There are a lot of potential takeaways from a preseason game, and the final score is rarely one of them.
In this case, though, the final score was a product of the most important stat: plus-1 in the turnover margin. The Cajun Cannon Bobby Hebert explained why that's what has him "ecstatic" in his post-game rant on WWL.
“I can tell you right now that if we keep on that plus side of the turnover margin, we’re going to the damn playoffs," Hebert said. "If all of a sudden that starts getting minus this, minus that and ‘oh, you can maybe we’ll still win.’ No, the odds aren’t with you and you aren’t going to have success.”
The importance of forcing turnovers on defense and avoiding them on offense is a constant refrain from Hebert, and for good reason. There's no need to go into the miserable stats in that department from the 2022 season, but suffice to say they were among the worst in the league.
A handful more turnovers forced or avoided last season, and it likely ends in the playoffs. In this case it was a Kyle Phillips interception in the final minute when the Chiefs had the option to run the clock nearly all the way down that set up Blake Grupe's game-winning kick as time expired. Ugo Amadi came down with an interception on a tipped ball by Alontae Taylor earlier in the game. The Saints' lone giveaway came on an ill-advised backshoulder throw from Jake Haener in the third quarter.
The final score was 26-24 Saints. The result doesn't matter, but the process does.
Related
Beyond that, it's the performance of the first-team units that has Hebert the most excited. The Saints got out to a 17-0 lead in the first quarter before the offense bogged down and some mistakes allowed the Chiefs reserve to score 24 straight points. If the roles were reversed, Hebert says he'd have a much different view of where things stood. New QB Derek Carr and his offensive play-makers looked to be in mid-season form on a 12-play, 80-yard drive that ended in a touchdown to Keith Kirkwood.
“The Saints come away with a win at the end, but I didn’t even care about that," Hebert said. "I just know what we did at the beginning.”
Related
