The New Orleans Saints beat the Panthers 28-6, but the score certainly doesn't tell the story of a game that featured 110 total passing yards for Derek Carr, a majority of which came in the final 10 minutes.
In the end a win is a win, and the Saints will certainly take it to end a three-game losing streak and enter into a three-way tie atop the NFC South.
We'll start with stock down today, because it's all anyone will be talking about, though there are a good number of positives to pull out as well as the Saints kicked off their five-game sprint with the type of result they needed.
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STOCK DOWN
1. SPUTTERING CARR
This game reminded me of Week 4 in the sense that I think Derek Carr was more limited by his injuries than he was probably letting on. He says he's had three cracked ribs this season, on top of the other injuries. But if you're not willing to take a week off, that can't be the excuse. He was brutal to watch for long stretches today, and it sure felt like he could've been more aggressive downfield, even with the Panthers sitting in shell coverage.
There were a couple nice deep balls. One was right on the money to Chris Olave, but was dug out at the last moment by Jaycee Horn. The other was a deep ball to rookie A.T. Perry that the big receiver chased down and hauled in for 44 yards. Those were the only pass attempts of the day that traveled more than 12 yards downfield.
One of the more bizarre elements were two ill-advised checkdowns to Alvin Kamara that combined for -16 yards.
I don't think Carr's play this season has been as bad as many would make it out to be, but the inconsistency is impossible to ignore. It's also difficult to explain away when there's also instances like we saw today with Carr and Erik McCoy -- possibly the most even-keeled member of this roster -- having to be separated from each other after a third down sack. Both apologized and insisted there was nothing to it but some intensity and disagreements in the heat of battle, but that's a tough image to present to a crowd that's already booing you at every opportunity.
At the end of the day winning will cure a lot of what ails this club. They got one today, and they'll have another favorable matchup in Week 15. Carr would do himself and this offense a lot of good with a consistent showing in that matchup.
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2. TACKLING
This should be apparent to anyone watching, but there's a tackling issue with this New Orleans Saints defense.
Sometimes it's the QB that refuses to be brought to the ground, an issue we've seen all season with passers using their legs to turn third and long situations into first downs. It doesn't seem to matter who that might be, it happens.
Today it was largely in the form of running backs breaking tackles for big gains, or at least bigger gains then they should have been. The most egregious example was a 48-yard run by Miles Sanders, who has done basically nothing this season, where he appeared to juke the entire Saints defense before he was taken down just shy of the goal line by Paulson Adebo.
But he wasn't alone. Chuba Hubbard also rolled up 87 yards on his 23 carries and the Saints defense allowed 200-plus rushing yards for the second time in three games. I'm not even sure how you fix that issue in-season, but it's a plague, and it's going to cost the Saints eventually.
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3. BLAKE GRUPE
I mean, ugh. Every time it seems like the rookie kicker has found consistency, there's another low point.
This time it was a 29-yard attempt that was effectively duck hooked to the left. It's the second time this season he's missed from inside 30 yards, and he's the only kicker in the NFL that can say that.
The frustrating part is that in a lot of ways he's been an effective kicker. He made five consecutive kicks against the Falcons, and he's made multiple 50-plus yarders. He nailed all four PATs, which were longer than the kick he missed. Interestingly, he only needs for more made field goals to tie Wil Lutz's rookie record (28).
The ability is there. That much is clear. It's likely that something went wrong with the operation or footing on the kick, because you don't miss from 29 unless something like that goes wrong. In the end it's not dire straits, it's just the cost of doing business when you with a rookie kicker. The frustration is that you didn't have to do it.
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STOCK UP
1. S JORDAN HOWDEN
There are a lot of people who have already moved on from this season, but none of those people are in the Saints building. Either way, there's a middle ground and players like Jordan Howden can reach both sides.
Whatever your plans for the future, the young players ascending right now will be part of it, and we've seen the rookie safety get better and better as his role has become more and more pronounced as the season has gone on. With Marcus Maye landing on IR this week, Howden had his biggest impact yet, leading the team with tackles, 8 of which were solo.
Howden also registered a sack and spent all day around the ball. There will be mistakes, that's just part of the deal when you hand a significant role to a rookie, but it's impossible to not see the upside and improvement from a player who looks more and more like a draft steal every week.
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2. RED ZONE/JIMMY GRAHAM
Criticism comes hot and heavy, particularly when a team is losing. Some of it is merited, but a vast majority is incorrect or just unrealistic for one reason or another.
Occasionally it's 100% on the nose, and that was the case with the lack of usage for Jimmy Graham, whom the team effectively deemed non-essential and didn't even register a target from Weeks 6-12. He was inactive for a majority of those games with no real explanation beyond the fact that it was a numbers game, and he was on the wrong side of it.
That's all well and good, except one of the biggest issues for this team has been red zone efficiency, and the man is literally here for that purpose. Graham finally got back into the action in Week 13, and wouldn't you know it, another target, another touchdown. Back again in Week 14, he caught two passes, one of which went for a touchdown, with the other being a key grab for a first down in the red zone to set up a Chris Olave TD moments later.
After going 0-for-5 in terms of scoring touchdowns in the red zone during a Week 12 disaster and loss to the Falcons, the Saints have now scored touchdowns on 7 of their past 8 red zone trips, going a perfect 4-for-4 against the Lions, and 3-for-4 against the Panthers.
The results have brought the Saints to 50% red zone efficiency on the season. If they can stay at that mark or better, wins will come much more easily.
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3. THE 1-2 PUNCH
When the Saints signed Jamaal Williams in free agency and drafted Kendre Miller in the third round, it was easy to predict that Alvin Kamara finally had some running mates that could help shoulder the backfield burden.
Well, through 13 weeks that just hadn't been the case outside of a pair of chunk plays from the rookie, who hasn't played since suffering a sprained ankle on a 31-yard catch and run in Week 9.
Williams, one of the most likable players in the NFL, had been particularly disappointing, logging just 147 yards on 52 carries (2.8 yards per attempt). He missed multiple games due to injury and still hasn't gotten into the end zone after notching a league-leading 17 rushing touchdowns in 2022.
We saw that dynamic shift in Week 14. Kamara had 56 yards and a TD on his 12 carries (4.7 YPC), while Williams rolled up 43 yards on 11 carries (3.9 YPC).
You don't need chunk plays from Jamaal, though his 12-yard carry was the longest of the day for either back. But if you can get consistency and positive gains when he's in the game, offense will feel a lot easier.
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HONORABLE MENTIONS
Chris Olave dealt with a flu all week, and while he was never really at risk to miss the game, he told me after the game that he woke up this morning feeling terrible. He battled through, and while his line of 4 catches for 28 yards doesn't jump off the page, his touchdown in traffic in the 4th quarter effectively iced the game. The Saints only logged 110 yards passing in the game, and he was as big a part of that attack as anyone. After facing a lot of criticism earlier in the season, I think Olave has responded well and deserves credit for that. ... I have a really good time watching Lynn Bowden Jr. on the sidelines of these games. He's always sprinting around, helping people up, cooling people off, celebrating. He's in the background of every celebration photo for a reason, and he made a positive impact on the offense today. ... Paulson Adebo and Isaac Yiadom just continue to do their jobs. Yiadom did his thing with three passes defensed, but it was Adebo who made the hustle play to chase down Miles Sanders at the 1-yard line. The Saints kept the Panthers out of the end zone in what was a clear momentum shift. ... The Panthers give up sacks like it's their job, but still, it was good to see that group get going today. For the second time in as many games the Saints took Bryce Young down four times, and honestly they should've had several more. The Panthers are just that bad. ... Fun fact: The Saints' injury tent never went up in this game. That's the first time I've seen that in a while.