Gridiron Clash: Eagles Passing Attack Faces Ferocious Saints Defense

Breaking down the showdown between the Saints pass defense and Eagles passing attack.

New Orleans Saints cornerback Marshon Lattimore (23) returns an interception against the Philadelphia Eagles / Chuck Cook-Imagn Images

One marquee matchup in Week 3 of NFL action will be when the New Orleans Saints host the Philadelphia Eagles. The Saints come in at 2-0 after outscoring the Carolina Panthers and Dallas Cowboys 91-29 in the first two weeks. Philadelphia enters at 1-1 after losing 22-21 at home to the Atlanta Falcons on Monday night.

New Orleans is getting a lot of national attention because of the performance of their offense so far. Getting slightly overlooked is their defense, which ranks seventh overall and has forced five turnovers.
The Saints will square off against an Eagles offense with plenty of weapons.

Philadelphia ranks sixth in total offense and has one of the more balanced units in the league. While their running game presents an especially stiff challenge, the Eagles have the weapons to also win games through the air.

Here is a closer look at that aspect of Sunday's matchup.

Saints Pass Defense vs. Eagles Passing Attack

New Orleans Defense

New Orleans Saints cornerback Marshon Lattimore (23) returns an interception for a touchdown against the Philadelphia Eagles / Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

The Saints rank 20th against the pass after two weeks. However, those numbers are misleading because New Orleans had big leads in both games, causing opponents to be pass-heavy and the Saints to relax a bit defensively late in the contest.

New Orleans has held opposing passers to just 56% completion percentage while intercepting them four times and allowing only one touchdown throw. They have a suffocating coverage unit that has helped the Saints to a top-10 ranking against the pass in three of the last four years.

Elite cornerback Marshon Lattimore has returned to practice on a limited basis after missing Week 2 with a hamstring injury. Lattimore is able to shadow most of the league's top receivers with very little help one-on-one. He's not only able to routinely shut them down, his ability to do so allows the defense to be more aggressive and creative with their overall scheme.

Even without Lattimore, the Saints have a top-tier group of cornerbacks. Paulson Adebo is following up the best year of his career with an interception, three passes broken up, and allowing just 45% completion percentage when targeted through two games. Rookie second-round choice Kool-Aid McKinstry has shown terrific promise in his limited reps so far.

New Orleans Saints cornerback Paulson Adebo (29) returns an interception against the Dallas Cowboys / Tim Heitman-Imagn Images

Alontae Taylor has had a spectacular start to his third season. Taylor has looked much-improved in the slot and has blossomed into a true playmaker. New Orleans safeties Tyrann Mathieu, Will Harris, and Jordan Howden are also making several plays per game. The entire unit has blanketed receivers, baited quarterbacks into mistakes, and cutting down pass catchers immediately if a catch is made.

Not to be outdone, a trio of Saints linebackers are equally capable of plays in coverage or as pass rushers. Even at 35, Demario Davis remains one of the NFL's top defensive players. Davis is disruptive as a blitzer, but also has great agility in man coverage and elite instincts in zone responsibilities.

Pete Werner is better against the run than pass, but can still be effective in short zones. Willie Gay Jr. brings outstanding athletic ability and pass cover skills over from Kansas City. Like Davis, he has the agility to stay with backs or tight ends in man coverage or close on the ball in an instant from zones.

The Saints pass rush has been a bit quiet statistically but is showing the potential to make a major difference. New Orleans has seven sacks so far, with three coming from the defensive line. That doesn't mean that the unit has not had an impact.

Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott (4) is sacked by New Orleans Saints ends Carl Granderson (96) and Chase Young (99) / Tim Heitman-Imagn Images

Carl Granderson has 1.5 of those sacks, second to only Alontae Taylor's three on the team, along with nine pressures. Young may only have half a sack, but has six pressures and several hurries despite constant double-teams.

The encouraging play of Young and Granderson has reduced the reps for veteran Cameron Jordan. However, he's still a key part of the defensive packages and will no doubt make an impact as this season progresses.

Jordan and DE Payton Turner also have the size and strength to move inside on some pass rush packages. This boosts the interior rush, which already has an emerging star in second-year DT Bryan Bresee. Underrated DT Nathan Shepherd also provides good inside push and a decent pass rush.

Philadelphia Passing Attack

Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts (1) throws on the run against Green Bay Packers / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

After two weeks, the Eagles rank 10th in passing production. Fifth-year QB Jalen Hurts has completed 67.4% of his passes for 461 yards but has thrown three interceptions against his three touchdowns. Hurts is coming off career-bests in passing yardage and touchdown passes in 2023, but also a career-high in interceptions.

While Hurts must take better care of the ball, he can hit any throw on the field. He's also a big-play threat with his legs, whether hitting a big throw on the run or escaping from pressure and gaining yards by scrambling.

Hurts may not have his best target against New Orleans. Pro Bowl WR A.J. Brown is expected to miss his second straight game with a hamstring injury. Brown, who had 106 catches and over 1,400 yards last year, is one of the league's most physical receivers and a mismatch for most defensive backs.

Without him, Devonta Smith is still a skilled big-play receiver. Smith leads the Eagles with 14 catches and 160 yards after back-to-back 1,000-yard campaigns. At 6-feet and 170-Lbs., he's a slightly built receiver that can be manhandled by physical corners like the Saints have. However, he's also a slippery route runner capable of instant separation and chunk plays.

Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver DeVonta Smith (6) catches touchdown pass against the Atlanta Falcons / Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

Philadelphia traded for WR Jahan Dotson this offseason, a 2022 first-round choice. Dotson has only one reception for six yards so far and will have to step up to give Hurts another legitimate weapon. Like Smith, Dotson is a smaller wideout that has issues against athletic press coverage but is also a bonafide big-play threat.

One big-bodied target available to Hurts will be TE Dallas Goedert. The athletic tight end has 69 yards receiving and is second on the team with seven catches. He's averaged 55 catches for 651 yards over the last five seasons and gives the Eagles a big matchup advantage at all three levels of a defense and in the red zone.

If the Saints manage to contain Philadelphia's running attack, then the Eagles will involve their backs as short area receivers. Saquon Barkley and Kenneth Gainwell have combined for only seven receptions so far. However, both are good receivers out of the backfield and are explosive in the open field.

Assuming that Brown misses this game as expected, the Eagles will need someone other than Smith and Goedert to step up either as intermediate or downfield producers.

Dotson is the most logical candidate, but WRs Britain Covey, Johnny Wilson, or TE Grant Calcaterra are other possibilities. Those four together, counting Dotson, have combined for just 10 receptions and 59 yards.

Hurts gets solid protection up front from Philadelphia's offensive line. It's a physical group of maulers for the running attack, but one that can have issues with athletic pass rushers or against the blitz.

What to Watch

New Orleans Saints linebacker Demario Davis (56) and cornerback Marshon Lattimore (23) make an open field tackle against the Philadelphia Eagles / Chuck Cook-Imagn Images

Stopping the Philadelphia ground game is the most critical to New Orleans success. If they can, it increases pressure on Hurts to try and win the game with a shorthanded receiving corps. Expect Saints corners to challenge the Eagle pass catchers at the line and be extremely physical with them.

Such a strategy will be even more effective if they can stop the run without dropping an extra safety in the box, thus allowing for deep support over the top.
Making Hurts feel uncomfortable in the pocket is crucial and will lead to forced mistakes. This doesn't necessarily mean sacking him a lot, but pressuring him into hurried throws.

To do that, the Saints must also be disciplined in their rush assignments and blitz packages. Hurts has the ability to escape the rush, so don't be surprised if Davis or Gay are assigned as spies to track down the athletic quarterback if he breaks containment.

The Saints must control the Philadelphia running game to make them at least a bit one-dimensional and prevent Hurts from making big plays when reads break down. If they are successful at that, then this is a matchup that heavily favors New Orleans in the secondary.