No. 4: Defense adds another year of experience
Last season’s success for the Saints was a shocker. Many believed they would be the same old Saints, who would score a lot of points but could never stop the opposing team on defense. Winning the NFC South or being seconds away from a NFC Championship berth wasn’t foreseen by many this time last year.
But the change that occurred in New Orleans was the turnaround of the defense. It wasn’t that the Saints still didn’t give up a lot of yards, rather, it was that they didn’t allow touchdowns. In a true sense New Orleans was a great “bend but don’t break” defense.
Although, they weren’t just bend but don’t break, New Orleans was very optimistic and forced teams to turn the ball over. The defense ranked top three in both forced fumbles and interceptions last season. Much of the success is due to young players stepping up and playing like veterans in just their rookie seasons.
Marshon Lattimore, New Orleans’ starting cornerback, won defensive rookie of the year. Starting safety Marcus Williams was first-team all rookie in his own right. With another year of experience, this very young defense should only get better even if all the defensive woes from Week 1 said otherwise.
Additionally, the Saints added to their defense in the offseason. Signing slot cornerback Patrick Robinson away from the Philadelphia Eagles, and drafting pass-rusher Marcus Davenport in the first round of this year’s NFL Draft.
