Packers QB Jordan Love Will Face Huge Challenge Against Powerful Saints Defense

Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love leads the NFL in passer rating, but the New Orleans Saints' defense is enjoying a historic stretch of games.

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Jordan Love will face the biggest test of his young career when the Green Bay Packers host the New Orleans Saints on Sunday. In fact, it might be the biggest test he’ll face all season.

In replacing Aaron Rodgers, Love is off to a promising start. His six touchdowns in two games are the fourth-best start to a season in team history. Lynn Dickey had eight in the first two games in 1983, and Brett Favre (1996) and Aaron Rodgers (2013) opened seasons with seven touchdowns. Rodgers had six touchdowns through four games when he replaced Favre in 2008.

Paired with his zero interceptions, Love is ranked No. 1 in the NFL in passer rating.

However, his back-to-back games of three touchdowns and zero interceptions came against the Chicago Bears and Atlanta Falcons. It will be a much, much bigger challenge against the Saints.

The Saints rank fifth with 16.0 points allowed, fourth in total defense, fourth in yards allowed per passing play and second in opponent passer rating. They make plays on the ball (third in interception percentage) and get after the passer (seventh in sack percentage). And they’ve dominated the key situations of third down (third, 23.1 percent conversions) and red zone (first, 16.7 percent touchdowns).

Yes, it’s only two games. And against the Tennessee Titans and Carolina Panthers, at that. But the Saints’ defensive success isn’t due to playing a couple lousy offenses.

New Orleans has allowed 20 or fewer points in 10 consecutive games. That is one game off the NFL’s longest streak the past 25 years. They’ve given up only one touchdown, a garbage-time score with about 1 minute to go against Carolina on Monday night.

In Green Bay, a monument might be built to honor defensive coordinator Joe Barry if the Packers had that type of success for even a handful of games. In New Orleans, good isn’t good enough.

“I think it should have been two games [without a touchdown], so I’m not satisfied,” Saints coach Dennis Allen told reporters after the game. “Defensively, I think that we’re doing some good things and I still think there’s a lot of things that we can do better.

“We’re not going to sit around and pat ourselves on the back. We’re going to go back to work to try and correct some of the things that we didn’t do as well and try to keep doing some of the things that we did well.”

Marshon Lattimore and the Saints will bring a powerhouse defense to Lambeau Field / Photo by USA Today Sports Images

On paper, the Saints’ run defense has been vulnerable. They’re 28th with 4.98 yards allowed per carry. But that’s a bit misleading. In Week 1, they limited the Titans’ stud running back, Derrick Henry, to 63 yards on 15 carries, a 4.2 average. In Week 2, they held the Panthers’ No. 1 back, Miles Sanders, to 43 yards on 13 carries, a 3.1 average. Bryce Young’s 26-yard scramble skewed the final numbers in that game.

Good run defense means the ability to tee off on the quarterback on third down. Carl Granderson has 2.5 sacks and ranks second with six quarterback hits. Cam Jordan, who ranks second among all active players with 116 career sacks, has a half-sack.

“I think any team that can rush the passer with four and commit seven to coverage and be effective getting pressure on the quarterback. that is a recipe for success in our league,” Allen said. “It always has been.”

The secondary is strong, with cornerback Marshon Lattimore, who has a league-leading five passes defensed, and safety Tyrann Mathieu setting the tone.

The Saints have a veteran lineup filled with studs on each tier. Jordan, 34, has been selected to six consecutive Pro Bowls. Linebacker Demario Davis, 34, was second-team All-Pro last year. Lattimore, 27, has been selected to four Pro Bowls in his six seasons. Mathieu, 31, is a three-time All-Pro.

With a powerhouse defense leading the charge, the Saints are 2-0 despite so-so play by new Saints quarterback Derek Carr and the absence of suspended running back Alvin Kamara.

“That is a very big part of the reason why I came here,” Carr said after the Carolina game. “Any team that I talked to was a team with a defense. I played these guys. I knew Dennis Allen. I know what it is like and how difficult it is.

“All I want to do is win. So, I was like, shoot, if I can go there and have a day like today – didn’t play my best in the first half, come back, play good in the second half and win a game? I didn’t have to be perfect for four quarters and we won. That is awesome. To have that defense to hold us, keep us in there until we got clicking in the second half, it helped us win the football game.”

More Green Bay Packers News

Here are the latest NFL power rankings. Saints with a rather large edge over the #Packers, at least according to the pundits.https://t.co/0BXUN0zrjH

— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) September 19, 2023

Packers-Saints: TV, streaming, stats and more

Where are the Packers in 10 national power rankings?

De’Vondre Campbell vs. Bijan Robinson. Why?

Good, bad and ugly … Three overreactions