Leaders – Syndication Server

A.T. Perry led the NFL in preseason receiving yards

Here’s the final tally. New Orleans Saints wide receiver A.T. Perry led the NFL with 176 receiving yards across three preseason games:

Take a bow, A.T. Perry. The NFL announced Monday that the New Orleans Saints wide receiver led the league with 176 receiving yards across three preseason games, just ahead of Los Angeles Chargers wideout Simi Fehoko (170). The former Wake Foreset wideout is a gamer.

He needed to make some plays in these exhibition games after struggling to string together good days of practice at Saints training camp. Perry had too many dropped passes and quiet days in Irvine in-between leaping grabs worthy of the highlight reel. It wasn’t the consistent, productive growth his coaches hoped to see. And charting from NewOrleans.Football’s Nick Underhill found that Perry caught just one ball from Derek Carr in team drills all throughout camp. That’s concerning.

But there’s a lot to be said for turning it on when playing under the bright lights. There aren’t many receivers who weigh in at 6-foot-3 and 198 pounds who can run 40 yards in just 4.47 seconds, and of those who can only a few match Perry’s body control and concentration on tough catches. He’s got a rare combination of size, speed, and skill. Pro Football Focus charting says he dropped just one pass on 13 targets.

Is that enough to keep Perry on the roster? Probably, but we’ll just have to see how the coaches feel about their receiving corps. Other players like Equanimeous St. Brown have been more steady presences at practice while getting looks ahead of Perry in the preseason games. He’s someone to watch as roster cuts are filed ahead of Tuesday’s deadline and in the days that follow when the depth chart continues to take shape.

[lawrence-auto-related count=5]

Wisconsin football’s all-time leading passers

The Wisconsin football program is not commonly known for its quarterback play.

It’s no Alabama, which has recently sent Bryce Young, Mac Jones and Tua Tagovailoa to the NFL. Or Clemson with Deshaun Watson and Trevor Lawrence. Or even Ohio State with C.J. Stroud, Justin Fields and others.

The Badgers produce linebackers and running backs, plus the occasional tight end.

But the narrative surrounding the program doesn’t mean there hasn’t been good-to-great quarterback play at the school. Russell Wilson in 2011 obviously rings a bell, but there are also numerous terrific years including Jack Coan in 2019, Alex Hornibrook in 2017 and Brooks Bollinger in 2002.

There is a recent addition to the list of the program’s all-time passing leaders, which prompted us to update the official list:

No Saints players led their positions in 2024 Pro Bowl Games fan voting

No current New Orleans Saints players led their positions in fan voting for the 2024 Pro Bowl Games, but two of their former teammates did:

This is tough. No current New Orleans Saints players led their positions in fan voting for the 2024 Pro Bowl Games, but two of their former teammates did while playing for other teams: New York Jets punter Thomas Morstead and Miami Dolphins left tackle Terron Armstead both led the AFC in fan votes at their positions.

Maybe the Saints shouldn’t have let them go. Morstead was teammates with Armstead in Miami last year, but he’s continuing to play at a high level in the years since the Saints cut him to open the door for his successor Blake Gillikin. Gillikin was also released earlier this year in favor of Lou Hedley, who has experienced an up-and-down rookie year in the NFL.

As for Armstead: the Saints’ uncertainty at left tackle speaks for itself, though his situation was more complicated. On top of the serious salary cap implications involved, Armstead’s injury history made it tough to justify re-signing him. Even if they had kept Armstead, they would need an expensive insurance policy. Injuries have limited him to just 9 games this season for the Dolphins.

Fan voting is just one part of the process — coaches and the players themselves will also have ballots, so it’s possible some Saints players end up making the cut. And there’s always the possibility they can get in as alternates should starters opt out or are unavailable while playing in the Super Bowl. The NFL announced positional leaders in fan votes on Wednesday, with the AFC and NFC player rosters scheduled for release at 7 p.m. CT on NFL Network and NFL+.

[lawrence-auto-related count=4]

These 16 players have outscored the New Orleans Saints offense through six weeks

These 16 players have outscored the Saints offense through six weeks between their efforts as passers, runners, receivers, and returners:

It’s obvious that what the New Orleans Saints offense have done on offense hasn’t been good enough this season, but stats like this one are sobering. These 16 individual players have outscored the Saints offense on their own through six weeks between their efforts as passers, runners, receivers, and returners.

All the talent assembled in New Orleans hasn’t been enough to keep pace. The Saints offense has totaled 8 touchdowns (the team’s total rises to 10 thanks to a Rashid Shaheed punt return on special teams and a Tyrann Mathieu interception returned for a score defensively) altogether this season, with five touchdowns coming off of pass completions and three scoring runs. No wonder they’re barely treading water at 3-3.

Here’s the group of players currently outpacing them with at least nine touchdowns scored through six weeks:

Alvin Kamara and Michael Thomas step up as leaders amid Saints struggles

Alvin Kamara and Michael Thomas have stepped up as leaders amid the Saints’ struggles:

The Saints are in the midst of a two game losing streak. After failing to score a touchdown for the first time this year versus the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, tension and concern around the offense rose. In the face of this tension, two players stepped up as leaders: Alvin Kamara and Michael Thomas. Kamara did it more publicly than Thomas, but the result is the same.

Kamara’s frustrations were caught on camera directly after the game where he plainly stated changes were needed. In the following days, Kamara sat down with NewOrleans.Football’s Nick Underhill for a one-on-one interview. He again vented his frustrations, and many Saints fans saw this as a player sharing their same frustration. There was leadership within the anger about the offense as well.

The authenticity. The passion. The vulnerability. For seven minutes, Alvin Kamara candidly spoke on the state of the offense. Most importantly, he took accountability and was the spokesperson for the whole offensive side of the ball. Derek Carr may be the quarterback, but Kamara is the face of the offense. He also spoke on how told Chris Olave there was another way for Olave to deal with frustration during the game. That’s a direct line of leadership to the young player.

Michael Thomas had a more private display of leadership. After the game, he gave an impassioned speech about the New Orleans Saints culture. Thomas was heard saying, “That’s not our standard. Don’t get used to losing. That’s not our culture. That’s not what we do here.” That’s especially true for Thomas. He wasn’t around for the last two seasons. He’s made the playoffs nearly every season he’s played. That’s what he knows.

While Alvin took to the media to speak for the struggles of the offense, Thomas spoke directly to the players in private. Kamara is certainly speaking in the locker room as much, if not more than, he speaks to the media. Something needed to change and the two most-tenured players on the offense spoke up to spur the change. Hopefully it makes a difference.

[lawrence-auto-related count=4]

Taysom Hill currently ranks 30th in rushing yards, ahead of at least one NFL team

Taysom Hill currently ranks 30th in rushing yards among NFL players, and 31 on his own among the league’s 32 teams:

No football player makes NFL analysts and fantasy football nerds more upset for being good at his job than Taysom Hill. The New Orleans Saints playmaker does it all — he’s taken snaps at quarterback, fullback, tight end, slot receiver, and wide receiver this season while running with the punt teams and the kick returns unit. But his best work has come as a runner. Opposing defenders don’t want to try and stop him in the open field.

Hill’s 79 rushing yards rank 30th among the 171 NFL players to log at least one carry this season, at least through the first two weeks. That’s ahead of household names like Tyjae Spears (76), Najee Harris (74), Jalen Hurts (72), Josh Jacobs (46), Deebo Samuel (46), Josh Allen (43), and Dalvin Cook (40), to name just a few.

And he’s even outpaced some teams. Well, at least one team: the Minnesota Vikings, who have gained just 69 rushing yards as a team through their first two games. Hill could keep climbing. If he plays well against the Green Bay Packers this week, he just might rank 30th or 29th among the league’s 32 teams, for at least a few hours on Sunday.

The next-worst rushing teams behind Minnesota are the Pittsburgh Steelers (96) and Las Vegas Raiders (116), who play each other on Sunday night. Hill and the Saints will kick off from Green Bay at Noon CT; if you’re curious, the Vikings will be able to work on their deficit in the same time slot while hosting the Los Angeles Chargers.

What about those matchups? Hill is going to be running against a Packers run defense which ranks third-worst in the NFL (allowing 166.5 rushing yards per game), while the Vikings will see a league-average Chargers team (who allow 105.5 yards per game on the ground, which is 18th). And the Steelers rank worst in the league (193.0) with the Raiders clocking in at sixth-worst (138.5).

The Saints could really use a stronger presence on the ground, and Hill just might be their best bet to get things going. With Jamaal Williams out with an injury and Kendre Miller returning from one, he’s a good pick to lead the team in rushing yards again this week, working against a vulnerable Packers defense.

[lawrence-auto-related count=4]

Peak performers from New Orleans Saints’ preseason finale vs. Texans

Peak performers from New Orleans Saints’ preseason finale vs. Texans: Leaders in passing, receiving, rushing, defense, and special teams:

The New Orleans Saints fell short to the Houston Texans on Sunday night, losing their final preseason game by a margin if 17-13; but not for lack of trying. The efforts of some peak performers deserve recognition. We’re highlighting the leaders in passing, rushing, receiving, defense, and special teams from the matchup:

ESPN projects Cameron Jordan to lead Saints with his lowest sacks total since 2011

ESPN projects Cameron Jordan to lead the Saints defense in sacks again, but with his lowest single-season total since his 2011 rookie year:

Sports science is becoming a bigger factor in covering the NFL every day, with predictive models quickly carving out a niche. ESPN Analytics’ Seth Walder shared his projections for the top 50 pass rushers in the league this year, following the same model he’s used to some success in past seasons.

It’s not a great outlook for the New Orleans Saints. Despite having invested multiple contract extensions and early-round draft picks in their defensive line, just one player is projected to rank inside the top-50: defensive end Cameron Jordan.

That in itself isn’t much of a surprise. Jordan has led the team in sacks more often than not since his 2011 rookie year. But ESPN’s model forecasts just 7.4 sacks for Jordan in 2023, which both leads the team and ranks 22nd around the league. Jordan won the official Saints sacks record last season from Rickey Jackson, but pre-1982 charting at Pro Football Reference still awards Jackson with the unofficial franchise record (123). If this is an accurate prediction for Jordan, he’d come up half a sack shy of Jackson’s unofficial total.

Now, in real life the NFL counts half-sacks, so Jordan would either have 7.5 (if we round up) or 7.0 (which would be rounding down, of course). That latter number would be the move here, and it’s a dire picture. Jordan hasn’t had fewer than 7.5 sacks in a single season since he entered the league. For that number to set the pace for his teammates would be worrisome to say the least.

But it matches what we’ve seen so far. Carl Granderson peaked last year with 5.5 sacks as a part-time starter at defensive end. Payton Turner only has 3.0 sacks through his first two years as a pro. Tanoh Kpassagnon, Jordan’s primary backup, only had 2.0 sacks last season which lines up with his career average. Rookie draft pick Isaiah Foskey is looking like a typical slow-to-develop Saints defensive end.

Is this model legit? Last year it predicted Jordan and Marcus Davenport would have 6.5 and 6.4 sacks, respectively; they posted 8.5 and 0.5 each. A year earlier it called for 8.3 sacks for Jordan (he had 7.5), so it’s made more hits than misses.

Some other interesting names jump out from the 2023 projections. Davenport is expected to produce 6.8 sacks for the Minnesota Vikings this fall, while former Saints defensive end Trey Hendrickson is lined up for 9.5 sacks (he had just 8.0 sacks last year after bagging a career-high 14.5 of them the year before). One of the players picked immediately after Turner in 2021, Baltimore Ravens edge rusher Odafe Oweh, is predicted to bag 6.2 sacks. He has 8.0 sacks through his first two seasons.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Notre Dame Football: All-Time Losingest Coaches

The program has lost more than 300 times in its history. So which coaches are responsible for most of those?

Notre Dame has a long football history that fans nationwide flock to. “Win one for the Gipper”, the Four Horsemen, and the “Play Like a Champion Today” sign are all parts of Fighting Irish lore. In that long football history that has been played at the university since an 8-0 loss to Michigan in November of 1887, it hasn’t always been national championships and 10-win seasons.

In fact, Notre Dame has lost a total of 330 times in the more than 13 decades they’ve been playing football. We know which coaches won the most of those games as Brian Kelly set that record before leaving in 2021. But who has lost the most as Notre Dame’s head coach?

Marcus Freeman isn’t there – yet – but with five in 13 career games he’s already in the top 16.

We went ahead and listed the the top 13 in program history as that’s how many have lost double-digit games at Notre Dame. Here they are, the all-time losingest coaches at Notre Dame.

The top 20 rushing leaders in in New Orleans Saints history

These are the top 20 rushing leaders in in New Orleans Saints history. How long will Mark Ingram II stay on top?

The New Orleans Saints have always had a history of strong running back play, and it wasn’t easy for Mark Ingram II to finally climb the mountaintop and win the franchise rushing records. But how long will he hold the record for career rushing yards after taking it from Deuce McAllister? Alvin Kamara is closing in quickly.

And Taysom Hill deserves a shoutout — he’s already ranked inside the top 20 rushers in Saints franchise history, and another productive year like he had last season could vault him into the top-10. Here’s the full list: