The Cleveland Browns have no time to sulk after a 27-6 defeat last weekend. They are still in the thick of a playoff race and must get back to their winning ways quickly. This week they will have to travel south to take on the New Orleans Saints.
The Saints are a team that wants to score points. They have an offense-minded head coach who won a Super Bowl as offensive coordinator with the Philadelphia Eagles, and their last three first-round picks have all been on offense. This could be a challenge for the Browns' defense.
Here are my three keys for the Browns defense to stop the Saints.
Tackle in space
The Saints love to throw the ball as much as any team in the league. They rank 9th in pass attempts despite already having their bye week and having played one
less game than many teams. Despite this, they average the 7th fewest yards per passing attempt.
This very much feels like a dink and dunk offense that wants to slowly work their way down the field. Against that kind of offense it is important to make sound tackles and limit the explosive plays that they otherwise struggle to make.
Don’t worry too much about the run
In terms of the worst rushing offenses in the NFL, the Saints are right there with anybody. They rank 29th in rushing yards and 30th in yards per carry. Their starting running back, Kendre Miller (and kudos to you if you knew who the Saints' starting running back was), only has 159 rushing yards on the season.
This is the type of game where the Browns have to shut down the run. Against a team that wants to throw the ball a lot, it will have to be done primarily without committing extra bodies to the cause.
Keep lid on Olave
Despite not having a ton of explosive plays, the Saints actually have a lot of speed at the wide receiver position. For example, Chris Olave ran a 4.39 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine. Just because they haven’t had explosive plays doesn’t mean this group isn’t capable of it.
If anyone is going to hurt the Browns' defense, then it’s Olave. That’s why he’s the one guy they can’t let have a big day. Provide help over the top to his side to make sure that this Saints offense stays a slow and boring one.
This article originally appeared on Browns Wire: 3 Degensive keys for the Browns in Week 9 against the Saints
