The New Orleans Saints gutted out a 35-29 win over the Detroit Lions to improve to 2-2. It wasn't an easy victory, but WWL NFL analyst Mike Detillier was impressed with the performance.
“You are what the record says you are,” Detillier said. “And you're a 2-2 football team right now. But you showed some grit yesterday. You went on the road without six starters. You had that incident over night with the possible COVID situation. You lose [right tackle Ryan] Ramczyk in the second half with the concussion. Yet you find a way to win.”
The six starters who were out included both starting cornerbacks – Marshon Lattimore and Janoris Jenkins – and two top receiving targets – wide receiver Michael Thomas and tight end Jared Cook. Left guard Andrus Peat was also out, which made Ramczyk's injury even tougher to overcome. But the Saints managed.
“Listen, this game's about winning,” Detillier continued. “Just win the game. And when you're that short [on starters], and you still win in this league? It's hard to win in the NFL. You found a way to win yesterday.”
New Orleans found itself in a hole early, down 14-0 less than five minutes into the game. The Saints rallied, however, and scored 35 unanswered points. It was then Detroit's turn to rally, scoring 11 points and cutting the Saints' lead to just 6 points. New Orleans hung on, though.
Detillier thinks the win could be the foundation for the Saints to build upon.
“This may spark this football team,” Detillier said. “We've seen this in the past. For whatever reason this team has not gotten off to good starts at times. But come October, the fuel gets set. The last 20 games in October, Sean Payton has 18-2. That's pretty strong.”
The bottom line for Detillier?
“You found another way to win. It may not be as pretty as you're used to seeing, but that's what you do from February to August. You build a football team that has reserves that, in case something happens, can step in and be productive for you.”
The Saints are now sitting at second in the NFC South, behind the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (whose only lose is to New Orleans). The Los Angeles Chargers are up next in the Saints' second Monday night contest. The Chargers are 1-3; and every game has been decided by one score, including two straight losses to NFC South teams (Carolina and Tampa Bay).
