What We Saw: Week 5

The What We Saw team recaps everything you missed from Sunday's games

Ben Brown
What We Saw 2 Years Ago
Series Navigation
Introduction
Colts @ Broncos
Giants @ Packers
Steelers @ Bills
Chargers @ Browns
Texans @ Jaguars
Bears @ Vikings
Lions @ Patriots
Seahawks @ Saints
Dolphins @ Jets
Falcons @ Buccaneers
Titans @ Commanders
49ers @ Panthers
Eagles @ Cardinals
Cowboys @ Rams
Bengals @ Ravens

Seahawks @ Saints

Final Score: Saints 39, Seahawks 32

Writer: Ben Brown (@BenBrownPL on Twitter)

 

Sigh. Every year, fantasy managers are tormented by one random enormous game by Saints’ QB/RB/TE hybrid Taysom Hill, and today was that day. Hill ran for three touchdowns and threw for a fourth, and all of us who took a chance on Andy Dalton in a cupcake matchup were severely disappointed. Alvin Kamara had a solid game capped off by a 54 yard catch and run, but was held out of the endzone thanks to Hill’s dominance on the ground.

On the Seahawks side, Geno Smith was cooking yet again, hitting DK Metcalf for a touchdown and Tyler Lockett for two. All three scores were on near-perfect throws from Geno, and it’s becoming pretty clear that he’s for real this season.

After not punting last week, the Seahawks must have forgotten how to punt, because this is a questionable play that turned the ball over to New Orleans with great field position, and as you can imagine, they would then score a touchdown to go up by seven.

 

https://twitter.com/MrMatthewCFB/status/1579172106931093505?s=20&t=0i14mjFBtglFZVMdQUfJUA

 

It was still early in the game, but this obvious mistake was seemingly the difference in another shootout for the Seahawks.

 

Seattle Seahawks

 

Quarterback

 

Geno Smith: 16/25, 268 Yards, 3 TD | 3 Carries, 13 Yards

 

Geno Smith is actually blossoming into a legitimate threat at QB right before our eyes. His three touchdowns on the day were all gorgeous throws, and for the first time this season none of them went to a Tight End on your bench.

Geno started the game off with a bang, completing a 50-yard touchdown to DK Metcalf on their first drive of the game.

 

 

I was really impressed by this touch throw on the run over a defender’s head.

After recovering a Saints fumble right before the half, Seattle had an opportunity to take the lead and they capitalized. This 35-yard bomb from Geno to Tyler Lockett gave the Seahawks the lead heading into the half.

 

 

Later in the game, Geno hit Locket again for another deep score.

 

 

Again, this was a dime of a throw from Geno that was perfectly placed in a spot that only Lockett could get to despite it being between four defenders.

Geno wasn’t perfect on the day, he had an underthrow to DK in the red zone that killed a drive, resulting in a field goal. He also may have benefited from more of a running attack in the second half, as they essentially abandoned the run once Rashaad Penny got injured (more on that in a moment). Regardless, Geno played well enough to win this game today.

 

 

Running Back

 

Rashaad Penny: 8 Carries, 54 Yards

Kenneth Walker III: 8 Carries, 88 Yards, TD

DeeJay Dallas: 1 Carry, 4 Yards | 1 Target, 1 Reception, 6 Yards

 

Rashaad Penny is a bad man. He broke out a 32-yard run in the 1st quarter, rumbling and stumbling down the sidelines.

 

 

 

The Saints’ defense struggled to stop the pass on Sunday, so Penny wasn’t used very often and it’s a shame. Unfortunately, Penny went down with an injury early in the 2nd half and did not return. He was carried off the field and was in obvious pain. It has since come out that he fractured his tibia, an injury that will likely end his season. It’s an unfortunate ending for a player who has struggled with injuries for so much of his career and was finally living up to his immense potential.

 

 

Enter Kenneth Walker, the new starter for this offense. He announced his arrival in a big way with a 69-yard touchdown run for the first of his career.

 

 

It was only the third carry for Walker after Penny’s injury, so we didn’t get an extended look at him, but this highlight will nonetheless set the hype train in motion.

 

Wide Receiver/Tight End

 

Tyler Lockett: 6 Targets, 5 Receptions, 104 Yards, 2 TD

DK Metcalf: 8 Targets, 5 Receptions, 88 Yards, TD, 1 Fumble (Lost)

Noah Fant: 5 Targets, 3 Receptions, 49 Yards

Will Dissly: 3 Targets, 2 Receptions, 21 Yards

Dee Eskridge: 1 Target

 

Tyler Lockett was the man of the hour in this receiving corps, scoring two touchdowns on gorgeous deep balls by Geno Smith. On the second touchdown, Lockett was able to beat his man off the line after the defender appeared confused before the snap.

Lockett’s counterpart, DK Metcalf, had a good game of his own but it could have been better. His touchdown was obviously a spectacular play, but he scored a second one later in the game that was called back by a holding penalty. He also fumbled the ball on the first play of the second half, coughing it up to the Saints who went on to score a touchdown.

 

 

In this week’s Seattle TE update, Noah Fant had the best statistical day but it still didn’t amount to anything fantasy relevant. Will Dissly had a couple of catches but was unable to find the end zone this week. Neither player wowed me.

 

New Orleans Saints

 

Quarterback

 

Andy Dalton: 16/24, 187 Yards, TD, INT | 7 Carries, 4 Yards

Taysom Hill: 1/1, 22 Yards, TD | 9 Carries, 112 Yards, 3 TD, 1 Fumble (Recovered)

 

Taysom. Hill. The fact that he accomplished these stats on only 23 snaps is both amazing and scary at the same time. It seemed like every time he touched the ball resulted in an explosive play, and the defense simply had no answer for him. Hill benefited from some great blocking ahead of him on most of his runs, but he wasn’t afraid to run guys over when someone was standing in his way. The offense looked completely different with him at the helm.

Not only did Hill convert four scores on offense, but he also recovered a fumble on the colossal failure that was the Seahawks’ punt attempt. Here are all of the highlights you need to see from Hill’s performance.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Andy Dalton, the starting QB for the Saints, wasn’t terrible in this game. He was under constant pressure for much of his time on the field, limiting his ability to wait for receivers to get open downfield. His worst pass of the day was his lone interception. The defender slipped on the play, giving Dalton an opening to fit the ball into the receiver, but the defender got right back up and the ball was thrown right to him. Dalton was taken off the field in favor of Hill fairly often, limiting his opportunities to score. Dalton was a popular streaming pick, and if it weren’t for Hill he likely would have hit.

 

Running Back

 

Alvin Kamara: 23 Carries, 103 Yards | 6 Targets, 6 Receptions, 91 Yards | 1 Fumble (Lost)

Mark Ingram II: 9 Carries, 16 Yards

 

First and foremost, Alvin Kamara looked healthy. That’s the main takeaway from this game. On the ground, he wasn’t spectacular but he was solid. He ran hard and looked quick on his feet. He wasn’t laboring at all. These are all positive things. Kamara’s biggest play came on a screen pass late in the 3rd quarter. He had a bunch of blockers out in front of him, then made a great move to evade a defender and turn a long gain into an explosive one.

 

 

Overall, this was a positive day for Kamara and his managers, but the icing on the cake would have been a touchdown or two that otherwise went to Hill. It should have been much bigger.

 

Wide Receiver/Tight End

 

Chris Olave: 6 Targets, 4 Receptions, 54 Yards, TD

Adam Trautman: 3 Targets, 2 Receptions, 32 Yards, TD

Juwan Johnson: 2 Targets, 1 Reception, 13 Yards

Tre’Quan Smith: 4 Targets, 1 Reception, 10 Yards

Marquez Callaway: 3 Targets, 2 Receptions, 5 Yards

Keith Kirkwood: 1 Target, 1 Reception, 4 Yards

 

With most of the Saints’ offense funneling through Taysom Hill and Alvin Kamara, there wasn’t much work to go around for this group. Chris Olave had the best day of the bunch, and that’s even after a head injury knocked him out of the game early in the second half.

 

 

This was initially called incomplete, but the Saints challenged and it was determined to be a touchdown. Thankfully for those who started Olave, it salvaged his day, but the apparent head injury that followed is deeply concerning. Monitor this during the week.

Adam Trautman dropped an easy TD on a nice throw from Andy Dalton, but was able to catch one from Taysom Hill later on.

Michael Thomas is slated to come back next week, and it’s much needed especially with Olave’s injury. Outside of Olave and Thomas, there isn’t anyone reliable in this passing game, which is a bit concerning.

Series Navigation
Introduction
Colts @ Broncos
Giants @ Packers
Steelers @ Bills
Chargers @ Browns
Texans @ Jaguars
Bears @ Vikings
Lions @ Patriots
Seahawks @ Saints
Dolphins @ Jets
Falcons @ Buccaneers
Titans @ Commanders
49ers @ Panthers
Eagles @ Cardinals
Cowboys @ Rams
Bengals @ Ravens

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