Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
The Saints lost to the Bucs in a landslide. Fans and analysts had a lot to say about the team’s latest loss, and many focused on OC Pete Carmichael:
Things hardly went the Saints’ way on Sunday as the team recorded a 26-9 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the largest loss in terms of total margin of the season so far.
Outside of that, the Saints had kept it in the reach of single points in games that came down to the wire.
In what was still a respectable defensive performance and a continuously unimpressive offensive outing, here’s a look at what fans and analysts had to say across social media about the Saints’ performance:
The Saints can’t afford to not make a change on offense amid their historically-poor streak. They haven’t averaged so few points per game since 2005:
It’s tough to win football games when you can’t put points on the board, and it’s past time the New Orleans Saints address it. It’s time offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael step down into a lesser role, which is what he’s wanted all along. Dennis Allen’s failure to recruit a new play caller led to Carmichael taking a job he wasn’t prepared for, and the results speak for themselves.
The Saints haven’t scored more than 21 points in 10 straight games, going back to last season. Whether it’s Derek Carr, Andy Dalton, or Jameis Winston at quarterback Carmichael has not been able to get the offense moving and driving into the end zone. Carmichael is the common factor.
They’re averaging just 13.8 points points per game this season (not including Rashid Shaheed’s punt returned for a touchdown, and the ensuing extra point kick) which is the lowest since their 14.7 per-game average in 2005. That happened in the wake of Hurricane Katrina and led to sweeping organizational changes.
A team with so many weapons like this one shouldn’t struggle to score points. A receiving corps boasting Chris Olave, Michael Thomas, and Rashid Shaheed with Alvin Kamara, Taysom Hill, Juwan Johnson and Foster Moreau in the mix shouldn’t be struggling to score twice per game. Carmichael’s latest version of the offense has lost more turnovers (5) than they’ve scored touchdowns (4).
Dennis Allen deserves a lot of the blame. He may have a defensive background, but he’s the head coach, and he’s responsible for putting all of these people in their positions. He couldn’t replace Carmichael (assuming he even tried) in the offseason. He got the quarterback he wanted. Most of those skills position talents we just rattled off have been acquired during his tenure. This is his vision of the team, and it’s a squad that can’t even average 14 points per game, much less 23 points each week (which is league-average).
There’s a tough conversation centering on Allen’s own job security and future with the team. But don’t count on a change in-season. The Saints haven’t fired a head coach during the season since 1980, which was a long time and an ownership change ago. The only realistic “major” change would be demoting Carmichael and giving someone else the opportunity to call plays.
But who? The team has gushed about passing game coordinator and quarterbacks coach Ronald Curry at every opportunity. He’s called plays in two preseasons now. He may not be a better choice than Carmichael in that role, but he can’t be much worse. And there’s also the specter of Jon Gruden lurking around the team. Carr’s former head coach got more out of him than anyone else in the NFL, and we can’t rule out the possibility that the Saints would add him to the staff if they get truly desperate. Gruden comes with a lot of baggage, but so did Deshaun Watson, and Allen did everything in his power to go get him when he had the chance.
Change is inevitable. The only questions about it are when it will happen, and how it will manifest. Allen is running out of time to come up with an answer.
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What went right? What went wrong? And what’s the bottom line? Instant analysis after the Saints’ Week 4 loss to the Buccaneers:
Well that wasn’t much fun. The New Orleans Saints lost an ugly game to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday, 26-9, and in a lot of ways it exemplified the style of football they’ve played under head coach Dennis Allen. This is how he wants his team to play. He has his quarterback, his play caller, his assistant coaches, and a roster largely made up of his handpicked players. What he doesn’t have are excuses.
So let’s break it down by answering three key questions:
Rashid Shaheed lining up in the backfield. Alvin Kamara running routes with receivers. The Saints offense is looking creative early in training camp | @southexclusives
We are only a few days into New Orleans Saints training camp, but the creativity the Saints have shown on offense is encouraging. Proper execution is obviously required though the intention is the true story here. Stale play calling was one of the biggest causes of frustration last season. Early signs show offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael Jr. is making an effort to use his weapons in less-traditional ways.
Rashid Shaheed was one of the biggest victims of this a season ago. It’s just one example, but at a recent training camp practice Shaheed was seen motioning into the backfield to run a route on a play. That’s not something you likely would have seen last year.
When Shaheed first exploded on the scene, he was a dynamic player who showcased chess-piece versatility. The wide receiver’s first touch was a 44-yard touchdown around the end. We didn’t see him touch the ball in that way much more through the season, gaining just 13 yards on his other three rushing attempts. Seeing him run routes out of the backfield occasionally would be a welcomed addition to his toolbox.
What a grab from @RashidShaheed 🔥 pic.twitter.com/TEnRznVX5h
— Boot Krewe Media (@BootKreweMedia) July 27, 2023
Alvin Kamara ran routes with the receivers at camp which could be a sign of things to come. Jamaal Williams and Kendre Miller should lessen how much New Orleans relies on Kamara at running back. Having those two players frees up Kamara to move around the field. One could even argue it would be a good idea to try to get two of the three on the field together frequently. Kamara lining up as a receiver would be the most dangerous way to accomplish this goal. After catching 81, 81, 81, and 83 passes in his first four years, Kamara has totaled 47 and 57 receptions the last two seasons.
Alvin Kamara ran routes with the receivers today pic.twitter.com/kLPdmU6Zcp
— NOF (@nofnetwork) July 29, 2023
So you have a wide receiver lining up in the backfield and a running back lining up as a receiver. This is the type of versatility that favors both player’s skill sets. It’s also more creative than what we were accustomed to in 2022. Using your most dynamic players in different alignments to attack the defense from multiple directions makes your offense more lethal.
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Taysom Hill isn’t sure what his position or label is, but acknowledged ‘I don’t think of myself as a tight end’ at Saints training camp:
What is Taysom Hill’s real position? He’s listed with the tight ends on the New Orleans Saints depth chart (and on many fantasy football platforms), but he’s thrown plenty of passes through the first week of training camp practices — despite not wearing a red no-contact jersey like the team’s quarterbacks. Last year, he logged more rushing attempts (96) than snaps at his listed position of tight end (51, per Pro Football Focus charting). He’s a fixture on the punt units and sometimes returns kicks on special teams.
With his specific role in the Saints offense seeming to change from one year to the next, Hill has busied himself with just doing what’s asked of him while trying to not think too hard about his formal designation.
“I don’t know, I don’t think of myself as a tight end, you know? I don’t think I had a single rep last year as an inline tight end,” Hill reflected after a July 26 practice session. “So when I think of a tight end that’s what hits my head. I don’t know how I would label myself. Obviously my background has been quarterback, so when I think about what I’ve done throughout my career I think of that. As far as what I’m doing this year, I don’t know.”
Hill said that he’s had conversations with offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael Jr. about his role to practice areas of his skill set that have been underutilized in recent years, particularly as a receiver. After catching 19 passes for 234 yards and 6 touchdown receptions in 2019, Hill has totaled 24 catches for 231 yards and 3 scores in 2020, 2021, and 2022 combined.
The flexible role Hill has earned for himself in the Saints offense isn’t something he takes for granted. If he can help the team by catching more passes, he added, then he’s all for it: “I hope to get more of those opportunities, obviously I need to do the right thing and take advantage of them. Yeah, I hope I keep getting those.”
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New Orleans Saints resale ticket prices are some of the cheapest in the NFL coming off a disappointing 7-win season:
The vibes surrounding the New Orleans Saints are great right now, which is a big improvement over the start of the offseason. Retaining Dennis Allen as head coach was an unpopular move with a vocal segment of the fanbase. So was the decision to keep Pete Carmichael Jr. at offensive coordinator. New Orleans didn’t exactly wow many fans while averaging their fewest points per game in decades and posting their first losing season in the first year without Sean Payton at the helm.
So it isn’t too surprising to see that the average Saints ticket price ranks low around the league. According to TicketSmarter, the average resale price of Saints tickets is $237, which ranks as the 6th-cheapest in the NFL.
Now, that isn’t a big drop from last season’s — on average, resale tickets were valued at $241. But only the Atlanta Falcons ($196), Houston Texans ($216), Arizona Cardinals ($220), Cleveland Browns ($228), and Tampa Bay Buccaneers ($234) cost less on average. Tampa Bay led that group with eight wins in 2022, but they’re actively sinking back where they belong without Tom Brady lifting them up to the surface.
Still, Saints fans are dedicated, and tens of thousands of them will be crowding the Caesars Superdome in the fall. After opening the season with the Tennessee Titans in September, New Orleans will host some high-profile matchups with the Jacksonville Jaguars, Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions, and New York Giants, in addition to their usual NFC South rivalry games. The Who Dat Nation is known for creating a raucous home atmosphere, and this season should be no different.
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Houston Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans is excited for joint preseason practices with the Miami Dolphins — and the New Orleans Saints, too, he adds:
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Yikes. New Houston Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans is excited to share the practice field with Mike McDaniel’s Miami Dolphins later this summer, having scheduled a couple of joint practice sessions with Miami before their preseason game in August. He’s also looking forward to meeting Dennis Allen and the New Orleans Saints, but it’s pretty clear which matchup he’s more eager about.
“Excited to go against the Dolphins. We can get a lot out of joint practices, especially against a team as good as Miami,” Ryans said, via KPRC 2 Houston’s Aaron Wilson. He added: “Saints as well. Different philosophies.”
Look, it’s tough to read that as anything but a diss against Allen and the team he’s built. And it’s harder to blame him. Despite their 9-8 finish last season in the wake of a series of concussions and injuries at quarterback, the Dolphins were one of the most exciting teams in the league under McDaniel’s coaching (and even then, they lost by three points in the playoffs with Skylar Thompson at quarterback). They’re flush with talent on both sides of the ball.
By contrast, the Saints were crippled by an offense that never got off the ground with either Jameis Winston or Andy Dalton under center, and now they’re pushing all their chips in on Derek Carr. Allen and offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael Jr. burned a lot of goodwill in last year’s disappointing 7-10 finish, and Ryans might feel like he knows what he needs to know about them after his San Francisco 49ers defense beat New Orleans in a 13-0 shutout. Hopefully the Saints can prove their doubters wrong and teach Ryans a thing or two when they meet for joint practices later this summer.
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Bleacher Report listed the New Orleans Saints among teams under the most pressure in 2023. It’s playoffs or bust for Dennis Allen and Pete Carmichael, via @DillySanders:
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The New Orleans Saints are entering a key season for future of the franchise. After the disappointing 2022 season, everyone can be looked at as on the hot seat. They made some big moves, such as adding Derek Carr, but after going all-in again they must be competitive this season.
Bleacher Report’s Brent Sobleski shared this sentiment after naming the Saints as one of the teams that can’t afford to miss the playoffs. Here is his reasoning:
Carr was their guy. He signed with the team prior to the start of the new league year. The NFC South is also a down division, with no clear top quarterback after Tom Brady’s retirement.
Failure to make a run to the postseason and possibly even capture a division title with the likes of Cameron Jordan, Demario Davis and Tyrann Mathieu on the roster should be considered unacceptable.
With the outlook of the division, it really does give the Saints no excuses if they miss the playoffs. It’s by far the best roster in the division, not to mention they’re the only team with a proven veteran quarterback. Because of this, they’re also facing one of the easiest overall schedules in the league.
There is one positive that would come from missing the playoffs this season, in a roundabout way. It would give a clear answer on whether or not this is the staff to bring this team into the future. If Dennis Allen and Pete Carmichael can’t win the division with this discrepancy, the team will have have to moved on. But that’s a conversation for another day.
The pressure is clearly building for the Saints, but another way to look at it is that opportunity to win over the fanbase with a good season is also there for the taking.
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Experts predict the New Orleans Saints’ record in 2023; how many wins do you see on this year’s schedule?
We’ve had a week to digest the New Orleans Saints’ 2023 schedule, and opinions vary quite a bit on just how good the team will be this year. There’s a lot of hand-wringing going on about how high Derek Carr can elevate their struggling offense (if at all, to hear some experts spin it) as well as whether Dennis Allen is the right head coach for this team after an unimpressive debut ten years after his Raiders stint went up in smoke.
All of the turnover and free agent departures hasn’t instilled much confidence, either, but this is still a team that can compete in a weak division and maybe make some noise if things go their way. Here’s what’s being written about the Saints and their fortunes for 2023:
The New Orleans Saints head into the 2023 season with multiple questions on offense, starting with their play caller, via @crissy_froyd:
The New Orleans Saints undoubtedly have some work to do after finishing out the 2022 season with an overall record of 7-10, despite the fact that tied every team in the NFC South for the second-best within a disappointing division that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-9) ultimately came out on top of.
Many of the team’s woes are centered around offensive performance that leaves much to be desired to say the least as the Saints came out at 19th in total offense at the conclusion of the season with an average of just under 334 yards per game.
Here’s a look into three questions the team needs to answer on the offensive side of the ball:
