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By John Sigler | Saints Wire

The NFL’s schedule is largely written in stone, but the ability to flex certain games into more prominent time slots is one of its more intuitive features. Per a report from The Atheltic’s Katherine Terrell, the NFL’s Week 16 kickoff between the New Orleans Saints and Tennessee Titans is under consideration for a move into the limelight. But a decision won’t be made just yet.

Per NFL rules, the corporations under contract to broadcast games are allowed a 12-day window with which to decide whether a game will get flexed into a different time slot — except in Week 17, when that decision is made in just 6 days. However, in this case all parties involved (the NFL and the relevant broadcast partners) agreed to reach a decision in 6 days rather than the full 12-day allotment. That’s obviously not great for fans who have to adjust their travel plans on such short notice, but that’s showbiz. ...

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By John Sigler | Saints Wire

Disaster struck the New Orleans Saints defense on Tuesday, with NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport reporting that starting defensive end Marcus Davenport is expected to go under the knife to repair a ‘significant’ foot injury that will end his season. Davenport suffered the injury in Sunday’s loss to the San Francisco 49ers. An earlier report from The Athletic’s Nick Underhill confirmed Davenport was dealing with a foot injury, but the severity was unclear at the time.

It’s a huge loss for the Saints, who invested two first-round draft picks in Davenport last season. He was really coming along in his second year with the team and currently ranks second-best in both sacks (6) and quarterback hits (16), with three sacks in his last three games. He had played 534 snaps on defense and made 76 appearances on special teams in 2019.

Foot issues have been a problem for Davenport early in his NFL career. He suffered a grade three turf toe injury last year, which cost him three games and required corrective surgery after the season ended. The nature and exact significance of his current injury is unknown, and it could be a day or two before the Saints release any new information. Saints coach Sean Payton is notoriously tight-lipped with player medical details. ...

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By John Sigler | Saints Wire

The New Orleans Saints rode a roller-coaster during their Week 14 game with the San Francisco 49ers, not helped by several injuries hitting the deepest position group on the team: the defensive line. Two defensive ends (Marcus Davenport and Trey Hendrickson) and starting defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins each missed time against San Francisco while dealing with various injuries, creating some atypical snap counts. Here’s our unit-by-unit breakdown.

QB Drew Brees, 68 (94%)
RB Alvin Kamara, 55 (76%)
QB Taysom Hill, 28 (39%)
RB Latavius Murray, 24 (33%)
DT Mario Edwards Jr., 1 (1%)

Short-handed at fullback (starter Zach Line was inactive with a knee injury) the Saints used Edwards in that capacity on one goal-to-go play. Hill got the most run of his NFL career, appearing on a personal-best 28 plays on offense and 31 on special teams. Kamara outsnapped Murray by a wide margin, which is concerning given how much better Murray has played than him in recent weeks. ...

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By John Sigler | Saints Wire

The New Orleans Saints took a big hit in the playoff standings in their Week 14 loss to the San Francisco 49ers, losing their grip on the first seed in the NFC playoff standings. They fell to third, and can’t fall further thanks to the NFC East’s collective mediocrity. If they win out, the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles can each post records as strong as 9-7. The Saints will finish the year at 10-6 at worst, but they’ll be better than that.

It would take a lot of help for the Saints to rise back to the first seed, but the second seed is attainable. Both of the two top seeds guarantee a bye during the Wild Card Round, allowing lesser teams to duke it out in hopes of advancing, But only the first seed carries home-field advantage throughout the playoffs, ensuring that the team that holds it won’t have to travel for any games before Super Bowl LIV. ...

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