The big story of the week for the Saints was the return of center Erik McCoy after a seven-game absence, but it ended a bit early.
The Saints center and team leader went into the injury tent early in the third quarter and returned the game, but he was laboring due to what the team described as a groin issue. He finished the game on the sideline with Shane Lemieux taking his place.
The injury was particularly concerning due to the fact that his Week 3 groin injury that required surgery was what prompted the stint on injured reserve in the first place, but head coach Darren Rizzi said the 27-year-old underwent a battery of tests that all came back positive.
"We really wanted to be cautious with that because he had all that missed time and so it looks like, you know, I think in the long run he’s gonna be OK," Rizzi said. "I think it’s probably a good thing we have a bye week this week, but I think Erik is gonna be OK.”
McCoy's absence has been pointed to as a key issue that helped drive a 7-game losing streak earlier in the season, particularly when it came to the run game, and the Saints were tied 14-14 with the Browns when he left. But the offense hit its stride with the backup center and scored on three consecutive possession to take control of what was a 35-14 win and the second since Rizzi took over as the interim head coach.
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The game also marked a return to action for Lemieux, who had his own IR stint due to a knee injury after a first career start at center in Week 4. Connor McGovern, who started the five previous games at center, was waived earlier in the week to clear a roster spot for McCoy and was claimed off waivers by the Jets.
“Shane does a great job," said RG Cesar Ruiz after the game. "I mean, he didn’t miss a beat. He came in there, filled in, did a great job and, you know, got us where we needed to go all the time at the right time, so we were good.”
Still, the Saints will certainly hope that McCoy will be back under center when the Saints host the Rams in Week 12, a team they struggled against last year and that has won four of its past five games as they've gotten key players back from injury. That game will kick off at 3:05 p.m. in the Caesars Superdome. Catch all the action on WWL and Audacy.