The good, the bad, and the ugly from the Saints dominant win over Green Bay

The Good

Photo by James Gilbert/Getty Images

Cesar Ruiz and Calvin Throckmorton

I want to talk off the bat about how important the performance of these two was to the success of the Saints on Sunday. The offensive line looked like the best in the league throughout the game, and that came after losing the starting center. Ruiz slid over to his college position, and looked like the guy the Saints saw when they drafted him in Round 1 last year. Throckmorton is a guy that me and Ross Jackson pounded the table for throughout the draft process in 2020, and celebrated when the Saints signed him as a UDFA. One injury affected two spots on the offensive line and the team didn’t seem to skip a beat.

Jameis Winston

The Jameis era is off to a great start. An effecient 5 TD’s off of 148 yards passing. Jameis executed the Sean Payton gameplan to a T, thanks to Sean Payton tailoring a gameplan for Jameis Winston. If this game is a blueprint for the future of the offense, I am excited. We can’t ignore that a tipped pass interception was called back due to a questionable roughing the passer call (though there was defensive interference that didn’t get called on the same play, ) however it was a small blip on an otherwise great performance. Plus, how good did it feel to see a Saints QB just uncork a pass and have it hit the wideout in stride. I don’t know how much his mobility is going to be taken into account for the future, but it is worth mentioning that he had multiple long first down runs.

The Defense In Total

The defense played in great symbiosis, the coverage leading to pass rush and the pass rush leading to interceptions, all day. It felt good to see everyone playing at the top of their game. Tanoh Kpassagnon had quite the debut, disrupting the game all day. Zack Baun looked great in the coverage of tight ends, a big weakness of the team last season. Marcus Williams covers 98% of the field. Marshon Lattimore, need I say more? Cameron Jordan looked like the Cam Jordan of old, instead of old Cameron Jordan. Paulson Adebo didn’t look like a rookie. Everything about it was just great. It took perfect plays to do anything against this defense. Future Hall of Fame QB Aaron Rodgers got benched in the fourth quarter, and didn’t convert a third down all day. Oh, and this is without multiple contributors playing.

The Bad

Injuries

The only thing that was bad that came out of the day was injuries. Marshon Lattimore had to put a cast on in the second half and is now out, on a week-to-week basis. Paulson Adebo and Bradley Roby will be the starting corners for Week 2. Erik McCoy is expected to be out around six weeks with a calf injury. I would imagine this means Ruiz starting at center, with Throckmorton starting at right guard. The Saints signed former Chief center Austin Reiter for an assumed depth role to fill a void left by McCoy. Marcus Davenport had a great game after an encouraging camp, but suffered a pectoral injury. The good news is that it was not nearly as bad as it could’ve been and he’ll be back sooner rather than later.

The Ugly

National Media Coverage of the Game

It was frustrating to listen to 9 of 10 talking heads only seem to mention how poorly the Packers played and not give the Saints credit where it was due for what they did right. That’s why Saints fans are lucky that we have the best local media in the sports world! I want to close this article out with some great people who you SHOULD go to after the Saints play for fantastic coverage:

Of course, us. Duh.

Nick Underhill, NewOrleans.Football

Amie Just, NOLANews

Ryan and Adam, #SaintsTwitter Podcast

Chris Rosvoglou, Boot Krewe Media

Deuce Windham

Kat Terrell, The Athletic

TJAY Jones, State of the Saints

What was your favorite part of the game? Let us know in the comments below. Make sure you follow Canal Street Chronicles on Twitter at @SaintsCSC, “Like” us on Facebook at Canal Street Chronicles, and make sure you’re subscribed to our new YouTube channel. As always, you can follow me on Twitter @DillySanders.