Defense carries Saints to 12-9 win on Monday night at Carolina

  • December 17, 2018
  • By Ken Trahan
  • Category: Saints
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You know division games are tough. We know this. We hear it all the time. It is not an overstatement.

Given the motivation Carolina had going into the game, you knew the Saints would get their best shot. Cam Newton does not like brooms or wine. Carolina players do not like dances by opposing teams. There was a ton of animosity on the field.

Could anyone have envisioned a 12-9 game?

Before this game, the Saints were 0-35 when scoring under 13 points since Oct. 25, 1998 when they defeated Tampa Bay 9-3 in a yawner at New Orleans.

This was not a yawner. It was excruciatingly difficult to watch if you have watched the Saints offense most of the season.

First, there is the clear upside.

The Saints found a way to win despite missing three offensive linemen in the second half. They found a way to win despite Drew Brees having another off night, throwing an interception and giving the Panthers two points on a very poor decision on a two-point conversion attempt.

The defense continues to be masterful under Dennis Allen.

In their last six games, the Saints have now given up a total of 74 points. They sacked Cam Newton four times and forced two turnovers. They were fast, smart and hit hard.

The kicking game, with Wil Lutz and Thomas Morstead, continues to be elite. Throw in the return ability of Alvin Kamara and you have a great group of special teams.

Great teams find ways to win.

The Saints have always won largely because of Brees, who has still had a sensational season. He simply has not been very good over the last three weeks.

Perhaps that will change when the Saints get home next week. Opponents have adjusted to the Saints and are playing them much tougher and Saints receivers are simply not making plays, outside of Michael Thomas.

By the way, Luke Kuechly is still a great player.

The Saints have not scored a touchdown in the first half since Austin Carr scored on Thanksgiving night in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome against Atlanta. Carr was not active on this night.

Despite two bad turnovers and another bad play to give the opponent two points, the Saints won. That is what matters.

Here are my Quick Takes from the 12-9 win at Charlotte:

**Will Clapp of Brother Martin and LSU was active for the first time in his young NFL career.

**Carolina had won 13 of its last 14 home games in December.

**For the third straight game, the Saints won the toss and deferred.

**Cam Newton was 5-1 on Monday Night Football.

**Carolina picked up a couple of first downs before Demario Davis blitzed and sacked Cam Newton and the Saints a stop on the first possession on the road for the first time in five games, since the Ravens game on Oct. 21.

**The Saints opened with Alvin Kamara, Mark Ingram and Zach Line on the field together and Ingram opened the game with a five-yard run.

**Drew Brees hit Keith Kirkwood on a 21-yard completion to the 40-yard line but the drive stalled when Kirkwood was called for an obvious offensive pass interference penalty, negating a completed pass to Michael Thomas.

**Carolina then drove 90 yards in seven plays, taking 3:24 off the clock. After reaching midfield and facing a fourth-and-two, Ron Rivera opted to go for it and the Panthers tricked the Saints with a halfback pass which worked perfectly.

**Newton handed off to Christian McCaffrey, who passed to Chris Manhertz for an easy 50-yard touchdown to make it 7-0. Manhertz was released at the line-of-scrimmage. Safeties Kurt Coleman and Marcus Williams were there but let Manhertz go.

**It was the first completion for a touchdown by a Panthers running back in team history.

**Kamara returned the ensuing kickoff 50 yards to the New Orleans 49-yard line. Ingram then raced 23 yards for a first-down but the passing game failed and Wil Lutz came on to boot a 46-yard field goal, his 24th straight make, and the Saints cut the deficit to 7-3 with 2:16 to play in the opening quarter.

**Clapp got his first snap in the second quarter as an extra tight end.

**Tre’Quan Smith got his first catch in three games early in the second quarter. He later had a drop and drew the ire of Sean Payton.

**The Saints drove 69 yards in 12 plays but the drive stalled at the Carolina 6-yard line and Lutz made it 25 straight with a 24-yard field goal to cut the Carolina lead to 7-6 with 9:56 to play in the half.

**The New Orleans defense continued to excel and get stops and got Brees the ball at the 42-yard line with 1:46 left in the half but it did not help.

**James Bradberry intercepted Brees on a pass intended for Dan Arnold which hit the helmet of Thomas Davis and Bradberry returned it to the New Orleans 42-yard line.

**With a chance to expand the lead, the Panthers drove to the New Orleans 13-yard line with 18 seconds left in the half.

**Then, Newton tried to hit Devin Funchess but he did not get it up high enough. Eli Apple made a great play to intercept the ball in the end zone and kept the game at 7-6 Carolina by halftime.

**Max Unger went down injured early in the third quarter, replaced by Cameron Tom. Unger was checked for a possible concussion.

**Brees hit Thomas for a big play and first down but it was negated as there were offsetting penalties on Thomas and the defender.

**Then, Brees made a perfect throw to Ben Watson who caught it, took a step and hand it knocked out. He recovered but the pass was ruled incomplete. Sean Payton challenged the call and lost. It is a ball that has to be caught. Perhaps it was but Watson did not hold on and the Saints had to punt.

**Then, another good completion from Brees to Thomas was negated by an illegal formation.

**Then the Saints got a huge break when David Mayo roughed Thomas Morstead on a punt, resulting in a 15-yard penalty and a first down at the New Orleans 46-yard line.

**It did not matter. Two screen passes lost eight yards and the Saints punted again, anyway, with Morstead back in the game to do so.

**Then, DJ Moore broke loose for a 35-yard-run but Vonn Bell punched the ball out from behind and A.J. Klein recovered for the Saints.

**Thomas caught his 105th pass late in the third quarter, breaking his own team record.

**The Saints finally put together a drive, aided by a pass interference call, going 84 yards in 11 plays with Kamara scoring on a 16-yard run to make it 12-7 with 12:12 to play in the game.

**Payton correctly opted to go for two but everyone was covered. Brees made a terrible decision and throw that former Riverdale and LSU star Donte Jackson intercepted and returned for two points to make it 12-9. It was a four-point swing.

**Jermon Bushrod then went down and Andrus Peat had to move outside to tackle to replace him with Clapp moving to left guard. Clapp distinguished himself well.

**New Orleans got the ball back with 8:51 to play at its own 35-yard line and put a long drive together.

**On fourth and a half-yard from the Carolina 14, Payton smartly went for it with just a 3-point lead. Kamara took a pitch left and went three yards for a first down to the 11, putting the clock at the two-minute warning.

**The Saints got to the five-yard line on third-and-four and the Saints decided to run Tommylee Lewis. It was a bad idea. He was hit and fumbled the ball through the end zone for a touchback, giving the Panthers a chance to tie or win the game.

**It is certainly worth questioning why Lewis? He made a play you simply cannot make in that situation. It is logical to ask why not Ingram, Kamara, Thomas or even Taysom Hill there.

**That left the Panthers with a chance but the Saints defense, after giving up a first down, shut down Newton and his offense and earned the victory.

You know the story now.

The Saints are at home against a rejuvenated Pittsburgh team Sunday, a Steelers squad coming off of a huge win over New England. Pittsburgh as usual is fighting for a division championship. They are very talented on offense and will be very motivated.

The Saints will be motivated to finally be at home for the first time in nearly a month and motivated to know that a win clinches home field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs.

Now, the focus must be on fixing an offense that has lost its way. Regardless of style points, the Saints won again and finished the season 7-1 on the road. That is what champions do.

Will Ted Ginn, Jr. return? In retrospect, the Saints really miss his speed and ability to garner respect from opposing safeties with his vertical threat. The Saints really need him with a receiving corps that is clearly struggling.

The Saints have two chances to get the job done. Clearly, you would love to do so Sunday. That would enable the Saints to rest players the final week of the season against Carolina and hopefully get injured players back. There has to be concern with the offensive line with its injuries, to go along with the concern about receivers.

Isn’t it strange that the biggest concerns about the Saints are on offense? Who would have thought that a few weeks ago?

The Saints are 12-2. That is awfully special. It has a chance to get even more special soon.

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Ken Trahan

CEO/Owner

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Born and raised in the New Orleans area, CCSE CEO Ken Trahan has been a sports media fixture in the community for nearly four decades. Ken started NewOrleans.com/Sports with Bill Hammack and Don Jones in 2008. In 2011, the site became SportsNOLA.com. On August 1, 2017, Ken helped launch CrescentCitySports.com. Having accumulated national awards/recognition (National Sports Media Association, National Football…

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