The 2020 regular season begins for the New Orleans Saints as they take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. In 2019, New Orleans went 13-3 winning to capture their 3rd consecutive division title and once again are among the league’s favorites to contend for a Super Bowl title.
The Saints will seek to turn around an opening week in which they have fallen short more often than not in previous years. Sean Payton and company are 2-5 in week one matchups over the past seven seasons. In a division that could be a three-horse race, this divisional game opener is even more important as an early division win could pay dividends at the end of the season.
In every game, there are things a team must do to accomplish their ultimate goal of attaining victory. Lets examine a few aspects of the Saints game that if done well could secure their first victory of the 2020 NFL season.
1) Special Teams
Typically, the focus of special teams coaches is to use preseason games to evaluate where a guy works best. In the COVID-19 version of the NFL where no preseason games were played, reps for players are limited. Why are these reps so important? Because not every guy has played special teams before.
With no live game reps, teams will struggle to find the right combination of players. It will be imperative for the Saints to pay attention to detail as quality tackling will be at a premium. Any lapse in technique and attention to detail in this area could result in significant negative effects.
2) Stopping The Run
In 2019, the black and gold were solid in stopping the opposing team’s ground attack. Last season, the Saints defense ranked third in the NFL only allowing 93.9 rushing yards per Game. The Buccaneers’ backfield with Ronald Jones, Leonard Fournette, and LeSean McCoy can put pressure on the defense especially when undisciplined.
Tackling will need to be at its best. In 2019, the Saints defense allowed an average of 4.1 yards per rushing attempt. No matter who is in the backfield for the Buccaneers, defensive coordinator Dennis Allen’s unit will need to be sound in their gap responsibilities.