Dennis Allen likened Christmas Eve to the leadup to season openers, saying it felt like the anticipation of unwrapping a gift.
The official unwrapping will take place noon Sunday in the Caesars Superdome, when the New Orleans Saints host Carolina in the regular-season opener. Here are a few ways in which the Saints can offer a nice present to their fans:
1. EARLY STOPS
While all the hoopla has surrounded the implementation of a new offense, it's the Saints’ defense that needs to get off to a fast start. Because while the offense possibly will need time to find its footing, the defense retains its anchor producers (plus the addition of defensive end Chase Young) and has been the bell-cow unit for the past five seasons. So, pushing the Panthers into third-and-long and getting off the field will be critical; the more that happens, the more opportunities for the offense. Carolina has a new offensive system but there's familiarity with the concepts – Coach Dave Canales was offensive coordinator for Tampa Bay last season. The larger issue is whether New Orleans can unsettle second-year quarterback Bryce Young, who had a rocky rookie season. A revamped offensive line is supposed to help keep Young upright, and he has enough mobility to be problematic, so Young and fellow defensive ends Carl Granderson and Cameron Jordan have to be mindful of lane integrity when they pass rush.
2. HOLD THE LINE:
Yes, it has been refreshing to see the new offense operate in practice and, yes, it appears poised to be more productive. But it literally means nothing if the offensive line isn't up to the task, and we'll find out quickly if that's the case. New starters at left tackle (rookie Taliese Fuaga), left guard (Lucas Patrick) and right tackle (Trevor Penning) is a substantial amount of change, so the question is how much the individuals have gelled into a unit. After two seasons that have been littered with injury and ineffectiveness, New Orleans needs Penning consistently to play at an NFL-starter level and the overall growing pains have to be minimized.
3. START HOW YOU FINISHED:
Quarterback Derek Carr often has referred to hopefully starting this season the way the Saints finished last year – the team won four of its last five and Carr threw 14 touchdowns and just two interceptions, while completing 74 percent of his passes. Coordinator Klint Kubiak was hired to install an offense that not only would bring out the best in Carr, but also jump-start a running game that was stagnant last season. But let's be real; in a quarterback-driven league, the quarterback takes center stage, and Carr needs to take center stage and own it. The system will help – more motion, more quarterback-on-the-move throws, more decisiveness. But it always comes down to the player, more so than the plays.
4. IS HELP ON THE WAY?
That said, the running game DOES need to be more productive and that's where Alvin Kamara comes in. Kamara is healthy after a tight back in training camp forced him to miss much of that work, and this offense is designed to get him back to being closer to the 80-catch, 5-yards-per-carry, 15-touchdowns-per-season force that he was in his first four years than the 60-catch, 3.9-yards-per-carry, six-touchdowns-per-season player he was the last three. Kamara believes he still has it, his teammates believe he still has it and based on defensive attention, opponents still believe he still has it. Kubiak has to unlock it.
5. GIVE 'EM SOMETHIN TO TALK ABOUT:
It's the season opener in the Superdome, and getting the crowd involved early wouldn't hurt. The Superdome hasn't consistently been as raucous as it can be; that's what three straight non-playoff seasons and an 12-13 home record during that time can do (including the season-opening "home" win in 2021, when New Orleans played in Jacksonville). Getting back to that level requires better play by the team, and better play by the team will get the home crowd involved early Sunday.
