NFL Report Card: Mid-Season Grades For The New Orleans Saints

Saints mid-season grades are predictable for a squad sitting at the bottom of the NFL standings.

New Orleans Saints quarterback Derek Carr (4) calls a play at the line against the Philadelphia Eagles / Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

A season that began with so much promise for the New Orleans Saints quickly plummeted into disaster. After a resounding 2-0 start, the Saints have lost their last seven outings. That ties their second longest losing streak in a single season over their 58-year history.

There is plenty of blame to be passed around. At the top of the list was Dennis Allen, who became just the fourth coach to be fired by the Saints during the season in 58 years. Injuries, ineffective depth, aging players, and undisciplined play have also been major contributors to New Orleans misery.

With a 17-game regular season now, there is no true ''halfway'' point as far as games are concerned. The Saints have nine games completed and eight to go plus a bye week, so this qualifies as a mid-season marker.

My Saints Mid-Season Grades

OFFENSE = D

New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara (41) runs the ball against the Kansas City Chiefs / Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

Pro Football Focus Ranking (PFF): 21st

Total = 17th
Pass = 18th
Rush = 13th

To be fair, this unit would qualify for an 'incomplete' grade just as easily as a D. Injuries have absolutely depleted this unit since the season's third week.

These are the significant players who have missed three games or more on the offensive side.

• Derek Carr (3 games missed)
• Taysom Hill (4 games)
• Chris Olave (3 games)*
• Rashid Shaheed (3 games)*
• Bub Means (3 games)*
• Erik McCoy (6 games)*
• Cesar Ruiz (4 games)
• Lucas Patrick (3 games)
• Nick Saldiveri (3 games)
• Shane Lemieux (8 games)
• Jamaal Williams (2 games)*
• Kendre Miller (8 games)*

* = has been ruled out for Week 10

Shaheed is out for the rest of the year, Means is still on injured reserve, McCoy remains out of action after groin surgery, and Miller is serving his second stint on injured reserve. Olave may also be added on injured reserve or miss extended time after a series of concussions.

New Orleans was forced to play practice squad players or emergency signings off the street for a stretch at all three interior offensive line spots. Coupled with the fact that the receiver and running back spots were depleted, neither Carr or rookie QB Spencer Rattler had much of a realistic chance of much success for a chunk of the season.

Nevertheless, only RB Alvin Kamara, Olave, and Shaheed can be considered consistently successful this year. Kamara, in particular, has been an absolute warrior and effective despite extra focus from opposing defenses. Without him, there would have been no offense at all in several games.

There is upside for improvement down the stretch, as long as Kamara remains healthy. Carr and Hill are both back, with McCoy likely to return shortly. There's a major problem at wideout without Shaheed and Olave, but health and continued improvement of young tackles Taliese Fuaga and Trevor Penning could at least mean a physical ball control attack offensively.

DEFENSE = F

New Orleans Saints cornerback Alontae Taylor (1) reacts after sacking Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young / Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

PFF Ranking: 30th

Total = 28th
Pass = 27th
Rush = 25th

Unlike on offense, the New Orleans defense was relatively healthy up until the last couple weeks. The abysmal performance of a defense thought to be among the league's best is one of the major things that cost Allen, a defensive specialist, his job.

Late fourth quarter breakdowns by this unit directly cost wins against the Eagles, Falcons, and Panthers. There was a six-game stretch where the defense was giving up an average of 429 total yards per game, 180 on the ground, and 6.1 per rushing attempt.

Philadelphia rolled up 460 yards without top receiver A.J. Brown. Kansas City also had 460 of total yardage, their first 400+ game in 16 outings. They did it with an incredible 251 yards after the catch and without their top two wideouts, top two running backs, and a gaping hole at left tackle.

Tampa Bay put up an embarrassing 51 points in the Superdome with franchise records of 594 total yards and 277 on the ground. Denver pounded out 225 rushing yards, their first 200+ rushing output in 24 games and just the third in 90 contests.

The Saints gave up 130 yards to JuJu Smith-Schuster. Tampa Bay RB Sean Tucker had 53 career yards in 16 games prior to facing the Saints this season. Against New Orleans, Tucker had 192 total yards and 136 on the ground. Since facing New Orleans, Tucker has a total of 70 yards in his last three games. For those reasons alone, the Saints deserve the lowest grade available to give on the defensive side.

It may only get worse. After being mostly healthy for the first six or seven games, New Orleans defenders are dropping rapidly in the last two or three weeks. This is especially true in the secondary, where CB Paulson Adebo is out for the rest of the year and rookie Kool-Aid McKinstry is currently sidelined. Making matters worse, Marshon Lattimore, the unit's only consistent standout other than Alontae Taylor, was dealt away at the trade deadline.

SPECIAL TEAMS = C

New Orleans Saints place kicker Blake Grupe (19) kicks a field goal against the Denver Broncos / Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images

PFF Ranking: 30th

Not sure I understand the logic Pro Football Focus used here. New Orleans punt coverage units have been well above the league average, allowing only 7.7 per punt return. Kickoff coverage has been almost as good.

Rashid Shaheed took one punt back for a 54-yard touchdown and averaged nearly 12 yards on his other punt returns while also nearly breaking a few kickoff returns. The other kickoff returners the Saints have used have been unspectacular but adequate.

Blake Grupe has missed two extra points. Grupe is also 16 of 17 on field goals, including a perfect 3 for 3 from beyond 50 yards. He's also been extremely accurate with his kickoff placement, allowing the coverage teams to force opponents into a worse starting field position than the league average.

Punting has dragged down the overall grade of this unit. Matthew Hayball has a net average of 40.2 yards, but has been wildly inconsistent and has rarely flipped the field for the team's struggling defense. Hayball has also successfully executed a fake punt, indicative of Rizzi's aggressive nature.

The absence of Shaheed is as big a blow to special teams as on offense. Someone will have to step up in that capacity for this unit to maintain at least an average grade over the final stretch of this season.