Tag: Ted Ginn Jr.

Who returns punts with Deonte Harris injured?

The New Orleans Saints will be without their breakout star punt returner against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers so who fills in for Deonte Harris?

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Breakout rookie punt returner Deonte Harris was an unexpected absentee on the New Orleans Saints injury report, with the team ruling him out for their Sunday game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Harris’s loss is huge; he’s been the best to do it for New Orleans since Sean Payton was hired as head coach, and the rookie is the only player in the NFL with 200-plus yards on both punts and kickoffs.

Unfortunately, a late-game hamstring injury versus the Atlanta Falcons has put his availability in doubt, though the team already put him on the shelf this week. Hopefully this won’t become a lingering issue that derails his promising NFL debut.

In the meantime, who will the Saints roll out to fill in for him against the Buccaneers?

The easy answer on punts is Ted Ginn Jr., who has the most NFL experience doing that of anyone else left on the roster. But Saints coach Sean Payton has been critical of Ginn’s shaky hands in the past and may prefer to give younger teammates a shot first.

One of those candidates could be Krishawn Hogan, who was the only other player warming up as a punt returner next to Harris before last week’s Falcons game. Hogan has only played a handful of snaps so far, mostly blocking on run plays, but he might be someone Payton considers for the job.

Two other names to monitor are players more familiar with Saints fans: quarterback Taysom Hill and running back Alvin Kamara. They have both returned punts and kickoffs in the past, with Kamara notching a 106-yard kickoff return for a touchdown against Tampa Bay back in his 2017 rookie season. He’s since eased off of return duties due to his value on offense, but it’s possible the Saints get desperate for a spark and trot him out.

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New Orleans Saints QB Controversy? No, not even a little bit

The New Orleans Saints may have fallen flat, but there’s no questioning whether the team is better with Drew Brees or Teddy Bridgewater.

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One poor game from New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees last Sunday against the Atlanta Falcons has a surprising number of analysts, pundits, and fans asking “Were the Saints better off with Teddy Bridgewater under center?” The simple answer to that question is simple: no.

A lot of drama was stirred up from the shocking loss to the Falcons during Week 10, but quarterback controversy should not be a part of any of that. It is true that Bridgewater led New Orleans to five straight wins in the absence of Brees. It is also a fact that Brees had one of his less-than-stellar performances during Week 10.

But let’s put all of this into perspective. In Bridgewater’s five starts this season he averaged a 103.68 QB rating, 241 passing yards, and a 70.14% completion rate per game; not too shabby. If we are to believe the pundits like FOX Sports host Ben Maller, then Brees’ game during Week 10 was worth benching the future Hall of Famer over. However, even in that game the future Brees threw for nearly 300 yards and kept the ball safe, while still completing over 70% of his passes. In Brees’ very first game back from injury just two weeks earlier, he looked like his vintage self, throwing for 373 yards and three touchdowns, compiling a 116.4 QB rating. While the sample size is limited this year, Brees does not look like the over-the-hill quarterback some have described.

What happened during Week 10 was an anomaly, at least historically that has been the case for contending Saints squads. The offensive line was banged up or ill (Andrus Peat exited with a broken arm, and Terron Armstead was playing with the flu), as evidenced by the season-high six sacks. New Orleans’ inability to get the run going, as evidenced by just 11 rush attempts, kept the team from spreading the field as they often do. On top of that, self-inflicted penalties by the defense killed momentum, and continually gave life to the Falcon’s offense.

All of that being said, Brees did make a few errant throws, one in particular to wide receiver Tre’Quan Smith during the second quarter, which sailed over the receiver’s head. Had the pass been slightly more accurate, Smith could have potentially had a huge gain. Multiple drops by Ted Ginn Jr., and a season-long lack of production from every other receiver not named Michael Thomas helped to impede Brees and Sean Payton’s game plan.

Let’s keep it real: the entire New Orleans squad played poorly from top to bottom, and one bad game is nowhere near enough to question the Saints’ quarterback situation, nor is it enough to question whether Brees is truly feeling his age. While Bridgewater kept the team afloat, there’s no question that the team is in better position to win with Brees under center.

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