At the end of the first half on Monday Night, Derek Carr had only completed 50% of his passes for 102 yards and had thrown another ugly interception. Yet as he looked up at the scoreboard, it read Saints 6, Panthers 3.
His performance wasn't up to par. Carr would the first to admit that. His defense picked him up and put the Saints in a position to win anyway. So, in a way, the plan worked perfectly.
"Any team that I talked [in free agency] was a team with a defense. ... I played these guys. I knew DA. I know what it’s like and how difficult it is," Carr said after the 20-17 result. "All I want to do is win, and so I was like, shoot, if I can go there and have a day like today. Didn’t play my best in the first half, come back, play good in the second half and win a game. Like, I didn’t have to be perfect for four quarters and we won. That is awesome."
For the second week in a row, Carr sorted out his issues in the second half and led multiple long scoring drives. This time he didn't get in the end zone, due in part to a foot on the line by Chris Olave, but Tony Jones Jr. pounded in a pair of touchdowns for what ultimately resulted in a non-stressful victory.
The Saints defense nearly went two full games without allowing a touchdown, but the Panthers were able to drive down field in garbage time for a score. They failed to recover the onside kick, game over. For the second consecutive week it was the offense that had the dagger late in the game, which also included another 40-yard bomb to Rashid Shaheed in a key moment.
A similar play allowed the Saints to salt away the clock of a 16-15 victory against the Titans without ever giving the ball back.
"It’s awesome, isn’t it," Dennis Allen said after Week 2. "It’s just awesome how we were able to do that two weeks in a row. Obviously, I don’t feel like we should let it get to that point. .. And look, I thought our offense, they kicked a field goal there in the third or fourth quarter and the offense responds right back and goes down with a score of their own. So that’s kind of the way this team is built and there’s some ebb and flow to the game. When the defense needs to be picked up, the offense has been there to take over and certainly the defense has done its part to help the offense.”
In the end, Carr knows he has to be more effective earlier in games. One common thread of both first halves has been protection issues making life difficult, but he also hasn't handled it well. Carr admits he was playing too fast in the first half of Monday Night Football, which is what gave him confidence to tell his coaches "I've got you. Trust me, I'm going to be much better in the second half. We're going to win this game."
The bad interceptions of the first two games didn't follow into the second. This time he completed 8 of 13 passes the rest of the way for an efficient 126 yards. All while the Saints defense flummoxed Bryce Young to a line of 22-33 for 153 yards and a TD, a large chunk of which was picked up on the final possession.
As the head coach puts it, ebb and flow. The defense picks up the offense, and the offense returns the favor. It was that first part that was part of the equation so rarely as a member of the Raiders. There are things to fix, but at 2-0, that process feels a lot better.
"We’re building trust. We’re building a lot of things as a team. The trust has always been there with this defense," Carr said. "That’s a given. They’re unbelievable."
