The New Orleans Saints head into their road matchup with Baltimore carrying a defense that has work to do after Week 1.
New Orleans sits 21st in the NFL defensively after its 31-30 overtime loss to the Detroit Lions, a game in which the Saints allowed 369 total yards. Detroit piled up 204 passing yards, which ranked as the 18th-most allowed through the air, and added 165 rushing yards, leaving New Orleans 28th in rush defense. The Saints also gave up 31 points, putting them in a tie for 23rd in scoring defense with the Denver Broncos and Buffalo Bills.
Even in the loss, the Saints did manage to force a turnover. Safety Jonas Sanker led the team with 10 tackles, while DE Carl Granderson recorded the lone sack. Vernon Broughton came up with the fumble recovery after a strong punchout on Jahmyr Gibbs.
The challenge only gets bigger this week. Baltimore’s offense opened the season second in the league in total offense after piling up 506 yards against the Indianapolis Colts. The Ravens rolled up 304 passing yards, good for fifth in the NFL, and 202 rushing yards, which ranked third, with Lamar Jackson running the show.
Baltimore also put 41 points on the board, the second-most in the league last weekend. Jackson accounted for two total touchdowns, while Derrick Henry ran for three more.
Zay Flowers was Jackson’s top downfield weapon, catching his lone touchdown pass and finishing with 150 yards on five receptions. Mark Andrews added four catches for 49 yards.
Jackson did not throw an interception, but he did lose a fumble, and that turnover led to a four-play touchdown drive for the Colts.
Now the Saints are trying to avoid an 0-2 start on the road against one of the league’s most dangerous offenses. Baltimore could still be without Flowers, who is questionable with a hamstring injury, but the Ravens have plenty of firepower either way, and that makes for a difficult test for a young New Orleans defense.
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Saints Already Have A Ravens Problem They Need To Fix Fast
Baltimore had little trouble turning a sluggish start into control of the game, and the Saints were left chasing from the moment the Ravens settled in. At halftime, the Ravens owned a 14-3 lead, with Lamar Jackson shaking off the slow opening by completing 13 of 16 passes for 171 yards and a touchdown, including a 22-yard strike to Rashod Bateman that helped swing the tone in Baltimores favor.
New Orleans, meanwhile, could move the ball just enough to string together a few third-down conversions, but the drive momentum never translated into points beyond a field goal. The Ravens defense tightened around the edges, and rookie cornerback Chandler Rivers made his presence felt with several tackles in his NFL debut, leaving the Saints with a clear problem to solve fast if they wanted any shot at flipping the night. [Read more 🡒]