Observations from the Saints 13-7 win over the LA Chargers

No your eyes are not deceiving you, the title says the Saints won a preseason game, and for the first attempt in 11 they succeeded. I cannot find the words to express how little winning or losing in the preseason matters, but losing ten in a row has been driving the fan base crazy, and I’m sure it has bothered the players as well. There were a lot of things that I’m sure are going to stand out from this game when I have the opportunity to rewatch it over the next couple of days, but below you will find my initial reactions.  But before you read them remember the preseason mantra: “Nothing you see is as good as it looks, or as bad…except for injuries”.

Observations:

• Alvin Kamara was a player I said I would be happy with the Saints taking at 31, and I was laughed at. No one is laughing now. Kamara looks like Pierre Thomas with speed and was absolutely sensational for the second week in a row. More importantly Kamara’s effectiveness and production have come as a direct result of normal plays. There has been no trickery or ‘gadget’ plays involved, and that more than anything else is what’s going to make him awesome. The ability to produce in a traditional manner makes the threat of more…exotic…plays that much more terrifying.
• The Saints may just maybe have a decent front 7. AJ Klein, Alex Okafor, and Manti Te’o all had stand out moments throughout the scrimmage. As the key additions to the Saints front 7 them looking effective was a major boon.
• Ryan Ramczyk looks the part, but he also looked like a raw rookie going against stand out veteran pass rushers. His run blocking on Kamara’s big run was excellent, but there were several times where he obviously struggled against the Chargers potent pass rushers. Lucky for him he’s got time to clean it up, but not that much time.
• Marshon Lattimore flashed the attributes that got him drafted 11th overall. He was solid in coverage, but had a one play in particular that stood out as he got caught on his heals and was ‘frozen’ by Chargers running back Melvin Ingram on a run early in the game. (Nick Underhill wrote This about both Ramczyk and Lattimore…read it)
• The drop off between the Saints starting line and their backups is very apparent, the same can be said at quarterback. The Saints backup QBs missed some very makeable throws and some reads I thought they should have had that Drew simply won’t miss. They made the receivers look a lot worse than they were (to be fair they were also under siege frequently).
• The Saints look faster on defense across the board, but the biggest difference you can see between this year’s unit and last is their swagger. The Saints are hitting their opponents, driving through the football and have been highly demonstrative. I love the edge they are playing with. They aren’t always going to look great, but its very clear they are going to try to be great every snap, and that’s something pleasant and new.
• The Saints young pass rushers continue to show promise. Gwacham and Muhammad both had sacks (Muhammad actually had 1.5 on back to back plays to close out the game).
• Other than Mike Thomas and Kamara the Saints skill position players didn’t really show up, but let’s withhold judgement till we see the starters all out there together. I have a hunch Drew Brees and Max Unger make a difference.
• Tommy Lee Lewis had a couple of very nice plays, but was largely a negative on ST and was at least partially responsible for the pick 6. He’s still got the inside track, but has a limited margin for error.
• I waited till the end to mention it…but 8 sacks (12 in 2 games), a forced fumble, an int, and zero points allowed is a good sign for any team in the preseason.