On Sunday, the 4-10 New Orleans Saints will host the 3-11 New York Jets in a battle between teams jockeying for draft order position. While the season may not have gone as either envisioned, one is guaranteed to pick up a victory this weekend.
The Saints are coming off back-to-back wins, both versus NFC South opponents. Last weekend, Kellen Moore’s team earned a comeback 20-17 victory over the visiting Carolina Panthers. New York heads into this game after losing back-to-back contests. Most recently,
they fell 48-20 against the Jacksonville Jaguars on the road.
New Orleans currently averages 296.9 yards and 16.1 points per game. Those marks have them ranked as the 26th-best offense in the league. Meanwhile, New York’s defense sits at just about the middle of the pack. They typically allow 337.4 yards and 28.4 points to opposing teams.
Starting quarterback Tyler Shough has experienced highs and lows during his rookie season with the New Orleans Saints, but has progressed steadily through the second half of the season. He has 1,484 yards through the air to go along with six touchdowns and five interceptions. The second-round pick also has over 100 rushing yards, finding the end zone with his legs twice.
Shough’s leading pass catcher, wide receiver Chris Olave, has amassed 82 receptions for 896 yards and six TDs. Olave will have an opportunity to go over 1,000 receiving yards for the Saints after the team did not have a receiver reach 600 yards just a year ago.
Running the football has not carried the same success this season for New Orleans. Running back Alvin Kamara is the Saints’ leading rusher with just 471 yards on the ground, more than double any other player. Kamara has battled injury this year, as well as the majority of the positional group. No tailback has played in more than 11 games to this point.
Linebacker Jamien Sherwood is the Jets’ leading tackler with 129 on the year, good enough for the seventh-most across the league. Defensive end Will McDonald IV leads the team with seven sacks, twice as many as LB Quincy Williams.
The New York Jets’ defense has only managed to force three turnovers all season, all by way of a recovered fumble. No player on the roster has intercepted a pass all season, which bodes well for Tyler Shough and the passing game of the Saints.
As long as New Orleans protects the football and caps off drives with points this weekend, I do not doubt that the Saints could earn their fifth win of the season versus New York. Heck, they already beat the Giants. This team is a work in progress, but the vision is on the horizon.
