The Saints Woes Continue

            On Sunday, the Saints lost 41-10 to the Carolina Panthers. The Saints turned the ball over twice in the first quarter, leading to 10 Carolina points. The game also further highlighted the epic struggles of the Saints defense this season. They allowed 271 rushing yards. Carolina rushers ran the ball for forty times for an average of 6.8 yards per rush. Injured Panthers quarterback Cam Newton went 21-33 for 226 yards with 3 touchdown passes. He also contributed 83 yards on the ground in 12 carries and a rushing TD. The game was an embarrassing performance for a team that entered the season with Super Bowl aspirations.

The Aints are Back 

             We’ve previously chronicled the Saints offseason plan and their struggles earlier this season. As the season has progressed, the Saints defensive woes have increased. Indeed this season, they seem to have found different ways to lose. They lost close games to Atlanta, Detroit, San Francisco, and Cleveland with a combined point differential of -9. They’ve lost blow-outs to the Cowboys, Bengals and now Carolina with a combined point differential of -69. And they’ve also had some competitive wins over the Packers and Steelers. The continuing poor play of the defense has placed added stress on the offense. It seems every game the Saints need at least 30 points to have a chance of winning. As we’ve discussed earlier this year, the lack of a consistent deep threat has hindered the offense. Without the potential for big plays, the Saints lack the ability to rack up leads, create extra possessions, and put pressure on opponents.

Sean Payton yelling at defensive coordinator Rob Ryan, an all too familiar sight. 

              Apart from a few years of scattered success, the Saints have largely struggled on defense in the Sean Payton era. The coordinators under Payton and general manager Mickey Loomis have shared similar defensive philosophies—favoring blitz heavy schemes, designed to pressure opposing quarterbacks into committing turnovers. This defensive philosophy pairs well with the aggressive and pass heavy offenses favored by Payton and executed by quarterback Drew Brees.  The chart below highlights the Saints struggles on defense. (DVOA is explained here. In terms of defense, negative DVOAs are best.)

Year	Coordinator	DVOA (rank)	Pass DVOA (rank)	Run DVOA (rank)
2006	Gary Gibbs	4.2% (22)	6.1% (20)	2.0% (21)
2007	Gary Gibbs	12.1% (30)	27.9% (32)	-8.6% (11)
2008	Gary Gibbs	7.8% (26)	15.1% (23)	-0.4% (22)
2009	Gregg Williams	-0.4% (17)	-4.8% (9)	4.8% (29)
2010	Gregg Williams	-4.3% (10)	0.7% (10)	-9.5% (10)
2011	Gregg Williams	10.2% (28)	16.7% (26)	-0.2% (21)
2012	Steve Spagnuolo	14.8% (32)	20.8% (28)	7.1% (30)
2013	Rob Ryan	-5.8% (10)	-9.2% (6)	-1.5% (20)
2014	Rob Ryan	12.9% (31)	21.1% (27)	3.1% (29)

Since his hire in 2006, Payton has cycled through four defensive coordinators. His first, Garry Gibbs had coached the linebackers for the Dallas Cowboys while Payton worked as the offensive coordinator.  Gibbs had previously served as defensive coordinator at the University of Oklahoma under famed coach Barry Switzer. The job with the Saints represented his first time coordinating an NFL defense. After 2008, Payton shifted gears, hiring Gregg “If you cut off the head, the snake will die” Williams. Williams had extensive experience as a defensive coordinator and head coach. Throughout his career, he was known as an aggressive defensive coach, relying heavily on blitzes to generate pressure. Famed defensive coach Buddy Ryan (and father of current DC Rob Ryan) was one of his mentors. After the Bounty Gate scandal, Payton hired former Rams head coach and Giants defensive coordinator, Steve Spagnuolo. Like his predecessor, Spagnuolo was best known for his aggressive and blitz heavy packages. He earned his head coaching gig in St. Louis by designing a scheme that helped the Giants pressure Tom Brady and beat the undefeated Patriots in Super Bowl XLII. Payton fired Spagnuolo after one disastrous season at helm and replaced him with another veteran coordinator, Rob Ryan. Ryan, the son of one time Gregg Williams mentor Buddy Ryan, also favors a blitz heavy defense. Buoyed by a strong pass defense in 2013, the Saints posted their best DVOA of the Payton era. This year, the defense has again fallen apart. 

In examining the Panthers-Saints game, announcers and reporters will focus on particular plays and players to highlight the struggles of the Saints defense. Players come and go. In light of the Saints persistent defensive shortcomings, it’s time to take a closer look at Payton and Loomis, the men responsible for hiring the defensive coaches and drafting the defensive players. We’ll look at these issues more in depth in future posts.