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Week 10 of the NFL regular season is almost upon us. Here are all of the major outlets’ power rankings. So how do the New Orleans Saints rank? (change from last week’s ranking is in parentheses)
ESPN - #6 (-3)
Most important game left: Nov. 24 vs. Panthers
Up until this past Sunday, I would’ve picked the Week 14 home date with the 49ers -- which still might determine the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds in the NFC. But the Saints need to take care of their own backyard first after their stunning loss to the Falcons. The Saints must lock down the NFC South title, and that means they can’t open the door by slipping up again at home against another division rival in two weeks. It won’t be easy with the way league MVP candidate Christian McCaffrey has been playing. But ideally, the Saints can get the division title wrapped up before heading to Carolina for the Week 17 rematch. -- Mike Triplett
USA Today - #4 (-3)
They laid egg size of a New Orleans hangover Sunday, but let’s not read too much into it. Nine points their fewest scored at home with Drew Brees at helm.
CBS - #5 (-3)
That was a terrible loss to the Falcons at home. The bye did this team no good. What happened to the offense?
NFL - #6 (-4)
A head-scratching loss by the Saints, who were dominated in all phases by a downtrodden Falcons team that hadn’t shown a pulse in weeks. Drew Brees was sacked six times -- tied for the most ever in his career -- and was pressured 18 times by a relentless Atlanta front seven. How stunning was the defensive surge by the Falcons? They managed seven sacks all season before Sunday. The Saints were well under 300 yards of total offense before they began accumulating first downs in a final garbage-time drive that still produced zero points. “Pick a situation, and there’s a good chance they won that situation,” Saints coach Sean Payton said after the game. It was ... well ... as weird an outcome as we’ve seen in this 2019 NFL season, and it begs the question: Is this a sign of trouble in New Orleans, or was it just a very bad day at the office?
Bleacher Report - #4 (-2)
Week 10 Result: Lost vs. Atlanta 26-9
Generally speaking, NFL teams only get one bye week a season. But the New Orleans Saints apparently decided they could use a little more rest…
Because the team barely bothered to show up Sunday against the Atlanta Falcons.
There wasn’t a more bizarre result in Week 10 than the one-loss Saints getting rolled at home coming out of the bye week by a one-win Falcons team.
It’s not just that the Saints lost at home to a division rival. It’s that New Orleans was dominated in just about every aspect of the game by a Falcons team that’s spent most of this season getting drilled.
Before this game, Atlanta had seven sacks for the season. The Falcons sacked Drew Brees six times. A Falcons defense that has allowed over 28 points per game this season held the Saints out of the end zone.
The result left our analysts more than a bit befuddled.
”What just happened?! The Saints are clearly one of the NFL’s best teams,” Sobleski said. “Yet, somehow, they found a way to not only lose to the struggling Falcons, but do so in embarrassing fashion. The Falcons, who managed a league-low seven sacks through eight games, got to Drew Brees six times. The Falcons dominated the fourth quarter and came away with their most impressive win over the last two seasons. That’s OK. Every team experiences a hiccup throughout a long season. If this goes from a one-week aberration to a two-game losing streak, then it becomes a problem for the Saints.”
”It may be that by January this face-plant will be just a bump in the road to Miami,” Davenport added. “Perhaps the game will serve as a wake-up call. But it was more than a little alarming to see a Saints team we thought was good get rolled by a Falcons team we know is bad.”
Yahoo - #4 (-3)
Teams lose, it happens. But to get worked over at home by a terrible Falcons club? The Saints’ offense was relatively healthy but looked awful. I’m not saying the Saints’ 7-1 start was fraudulent, but that performance was troubling.
Sports Illustrated - #8 (-6)
New Orleans got caught napping at home coming off the bye and turned in their first turd of the season, but many of the NFL’s top teams suffered a similar fate in recent weeks. Drew Brees was under siege all game, eating six sacks and 11 total QB hits. Less than ideal for a 39-year-old coming off thumb surgery.