2 takeaways from the Saints loss to the Jaguars

1. Jimmy Graham and Jamaal Williams should be used in the redzone

It seems like this would be obvious, but so far neither of the New Orleans Saints’ new acquisitions have been given the opportunity to make plays in the area of the field where they excel. Jamaal Williams is coming off a season where he scored 17 touchdowns, primarily through use on the goal line. Granted he has been injured up until last week, be even when he was able to return Thursday night he was barely utilized. Jimmy Graham has also been severely underutilized near the endzone this season. No, he is not the same player he was the last time he was here, but as he showed in the preseason, he still has the ability to box guys out better than any TE on the Saints roster. Foster Moreau had a bad drop that could have potentially tied the game late. I would have rather seen Graham in that situation. Graham is taller and stronger than Moreau and I have a feeling he would have secured that catch. I understand not using him as much in the middle of the field, but the fact that Graham has only 2 targets on the whole season is crazy. The Saints have had major issues scoring in the redzone, and Williams and Graham obviously are the best candidates to fix them.

Photo by Perry Knotts/Getty Images

2. The Saints made a major mistake in special teams this offseason

Punter Lou Hedley and kicker Blake Grupe have both underperformed as of late. To add insult to injury, the players they replaced, Blake Gillikin and Wil Lutz, are both having great seasons. Gillikin is averaging a whole 6 yards more per punt than Hedley, while Lutz has made all but one of his kicks this year. To add to the issues the Saints already have on offense, they now have a kicker that cannot be counted on to consistently make field goals, and do not have a punter that can pin the opposition deep whenever the Saints offense stalls.

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