• Play action helped the offensive line exceed expectations: Just eight of the 28 pass-blocking snaps for New Orleans' starting offensive line came on true pass sets, thanks in particular to a heavy dose of play action.
• The Saints didn't need to rely on Chris Olave: Olave was targeted on just 8.7% of his receiving snaps, and while New Orleans will still want to get him more involved, the fact that the team won in dominating fashion without needing to rely on him is an encouraging sign.
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Estimated Reading Time: 3 minutes
We, or at least I, may have significantly underestimated the New Orleans Saints heading into the 2024 NFL season.
Granted, their 47-10 win in Week 1 came against a Carolina Panthers squad that was the worst team in the NFL in 2023 — and one that arguably looks worse after one week of the 2024 campaign — but there was a lot to like about what New Orleans did in the season opener.
Play-action usage
Coming into the season, the biggest concern on the Saints' roster was their offensive line. The unit ranked 31st in PFF's preseason offensive line rankings, with big question marks at every spot other than center. Yet, the unit ranked first in PFF pass-blocking grade in Week 1.
New Orleans performed well against a Carolina defensive front that, simply put, is not good. Most importantly, though, was that the scheme put the offensive linemen in favorable positions. Just eight of the 28 pass-blocking snaps for New Orleans' starting offensive line came on true pass sets, thanks in particular to a heavy dose of play action.
The Saints used play action on 40.0% of Derek Carr’s dropbacks, the third most of any starting quarterback in the NFL this week and far beyond the 14.8% play action usage that Carr saw in 2023. On those 10 play-action dropbacks, Carr went 7-for-9 for 58 yards and a touchdown, earning an 83.7 PFF passing grade.
Staying among the league leaders in play-action percentage is a great way for the Saints to mitigate some of the concerns surrounding their offensive line, even if the unit looks to be better than expected.
Not overly reliant on Chris Olave
Saints wide receiver Chris Olave saw a target on 25.5% of his receiving snaps in 2023 — a clip that ranked 18th among wide receivers. While that was only 6.1 percentage points above the next best Saints wide receiver, the disparity was bigger in losses. In those games, Olave's 26.4% threat rate was 8.7 percentage points higher than Michael Thomas in second place.
In the team's Week 1 win over the Panthers, Olave was targeted on just 8.7% of his receiving snaps, with his two targets tied for fourth on the team despite his leading the Saints in receiving snaps (23). New Orleans will still want to get Olave more involved, but the fact that the team won in dominating fashion without needing to rely on him, with six players seeing at least two targets and eight recording at least one reception, is an encouraging sign.
Bigger tests await the Saints, starting with the Dallas Cowboys on the road in Week 2, but the early returns have them looking like a better team than the one that ended the 2023 season.
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