Saints alive!
The midway point in the NFL arrives this weekend, and there’s little definition in any division other than the NFC East — where the Eagles have built a 2 ½-game lead over the Redskins and Cowboys. With that, here’s a look at our NFL High Five for Week 8:
If you’re wondering why the 4-2 Saints are riding a four-game winning streak entering Sunday’s home game against the Bears, look no further than what they have been doing on defense. Yes, defense. Sure, quarterback
Drew Brees has been posting his usual prolific numbers, but where has that gotten New Orleans recently?
The Saints have finished 7-9 the last three seasons thanks to rampant inconsistency on defense. From 2014-16, they finished 27th or worse in yards allowed and points allowed. In their first two games this season, both losses, they allowed 65 combined points and yielded more than 1,000 yards of offense.
Since Week 2, the Saints rank among the top four defenses in yards allowed, points allowed and forced turnovers.
The root of the turnaround on defense can be traced directly to the rebuilt secondary — which includes first-round draft pick, cornerback Marshon Lattimore, and second-round pick, safety Marcus
Williams. Since Week 2, the Saints have held opponents to the lowest passer rating in the league (53.6), a vast improvement from the 141.4 rating they allowed in the first two games.
If they can keep it going through Sunday against the Bears, who have won two straight to move to 3-4, the Saints, who are allowing 22.2 points per game, will match their longest winning streak since they began the 2013 season 5-0.
According to ESPN, in the Saints’ first 11 seasons with Brees (2006-16), they have had five seasons in which they allowed fewer than 24 points per game and were 58-22 with a Super Bowl title in those seasons. In the other six seasons, during which they allowed at 24 or more points per game on average, they went 43-53.