New Orleans Saints 2023-24 NFL Season Recap

New Orleans Saints NFL Season Recap

We’re now two seasons into the Dennis Allen regime with no playoff tickets punched after the New Orleans Saints barely logged a .500 record thanks to crushing the Atlanta Falcons in the season finale. I don’t know about you, but that hardly has me excited about the outlook of the team moving forward. Especially considering the Saints were handed one of the easiest schedule strengths in the league on a silver platter heading into the regular season. In fact, Sharp Football Analysis rated the Saints schedule strength as the second-easiest behind only the division rival Falcons.

So D.A. coached the team up and they smashed, right? Far from it! Though wins were logged the first two weeks against Tennessee and Carolina, neither the Titans nor Panthers proved to be playoff worthy. The same can be said for seven other opponents yet N’awlens still only managed to win nine games and cover the closing odds in only six of them – talk about underachieving!

The insertion of Derek Carr into the huddle didn’t necessarily payoff the way upper management likely hoped it would. Though he bettered last year’s passing yards output in Las Vegas, he still only played to a 97.7 QB rating that was made to look much better due to catching fire late. He threw for a solid 25:8 TD/INT ratio, but each and every one of those errant passes seemed to occur at the most inopportune of times. Come the conclusion of the regular season, the Saints passing attack ranked No. 11 overall with it going for just short of 235 yards per game while averaging 1.6 touchdowns per game (No. 8). The overall effort was solid no doubt, but it was made to look much better over the final month with Carr throwing for 25+ percent of his total yardage allotment (3,878) and nearly half his overall touchdown output (25). Chris Olave took a step forward in his sophomore campaign, but it wasn’t by much with the former Buckeye going for 81 more yards and one more touchdown.

The unit took a step back defensively as well. Though it ended up ranking No. 13 overall in allowing 327+ yards per game with the secondary once again ranking amongst the top-10, the run D was a problem with it getting ripped for nearly 120 yards per game (No. 22) and 4.4 yards per carry (No. 22). Due to an inability to get after opposing quarterbacks evidenced by the league’s No. 25 ranked pressure rate and No. 29 ranked sack rate, the Saints ultimately clocked in with a middling defensive DVOA (No. 15). But due to the offense ranking No. 17 in DVOA, N’awlens still went on to cash under tickets at an 11-6 clip with 42.9 points scored on average.

When the dust cleared on another disappointing campaign in the bayou, the Saints missed out on the playoffs a third straight season rewarding NFL futures bettors that bet on them to miss with a decent +150 rate of return. On top of that, New Orleans failed to topple its season win total (9.5) a third straight time. It also failed to come through as linemakers odds-on favorite to win the NFC South for the first time since the COVID-marred season.

New Orleans Saints 2024 Offseason

It’s entirely possible the Saints 2023-24 campaign will be most remembered by Jameis Winston and the offense refusing to listen to the “victory” play called at the tail end of the game with the Falcons. Jamaal Williams’ touchdown that resulted from it created quite the stir between both head coaches come the game’s conclusion. While entertaining to some, it tells me all I need to know about the lack of respect the roster has for the current coaching staff. That my friends is a problem and it’s one upper management must rectify this offseason whether it keeps them on or calls it two years in.

With so many problem areas within the franchise from coaching to personnel, I’m at a loss attempting to figure out which area the front office attempts to fix first. The offensive line kept the quarterback room upright evidenced by ranking sixth in sack percentage allowed, but only opened holes for 3.6 yards per carry (No. 31). The defense is also getting extremely long in the tooth, so I’d be seeking out defensive help both in the draft and via free agency if I was running this show.

New Orleans Saints Schedule & Results

Founded in 1967 as an expansion team, the New Orleans Saints have a colorful history of ineptitude and glory.

In the initial years of the franchise, the Saints could not find their way. New Orleans did not post a winning record until the 1987 season. Those two decades of losing featured one of the most popular players in franchise history.

Quarterback Archie Manning remains a legend to this day. Manning was a star on some really bad teams, and Saints fans never stopped appreciating his efforts against hopeless odds.

Jim Mora was the head coach of the first serious iteration of the Saints. Mora led the franchise to its first four playoff berths. New Orleans was a serious contender for the first time in franchise history in the Mora era that ran from 1986 through 1995.

Sean Payton took over the team in 2006 and led the Saints to their most successful period in team history. From 2006 through 2020, the Saints made the NFL Playoffs nine times. New Orleans won the 2009-10 season Super Bowl. That was the only title in franchise history.

Payton was the head coach during the infamous Bountygate scandal and was suspended for an entire season. But by the time he retired, all of that was forgotten. Payton partnered with quarterback Drew Brees for one of the NFL’s most prolific offenses. Both coach and quarterback are likely Hall of Fame-bound, Gayle Benson, the widow of deceased legendary owner Tom Benson, remains the team's owner. John Mecom Jr. was the original owner that put colorful but losing teams on the field.

New Orleans Saints Past Seasons (2000)

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