Game Overview ::
By >> Mike johnson
- New Orleans benched QB Spencer Rattler in their ugly home loss to the Bucs and will be turning to rookie QB Tyler Shough going forward.
- The Saints have operated at the fourth lowest pass rate relative to expectation this season, but have continued to play at a brisk pace under head coach Kellen Moore.
- The Rams enter this game tied for the lead in the NFC North and fresh off a bye week.
- Los Angeles expects to get all-pro WR Puka Nacua back from the ankle injury that kept him out of their Week 7 game in London.
- The two touchdown spread on this game is the largest on the Week 9 slate, and may not be enough.
- These two offenses lead the NFL in raw tempo, ranking first and second in seconds per play.
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How new orleans Will Try To Win ::
The Saints have mercifully put an end to the Spencer Rattler experience, although Rattler had actually played well for his abilities and circumstances during the first six weeks of the season. Unfortunately, the last two weeks against the Bears and Bucs he was exposed and started turning the ball over at a very high rate. This week against a talented and well coached Rams defense he would have been in a rough spot once again. The Rams defense ranks second in the NFL in DVOA, which breaks down as second against the pass and eighth against the run. New Orleans has not had much of a running game all season and their passing game is in questionable hands, so moving the ball may be a bit of a chore.
The Saints are nearing the end of the Alvin Kamara era and he is essentially a passing down specialist at this point and not someone they can or should be relying on to grind out runs. Rookie Devin Neal saw the most playing time he has all season in Week 8 and will likely be involved somewhat here as well. The Saints are unlikely to have much success running the ball, however, and the Rams pass rush sacked Trevor Lawrence 7 times the last time we saw them play. This will put an emphasis on short area passing and quick reads to get the ball out of Tyler Shough’s hands quickly. It is unclear how effective that approach will be, but at least schematically it makes sense against a Rams defense that ranks bottom-5 in the league in blitz rate and top-5 in zone coverage rate. The Rams will trust their defensive front to get pressure against the Saints offensive line, so they will play their customary zone coverages and not feel a need to send extra rushers often. This means deep passing will be unlikely to have much success and the Rams are going to bank on New Orleans not being able to run the ball and just giving up short area looks and trusting themselves to make plays after the catch.
New Orleans is not ripe with playmakers with the ball in their hands, while the Rams have missed the fewest tackles in the NFL through eight weeks. This means that the Rams should be able to execute this game plan and the Saints are likely looking at a lot of 3rd and 6 to 12 yards type plays where Shough will probably struggle. The Saints likely won’t have much choice but to throw at a high rate as game script will dictate it and they already play at a fast tempo, but no-huddle and other parlor tricks might be the type of cheat codes they need to sustain drives in this matchup.
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