Things looked bleak for the offensive line when 12-year veteran Zach Strief suffered a knee injury in week one. However, the line was able to flourish through multiple adjustments this season as Strief's week one injury wasn't the only setback the unit had to overcome (Strief and starting right guard Andrus Peat finished the season on Injured Reserve and right guard Larry Warford and left tackle Terron Armstead missed playing time due to injuries). The men in the trenches led the way to the New Orleans Saints offense ranking top five in 11 statistical categories (excluding kickoff, punts, field goals), including:
No. 1 total yards per game
No. 1 yards per play
No. 1 rushing yards per attempt
No. 1 passing net yards per play
No. 1 sacks per pass play
No. 1 fourth down efficiency
No. 2 passing net yards per game
No. 2 passing, percent intercepted
No. 3 points per game
No. 4 rushing yards per game
No. 4 first downs per game
In the regular season, the Saints had 2,070 yards rushing, and 4,334 passing yards, ranking No. 2 in total offense. Terron Armstead, Ryan Ramczyk, Max Unger, Larry Warford, Andrus Peat, Senio Kelemete, Josh LeRibeus and offensive line coach Dan Roushar all played an instrumental part in the success of the Saints offense.
BEST QUOTE: "I've never seen this, just so many injuries to an O-line and yet, still, we're able to still gel together and put a good running attack and be able to protect (quarterback) Drew (Brees) the way we do. It's pretty amazing. That shows the type of guys we have in our room and the flexibility we have in the room." Senio Kelemete
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See the best moments from Saints offensive line throughout the 2017 season.
