Broncos @ Saints
Final Score: Broncos 33, Saints 10
Senior Writer: Benjamin Haller (@benjaminhaller1 on Twitter)
Behind a dominant performance from the Broncos offensive line, Javonte Williams and the Denver running back room romped all over a dismal Saints defense to power Sean Payton to a win in his return to the Superdome. Season highs in yards before contact, yards after contact, and rush yards over expected ensured rookie quarterback Bo Nix had to only manage his offense to clinch a crucial but comfortable win for his team.
The Saints were…dreadful. A team devoid of starters across the offense and defense looked not only short of talent but also short of heart as missed tackles, defensive coverage mistakes, and an anemic offense led by rookie Spencer Rattler blighted their mission. Their season looks over at 2-5, and you have to wonder if this spells the end for Head Coach Dennis Allen.
Three Up
- Javonte Williams – a massive 26.10 fantasy points (in Yahoo!) from Williams made many a fantasy manager who rolled the dice on him very happy indeed. He is the head of a crowded backfield, and these were his first touchdowns of the year
- Bo Nix – a professional, effective performance from the rookie who added 75 yards on 10 carries on the ground to boost his fantasy relevance
- Denver DST – six sacks, two forced fumbles, and a defensive score, this is what DST heaven looks like. Already one of the best defenses in the league, the Broncos balled out without Patrick Surtain.
Three Down
- Alvin Kamara – totaling just two yards on only five touches in the first half, Kamara was clearly dejected and frustrated with negative body language and a look of disgust on a feeble attempt on fourth down. A fantasy dud to go with it.
- Spencer Rattler – a rough night for the rookie, who fumbled the ball and saw another ball returned for a touchdown after he lost it whilst throwing under contact. He looked way short of any NFL capabilities in this outing and was replaced late by Jake Haener, who immediately threw for a score.
- Dennis Allen – it could be goodbye in the Big Easy for Allen after a horror show on both sides of the ball.
Denver Broncos
Quarterback
Bo Nix: 16/26, 164 Yards | 10 Carries, 75 Yards
This performance from Nix was highly encouraging given it is only his seventh game as a professional. The Broncos quarterback found ways to effectively move the offense and mixed in a nice series of short passes to all his favored receivers, namely former teammate and Oregon Ducks wideout Troy Franklin. After an opening-drive punt, Nix led scoring drives on the next four Denver possessions, showing good movement to work out the pocket and make plays. A nicely manufactured 8-play, 86-yard touchdown drive was the offensive highlight of the first half. Nix enjoyed more freedom to burst out of the pocket in the second half, and a key 32-yard rush down the left sideline set up his team’s second touchdown of the game, again a short-yardage rush from Williams. It was cruise control from thereon out.
https://www.twitter.com/NFL/status/1847098921417691446
Notes
- Nix was inexplicably not picked off late in the first half with a terrible blooper throw that should have been an easy grab for Tyrann Mathieu, but the veteran dropped it. Credit to Nix to bounce back after that throw and work the ball into Saints territory for a field goal before the half.
- Never looked to throw the ball deep, managing throws across the short and intermediate level to effectively chip away at the Saints’ porous defense.
Missed opportunities
- Failed to move the sticks on a 3rd-&-1 at the Saints 8-yard line despite having plenty of time on a deep drop to find a target – Nix struggled with his footwork early in the game and threw off balance a couple of times on passes that should have been completed to wide open receivers.
Running Back
Javonte Williams: 14 Carries, 88 Yards, 2 TD | 3 Targets, 3 Receptions, 23 Yards
Remarkably, this was Williams’ first career game with at least two rushing touchdowns. The oft-injured running back has been a slow starter this season coming off another major knee injury, but he found plenty of holes to work through in this contest. Williams averaged 6.3 yards per carry as the Broncos established the run early, breaking off long rushes, including a nice 20-yard outside-zone run deep in his own territory to kickstart a drive that ended with him hitting paydirt after a huge hole opened up on the right side of the offensive line. Williams will need to show us more against better run defenses, but this is a good start. It is worth noting he handled all targets out of the backfield, catching three balls for 23 yards.
Jaleel McLaughlin: 4 Carries, 35 Yards
Despite finding the end zone last week, Jaleel McLaughlin remains a distant second behind Williams in this rushing attack. Worryingly, on a night when the Broncos had plenty of opportunity on the ground, McLaughlin saw just four touches and was ceded work to rookie Audric Estime. McLaughlin’s main contribution was a 21-yard dash down the right sideline on a play that looked like he would take to the house, but he just got clipped on the feet to bring him down.
Audric Estime: 5 Carries, 29 Yards, Fumble (Lost)
His coach won’t forget his fourth-quarter fumble with the Broncos trying to see the game out. However, the fifth-round rookie has impressed in practice and did enough to earn more touches than McLaughlin in this game. He factors to keep growing in this offense, but he is the third option in truth.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Troy Franklin: 6 Targets, 5 Receptions, 50 Yards
Building off of his first touchdown grab last week, Franklin linked up early and often in the first half with old pal Nix to post new season highs in catches, yards, and targets as the chemistry with his quarterback continues to translate to the NFL. It was nowhere near electric or game-winning, but Franklin is a nice flex piece to think about for fantasy managers over the next few weeks. His impact play was a catch down the right sideline as he found himself wide open, Nix doing a nice job to find him whilst running to his right.
Lucas Krull: 4 Targets, 3 Receptions, 31 Yards
Emerging as the starter at tight end over the past two weeks, rookie Lucas Krull hauled in three catches in the first half to set new career bests across the board. Working between the numbers and over the middle is where he did his main work, but he did break free deeper early in the game, but Nix couldn’t find him with a throw that would have resulted in a big gain and a red zone opportunity.
Devaughn Vele: 3 Targets, 1 Reception, 20 Yards
Another rookie looking to make an impression after a strong showing in Week 6, Devaughn Vele made a superb grab in the first quarter from a throw to the sideline from Nix. That turned out to be his only catch, and he had a bad drop for another 20+ yard gain in the second quarter that he will be disappointed with. Still, he is an intriguing route runner who can separate and has shown enough to be a part of this offense.
Courtland Sutton: 0 Targets
When asked about his involvement at the half, Payton was almost apologetic but did say that they had seen more zone coverage than expected, and Sutton just wasn’t a factor with the deeper ball not being thrown. He did draw a defensive pass interference call just before halftime that was clear and obvious. Otherwise, his non-involvement was both a surprising and annoying development. Fantasy managers despair!
Marvin Mims Jr.: 3 Targets, 2 Receptions, 11 Yards
Lil’Jordan Humphrey: 3 Targets, 2 Receptions, 12 Yards
Adam Trautman: 3 Targets
New Orleans Saints
Quarterback
Spencer Rattler: 25/35, 172 Yards, 6 Sacks, Fumble (Lost) | 5 Carries, 34 Yards
This was nothing short of a complete disaster for the Saints and fifth-round rookie Rattler, who was overmatched by the defensive scheme, the offensive fallibilities, and his limitations as a signal-caller. Averaging just 4.9 yards per attempt, Rattler struggled to find anything more creative than a simple short pass on an initial read. There were two plays in particular when he just dumped the ball off to a receiver who was immediately swallowed up for a loss. The frustration was visible on the field, on the sidelines, and in the stadium, as groans and boos reigned down. It didn’t help that the quarterback was missing both lead receiver Chris Olave and deep threat Rashid Shaheed. Rattler was antsy, overwhelmed, and erratic with his execution. He looked far from the standard required of an NFL quarterback.
https://www.twitter.com/NFL/status/1847110818376437828
Notes
- Huge slice of luck at the start of the second quarter when a botched snap followed by a fumble that was returned into the end zone by Broncos linebacker Cody Barton, however, the touchdown was negated by a defensive offside, and the Saints survived. He wasn’t so lucky later in the game when a similar play did result in a Broncos return for a score, again by Barton.
- Looked desperately slow on reads and was unaware of where pressure was coming from on most dropbacks. Yes, the Saints are missing key personnel on the offensive line, but Rattler could not spot the defensive schemes for the majority of this game.
Jake Haener: 3/4, 38 Yards, TD
With Rattler falling foul on the Saints’ final drive of the game with a knock to the hip, 2023 fourth-round pick Jake Haener entered and delivered the perfect cameo in the final two minutes, going 3-for-4 for 38 yards and throwing for the Saints’ only touchdown of the game, a 12-yard pass to Cedric Wilson Jr. If Derek Carr is to miss more time, it will likely be Haener and not Rattler who will get the next shot.
Running Back
Alvin Kamara: 7 Carries, 10 Yards | 7 Targets, 6 Receptions, 14 Yards
Totaling his lowest number of rushing touches and total yardage of the season, it was a miserable night for Kamara against a tough defense that took away the only established threat of this offense. Kamara cut a frustrated figure and marched off the field in disgust at the end of the first half after a botched up fourth down that fell well short of the line. It might be the smart thing to chalk this off as a rare off night, but this offense has deep-seated problems that don’t look close to being resolved. Yuck!
Kendre Miller: 6 Carries, 36 Yards | 3 Targets, 2 Receptions, 1 Yards
Jamaal Williams: 3 Carries, 17 Yards
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Cedric Wilson Jr.: 7 Targets, 6 Receptions, 57 Yards, TD
Don’t be misled, two of the six catches Wilson Jr. made were on the final offensive drive of the game with Haener under center. One of those was a short ball for a 12-yard score with just 1:22 left in the ballgame. The former Cowboys veteran has been battling an injured ankle but was pushed to make the game due to injuries. It will be interesting to see if his role expands.
https://www.twitter.com/NFL/status/1847114215297110195
Mason Tipton: 9 Targets, 6 Receptions, 45 Yards
Benefitting from the injuries in the wide receiver room, the undrafted rookie from Yale led the team in targets and made a couple of nice grabs to keep drives alive. Tipton worked primarily in heavy coverage on the outside but showed strength and route-running smarts on a couple of catches against good cornerbacks. Tipton caught one of his six catches on the final Saints touchdown drive, also drawing a defensive pass interference call to set the Broncos up with a touchdown score.
Foster Moreau: 2 Targets, 2 Receptions, 38 Yards
Bub Means: 5 Targets, 3 Receptions, 37 Yards
Juwan Johnson: 6 Targets, 3 Receptions, 18 Yards