Give the offense a ton of credit for going down the field and setting up what should have been the game winning field goal, then turning around in overtime and making the big play despite a back breaking miss in regulation. The team found a way to win and that’s what’s most important. It wasn’t always perfect for the offense, though, and often times it was ugly. The offensive line in particular was rough. Regardless of who is hurt or who is missing, they just have to protect Brees better. Ultimately they did enough to win and the way things have been going lately we’ll definitely take it. Below are the grades:
Drew Brees: A (2.89)
Clearly he’s not 100% and for the most part he didn’t even bother trying to throw too much downfield. Give Brees credit, though, he fought through it and did the most with what he had to work with. He was very fortunate not to be intercepted, though, as one was called back by a penalty and two others were criminal drops by the Cowboys backfield. He finished 33 of 41 for 359 yards, 2 touchdowns and no turnovers. That’s a passer rating of 119.4. Given his injury I don’t think we could have asked for any better. His throws down the stretch to Snead, Coleman and Spiller were on the money down the field coming up with clutch plays when they mattered most. To have him back and play a game like this, nothing a win in overtime, was awesome. He played his best with the game on the line.
Mark Ingram: B+ (2.50)
He got some things going on the ground early, was stuffed in the middle of the game, and then picked it up again late. He had a fumble that was overturned, but ball security needs to remain better. He had a decent 77 yards on 17 carries, with some good runs on the second touchdown drive. He also had 6 catches for 51 yards. He was an underrated workhorse in this game and he was robbed on a touchdown by a terrible overturn. It’s a moot point since the Saints scored anyway but how you can view his “non score” as irrefutable enough to overturn is just stupid. I would have liked to see Spiller more but Ingram was steady.
Khiry Robinson: C+ (2.42)
I don’t understand why he was flagged on the short touchdown run. It made no sense. It’s a dance we see from every team every weekend, pretty much. He had 6 carries for 16 yards and the score, he also had 2 catches for 5 yards, none bigger than his 4th down conversion. It was a quiet game and he was stuffed a couple times in the backfield but he had some critical plays for the team.
C. J. Spiller: A (3.00)
When you win the game in overtime making a play like that, you deserve this grade. His 80 yard walk off touchdown reception was a thing of beauty and the most underrated part of that play is the tackle he breaks at the 50 to ensure it’s a score. He had 5 catches for 99 yards, the score, and 2 carries for 10 yards. Clearly he needs to see the ball more.
Austin Johnson: C (2.08)
On the second touchdown drive he had some key blocks, particularly on the Robinson score from the 1. He also had a poor pass protection sequence that led to a sack.
Marques Colston: C+ (2.08)
Very quiet day for Colston who only got involved on short throws. He had 4 catches for 19 yards and drew a penalty. He doesn’t seem able to break a tackle at all.
Brandin Cooks: C- (2.42)
Finished with 4 catches for 25 yards on 8 targets. I hate to say it but Mo Claiborne shut him down. The combination of his small size, Brees’s injury, the poor pass protection and the attention he’s getting is leading to him not being that productive. He just doesn’t feel like a dominant #1 receiver at all. The Saints are trying to get him involved but the screens don’t seem to be in his skill set. He had a drop early in the game on a good throw by Brees down the sideline.
Willie Snead: A (2.92)
By far the best receiver for the Saints at the moment. He’s good after the catch, he’s physical, he runs good routes, and has the best chemistry with his quarterback. The hit he laid on the defender in overtime was monstrous, too. He had 6 catches for 89 yards. Very solid performance from Snead all the way around.
Brandon Coleman: B- (2.34)
He drew one flag and came up with a huge 30 yard reception on a nice toss by Brees to set up the game winning field goal (that missed). He continues to be very inconsistent but at least his catch was a major contribution. Brees clearly has a lot more confidence and chemistry with Snead at the moment, though.
Ben Watson: B (2.25)
He finished with 3 catches for 30 yards and did some nice things out there. He came up with a big first down on a red zone reception. He also set up a pass to Snead by taking two defenders with him. His blocking was hit or miss.
Josh Hill: A- (1.92)
Nice to see him finally get involved in the passing game and his blocking was pretty good too, especially down the stretch when the Saints went jumbo to give their ground game a boost. He finished with 2 catches for 11 yards and a touchdown.
Terron Armstead: B+ (3.08)
What a warrior. Clearly playing on one leg he was still the best offensive lineman out there at times. How he was able to hold up clearly hobbled was pretty impressive. I hope he’s ok for the games coming up, the Saints clearly need him. Through four games he’s my offensive MVP.
Tim Lelito: C+ (1.92)
He started very slow getting Brees hurried and almost sacked. But he got progressively better as the game wore on. His run blocking was never superb and his pass blocking was hit or miss, but he did some nice things late.
Max Unger: B- (2.42)
He was flagged once and had a mixed performance at times but then he just owns someone and you understand why the Saints traded for him. He’s yet to put together a utterly dominating 4 quarter game which I’m still waiting for. Granted the guard play around him is making that difficult.
Senio Kelemete: D+ (2.33)
After a really impressive start last week in Carolina I thought he did more worse at home. He had his moments run blocking but his pass protection was very leaky and in combination with Strief’s play it put Brees under a lot of pressure.
Zach Strief: D+ (1.42)
The amount of pressure he gave up was just too much again, putting Brees under too much duress from the edge. The problem in this game is Kelemete struggled in pass protection which really made things worse because it was like the right side of the line was collapsing. Normally Brees does a fantastic job of feeling pressure and stepping up into the pocket but there was often no pocket to step into. His run blocking was suspect until the jumbo package came in, too.
Andrus Peat: B+ (2.67)
As a jumbo blocker he came in and did very well setting up some big runs for Ingram. He also came in briefly for Armstead at left tackle and more than held his own. A really encouraging performance from the 1st round pick.
My Offensive Player of the Game: Drew Brees
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