SI’S 2019
PREDICTION
11 – 5
2018 RECORD 13– 3
SEP T. 9
VS. HOU
SEP T. 15
@ LAR
SEP T. 22
@ SEA
SEP T. 2 9
VS. DAL
OC T. 6
VS. TB
OC T. 1 3
@ JAX
OC T. 2 0
@ CHI
OC T. 2 7
VS. ARI
NOV. 3
BYE
NOV. 10
VS. AT L
NOV. 17
@ TB
NOV. 24
VS. CAR
NOV. 28
@ AT L
DEC. 8
VS. SF
DEC. 16
VS. IND
DEC. 22
@ TEN
DEC. 29
@ CAR
On paper, this team is better than the one that came so close to winning
the NFC championship game. It is fair to expect them to go a step further.90
× THE SAINTS’ SUPPORTING CAST LIFTS
THE OFFENSE. The arm of 40-year-old
Drew Brees continues its gradual de-
cline, but he compensates with unparal-
leled pocket mechan ics and field-reading
acumen. It helps that New Orleans has
perhaps the league’s best
O-line. Erik McCoy, a
second-round rookie from
Texas A&M, starts at center
ahead of free-agent signee
Nick Easton. Guards Andrus
Peat and Larry Warford have
the power to make the inside
ground game go. Tackles
Terron Armstead and Ryan
Ramczyk can both pass-
block on an island.
In 11-year veteran Jared
Cook, the Saints have their
first mismatch-making
tight end since Jimmy Graham. Cook’s
ability to execute iso routes on the weak
side expands the passing attack and eases
the pressure on a wide receivers corps
that, beyond ace Michael Thomas, is solid
but unspectacular.
× ALVIN KAMARA BECOMES AN MVP
CANDIDATE. The third-year star doesn’t
win the award because he plays about25% fewer snaps than foundational
backs like Christian McCaffrey,
Saquon Barkley, Le’Veon Bell and
Ezekiel Elliott, but people within
Kamara as the mostwhile his balance helps him break tackles,
including on inside runs, where he’s sur-
prisingly effective. And with soft hands,
quick feet and sharp body control, he can
run a full route tree, adding vastly to New
Orleans’s passing game, especially on the
short side of the field, where Kamara often
operates alongside Thomas.
× THE D-LINE PERFOR-
MANCE IS CRITICAL. The
Saints’ linebackers and
defensive backs, though
talented, are streaky. They
need a strong four-man rush
to camouflage this. The line,
well-coached and on the
rise, is keyed by brilliant,
tireless nine-year veteran
Cam Jordan , and coordi-
nator Dennis Allen keeps
offenses guessing with
an ever-changing array of
easy-to-execute man and
zone looks. In the previous 12 seasons
under coach Sean Payton, New Orleans
has made the playoffs only once without
a top 14 scoring D, and that was in 2009,
when it forced the second-most turnovers.
× ALEX ANZALONE BREAKS OUT. T he
third-year middle linebacker builds on his
late-season surge of ’18, injecting speed
and aggression into the nickel package.St
re
ng
thQB
4
RB
6
WR/TE
9
OL
2
FRONT 7
14
DB
10
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