the quarterback on the ground quite a bit when the New Orleans Saints travel to Arlington, Texas to take on the Dallas Cowboys. This showdown features three players who registered multiple sacks in Week 1.

There’s good and bad news on this front.

The good news is the Saints have the player with the most. Alontae Taylor leads the league in sacks with three from Week 1. The bad news is the Cowboys have the other two players. It gets even worse when you realize neither of those two players are Micah Parsons. DeMarcus Lawrence and Eric Kendricks notched two sacks on Sunday.

Kendricks is a linebacker, so, like Taylor, he rushes the passer on blitzes. Expect Mike Zimmer to call Kendricks’ name a couple times on Sunday. Unfortunately for the Saints, Taylor’s blitzing will likely be minimal because of the Cowboys receiving corps

Two players who registered multiple sacks and a two-time All-Pro? That’s a scary sight for an offensive line still looking to prove themselves. It’s important for the Saints’ defensive line to register pressure of their own. The story of Week 2 could easily be told in the trenches.

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How will the Saints cover Cowboys star CeeDee Lamb?

How could Marshon Lattimore’s availability affect the Saints’ game plan for Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb on Sunday?

The New Orleans Saints have the tall task of stopping Dallas Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb on Sunday. Lamb had the most catches, second most yards and third most touchdowns last season.

The Saints ran Cover 1 on 33% of their defensive snaps in Week 1. If they run that much man coverage against the Cowboys, who will be responsible for covering Lamb?

Paulson Adebo and Alontae Taylor are playing, but will they be joined by Marshon Lattimore or Kool-Aid McKinstry? Lattimore’s health will ultimately make that decision. The answer to that question does affect the strategy.

If Lattimore plays, you likely trust Lattimore, Adebo and Taylor to line up in front of Lamb. The question becomes do you want Lattimore to slide inside to cover Lamb in the slot or let Taylor take on the challenge?

Lattimore has rarely done that through his career, but this is the type of matchup where exceptions could be made. Expect a heavy dosage of Lamb inside, regardless, as over half of his snaps and production came when lined up in the slot.

If Lattimore misses the game, things change. The Cowboys may align Lamb out wide to attack a rookie corner making his first career start. To avoid this, the Saints should consider allowing Adebo to shadow Lamb on the outside then Taylor can cover him on the inside.

Doesn’t matter which of the four corners it is, stopping CeeDee Lamb will be one of the hardest things the Saints have to do on Sunday.

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Alontae Taylor snubbed for Defensive Player of Week 1 recognition

Alontae Taylor was snubbed for the NFC Defensive Player of Week 1 award. Not everyone gets a Will Levis pick-six thrown right to them:

Credit where it’s due: Tyrique Stevenson made a big play when the ball was thrown to him. The Chicago Bears defensive back intercepted Tennessee Titans quarterback Will Levis and scored a game-changing touchdown on the return that left the second-year passer falling to his knees with his helmet in his hands in disbelief.

But come on. Anyone can intercept Levis. New Orleans Saints nickel Alontae Taylor was the first defensive back to record three sacks in a single game in team history. It’s just the thirteenth time in NFL history that a cornerback or safety has done that. But it was Stevenson recognized as the NFC Defensive Player of the Week for Week 1.

Look a little deeper. Pro Football Focus charting found that Taylor was targeted 4 times against the Carolina Panthers, but he yielded just 35 yards and a single first down on 2 receptions, with a pass breakup. Stevenson was targeted 9 times and allowed 3 catches for 42 yards, each reception converting a first down, including a touchdown. He also had a pass breakup and that pick-six. In the official NFL gamebook, Taylor was credited with 5 tackles plus an 1 assist. Stevenson had 2 tackles and as many assists.

Both players enjoyed strong performances. But only one of them made history. Taylor will just have to wait for his recognition another day.

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Paulson Adebo carried over last year’s production vs. Panthers

Paulson Adebo went from a career year to a contract year, and he’s off to a strong start. His next test? Slowing down Dak Prescott and the Dallas Cowboys:

Paulson Adebo is starting the 2024 the same way he ended 2023.

The New Orleans Saints cornerback is coming off a career season where he set single-season highs in interceptions and hit double-digit pass breakups for the first time in his three-year tenure in the NFL.

Adebo now goes from career year to contract year. If he’s able to build on last season’s campaign, Adebo will be a much wealthier man a year from today. Performances like the one he put up on Sunday make the outcome more likely.

Bryce Young targeted Adebo 10 times on Sunday. That’s one of the more impressive aspects of his season last year. Adebo was continuously tested and rose to the occasion. This trend followed him into the season opener.

Of his 10 targets, Adebo only allowed half of them to be completed, and he and forced three incompletions with tight coverage. Forced incompletions shows a larger picture of the impact the cornerback had on attempts directed his way. But his next test is going to be tougher. Newly-paid Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak  Prescott is going to test Adebo early and often, especially if a hamstring injury sidelines Marshon Lattimore for Week 2.

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Alontae Taylor leads the league in sacks after Week 1

Alontae Taylor’s three sacks against the Panthers is tied for the league lead with Bills defensive end Greg Rousseau:

Every team has played at least one game to start the 2024 season, and just like after Sunday’s slate, New Orleans Saints defensive back Alontae Taylor still leads the league in sacks.

He along with Buffalo Bills defensive end Greg Rousseau sits at the top of the league after sacking the quarterback three times in Week 1. Taylor is one of ten players to register multiple sacks in their season opener this week. He’s the only defensive back among the group.

Taylor displayed a quality not seen before in his professional career. He brought down Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young three times. Prior to this, Taylor had only sacked a quarterback once. Carolina’s offensive line had no answers when the nickel was sent in to blitz.

For Young’s shortcomings in his professional career, he is still a mobile quarterback. You saw that come into play on Sunday. The Saints’ typically bigger defensive lineman were eluded a few times despite generating pressure — Chase Young had at least five of them without registering a sack.

But Taylor was efficient and brought Young down for a Saints record and league-leading three sacks. We’ll see if he can keep it up as the season continues. Dennis Allen has always shown a willingness to send defensive backs into the breach for added pressure, going back to guys like Roman Harper and Kenny Vaccaro, so you have to think opposing teams will do a better job preparing for this new wrinkle in Taylor’s game sooner or later. But there’s a lot to be said for starting so hot.

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Who should start at cornerback if Marshon Lattimore can’t play?

If Marshon Lattimore can’t play against the Dallas Cowboys, should Kool-Aid McKinstry or Alontae Taylor start in his place?

Marshon Lattimore left the New Orleans Saints opener with a hamstring injury. It seems to be a minor injury, but hamstrings can be tricky. It could still result in him being out for a week and missing this Sunday’s game with CeeDee Lamb and the Dallas Cowboys. In this case, who is the best option to fill in for him?

Kool-Aid McKinstry stepped up after Lattimore’s injury in Week 1. When Drew Brees, Jameis Winston and Taysom Hill were on the team. Winston filled in after a Brees injury then Hill took over as the starter in their next game. This was the plan and it could be the case here.

Alontae Taylor battled with Paulson Adebo last year for the spot opposite Lattimore. That was his natural position prior to sliding inside to the slot a year ago. Taylor performed well outside as a rookie.

Though Taylor has a track record in the pros outside at cornerback, the Saints should stick with McKinstry if Lattimore misses time. He cross-trained during the offseason in the slot but got most of his work outside due to Lattimore’s absence.

Also, Taylor is settling in at nickel. He’s been one of the best players during training camp in that position and was the star of the game defensively in Week 1.

Keeping him inside seems to work for both guys. That being said it doesn’t seem to be a clearly wrong choice here.

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Willie Gay Jr. didn’t see the field much in Week 1. Here’s why

Willie Gay Jr. didn’t see the field much in Week 1 for the New Orleans Saints. Here’s why:

The New Orleans Saints added Willie Gay Jr. to their linebacker corps this offseason and created a lot of excitement, but it remained the Demario Davis-Pete Werner show versus the Carolina Panthers. The new addition didn’t see the field much, but there are a few reasons this was the case.

Werner led the linebackers with 39 defensive snaps. David played 38. Gay was only on the field for 8 of them. But his biggest competitor for snaps isn’t one of his fellow linebackers. His competition is Alontae Taylor at slot corner. It’s clear Davis and Werner will be your top two linebackers which means most of the time it will put the Saints in a situation where they have to choose their base defense (with a third linebacker) or nickel package (with a fifth defensive back). Gay or Taylor.

One could argue the nickel package should be referred to as the base defense given how often the Saints go in that direction. This doesn’t bode well for Gay long term, but it’s important to remember the flow of each game impacts which formation the Saints prioritize.

The flow of Week 1 called for an emphasis on pass defense. Naturally, the Saints went with more defensive backs on the field. Also, Alontae Taylor was a beast. It was pretty hard to argue taking him off the field regardless of the situation.

Gay also went to the locker room with an undisclosed injury during the second quarter. This comes after he was limited throughout practice with a back injury last week. There are multiple reasons why Gay didn’t see many snaps versus Carolina. Many of them can change as the season progresses.

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Alontae Taylor makes Saints history in 2024 season opener

Alontae Taylor is the first Saints defensive back with three sacks in a game since… ever. AT1 made history on Sunday:

If you didn’t notice Alontae Taylor on Sunday, chances are you watched the wrong game. Taylor recorded three sacks in the New Orleans Saints season opener versus the Carolina Panthers.

Taylor showcased himself to be an effective blitzer against the Panthers, bringing down Bryce Young three times. This is the first time a New Orleans defensive back has recorded three sacks in franchise history.

Taylor not only got into the backfield effectively, he also finished the job. There were times when pressure got close to Young, and he ultimately got away. This was never the case when Taylor was present.

His three sacks ties the most by a cornerback in NFL history as well.

Taylor has an argument for the most improved player of Saints training camp. No one, however, expected Taylor’s improvement to be the most noticeable in the pass rush.

Taylor had one sack in his first two seasons, so he tripled that in one game.

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One sack stat tells you how awful the Panthers are

The Panthers allowed a cornerback to sack Bryce Young three times

The Carolina Panthers are the worst team in the NFL. They were last year and they are off to a start that will allow them to actually use the No. 1 pick in the draft.

If you want to know why Bryce Young never had a chance in the first game of his second season check this: Alontae Taylor of the Saints had three sacks.

Yes, football fans, a cornerback had three sacks of the 2023 No. 1 overall pick.

This isn’t Aaron Donald or T.J. Watt. In 30 games over Taylor’s first two seasons, he had one total sack.

The porous Panthers offensive line allowed him  to have three in one game.

Marshon Lattimore returns to practice ahead of Week 1 kickoff game

Marshon Lattimore may have been limited in Thursday’s practice, but his return to practice is a welcomed sight leading into game week.

The New Orleans Saints are 10 days away from their regular season opener versus the Carolina Panthers and one step closer to a complete secondary.

Marshon Lattimore, the Saints’ star cornerback, return to practice for the first time since suffering a hip flexor injury early in Saints training camp. It’s been a bit of an odd timeline this offseason for Lattimore in relation to his health and relationship with the team.

There was apparent tension between Lattimore and Dennis Allen that was addressed when the cornerback returned for mandatory minicamp. Allen previously said that he wasn’t losing sleep over Lattimore’s status, but he would have been listed as a limited participant on Wednesday if the team had to issue a regular injury report.

It’s been relatively quiet since Lattimore’s injury and has led to some speculating those tensions were either downplayed earlier in the summer or flared back up. Regardless, the silence allowed the narrative of Lattimore’s discontent to further. We saw him work with trainers once, but not much was said about his progress.

Lattimore returned as a limited participant in Thursday’s practice. It may be limited, but it’s a good sign of his availability for Week 1. His running mate, Paulson Adebo, just returned from injury as well. Having both of their cornerbacks was necessary going into the season.

If Lattimore returns in time for kickoff, the Saints’ most formidable position group will be at full strength for the season opener.

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