For the first time in four weeks, the New Orleans Saints will hit the road this Sunday as they take on the Pittsburgh Steelers at Heinz Field.
The Saints dropped all three contests in their recent homestand, and coach Sean Paytons club is reeling as it heads into this tough Week 13 matchup.
New Orleans (4-7) is coming off a 34-27 Monday night defeat at the hands of the Baltimore Ravens. Even though the Saints are struggling, they still sit at the top of the NFC South division, along with the Atlanta Falcons. The Falcons presently hold the tiebreaker, however, courtesy of their Week 1 victory over the Saints.
Getting to 5-7 will undoubtedly be difficult for New Orleans, as the Steelers (7-4) pose some steep challenges on both sides of the ball.
As Payton and his coaching staff game-plan, theyre not likely to find many favorable matchups, but the Saints certainly aren't without options. We'll take a look at some of them here.
Defensively, the Saints havent been able to stop anyone from doing anything in recent weeks. They gave up big play after big play to the San Francisco 49ers, Cincinnati Bengalsand the Ravens, all on the Saints home turf.
The going wont be any easier this week, as Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger commandeers a balanced offense that features highly productive running back Le'Veon Bell and explosive wideout Antonio Brown.
Theres no getting around the fact that the New Orleanscornerbacks struggle on a weekly basis, and theres no reason for the Saints to count on them playing well in Pittsburgh. The team's run defense, meanwhile, has been nonexistent over the past three games.
It stands to reason that in order to take some pressure off Drew Brees and the offense, the New Orleans defense must find ways to put Roethlisberger on his back.
New Orleans pass rush hasnt been nearly as effective as it was last season, but the Saints do possess some capable athletes along the defensive front. Against Pittsburgh, they need to find ways to utilize them better.
Stunts, in particular, have been beneficial at times to the Saints front four this season.
Ends Cam Jordan and Akiem Hicks, along with outside linebacker Junior Galette, have demonstrated a knack for making big plays off stunts, such as this one against the Carolina Panthers in Week 9.Here, Galette (black arrow) lines up wide next to Hicks (yellow arrow). Panthers tight end Greg Olsen (blue) is in the backfield next to quarterback Cam Newton.
At the start of the play, both players rush ahead, and the Panthers appear to have them well-accounted for. Galette, however, suddenly plants his outside leg and executes a delayed stunt with Hicks.
Olsen has anticipated Galette to charge hard to the outside, but after the stunt, the Carolina tight end is too far outside to get a body on Hicks, whos already advanced up the field.
This leaves Hicks one-on-one with Panthers left tackle David Foucault, and the explosive 325-pounder then bull-rushes his way to the quarterback for a sack.
The Saints havent utilized stunts like this nearly enough this year. With their hopes for a successful season seemingly slipping away, Sunday would be a great time to run a few more of them.
On the offensive side of the ball, one of the keys to the game for New Orleans will be to revitalize its once-strong ground game.
After three consecutive games with at least 100 yards rushing, Mark Ingram has cooled off as of late. The Saints' featured ball-carrier hasn't reached the 100-yard mark in the past two games combined, and he was nearly swallowed whole by the Ravens' suffocating defensive front last Monday.
Thanks to a dominant run defense, Baltimores pass-rushers were able to pin their ears back and come after Drew Brees with reckless abandon.
The results werent pretty for the Saints, as Brees was dropped for four sacks and was hit eight times. He was under constant duress, and despite his 420 passing yards, he wasnt able to find the end zone enough to keep pace with the Ravens offense. He also tossed a crucial interception that was returned for a touchdown.
Steelers defensive coordinator d**k LeBeau is one of the most accomplished defensive minds in the history of the game. One of his greatest strengths is his ability to adapt his defenses to counter the strengths of opposing offenses while at the same time exploiting their weaknesses. h**l almost certainly be focused on finding ways to pressure Brees and slow down the Saints potent pass offense.
In order to keep the Steelers pass-rushers from turning Brees into chopped liver, New Orleans must be able to establish some semblance of a ground game. Otherwise, a repeat of last Monday is a realistic scenario for the Saints.
Predictability based on personnel has been one of the problems of the New Orleans running game in recent weeks. If the Saints line up in an I formation with Ingram at tailback, its almost a certainty that theyll attempt to ram him through the A- and B-gaps.
The Saints need to flip the script and hit the Steelers with something theyre not expecting.Draws from the shotgun and delayed handoffs from under center are viable options.
Now, this isnt to suggest that the Saints wholly abandon their downhill running game with Ingram. They just need to mix some other elements into their rushing attack and keep the Steelers guessing.
A more well-rounded ground game will help keep Pittsburghs pass-rushers from coming full speed ahead after Brees. With just a little more time in the pocket, h**l be better equipped to do what he does best, which is push the ball down the field and into the end zone. Better pass protection will also serve to decrease the chances of Brees tossing a critical interception.
Sundays contest in Pittsburgh will be far from a walk in the park for Sean Paytons struggling football team. But if the Saints break precedent and shake some things up, they may catch the Steelers off guard and give themselves a chance.
Source: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2282102-new-orleans-saints-vs-pittsburgh-steelers-breaking-down-new-orleans-game-plan
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