I think this season has a better chance of resembling 2006 than being a down year

NeverGiveUP2 said

Great post and I am feeling the same way. I think the offense is going to be very good. Let me explain.
I think we are going to start the season as a ground and pound team with 3 very good RBs. One of whom is great. I think we will win games in the beginning 24-20ish. That will get Jameis comfortable. Then teams will try to stack the line and somewhere around game 4 or 5 SP will unleash the full offense.

Defense? Just not sure yet. That’s why I think we will emphasize the running game early on.

Gonna be an interesting year to be sure

Click to expand...

100% in agreement with Never!

Question marks in the middle of the DL make our D suspect to the run; question marks at CB (especially during a Latt absence) and durability of Kwon makes our D suspect against the pass. Best way to protect against that is to keep them off the field with long, sustained drives by the O.

Question marks at QB and WR, and possibly even TE, make our passing game suspect in the O. However, we have one of the best OLs in the league, and possibly the best 1-2 RB tandem, with a LOT of RB depth. Until the passing game gels, makes perfect sense to lean HEAVY on the run game until the passing game emerges. Added benefit, long sustained drives increase our TOP and keep the defense off the field (see above). Let's not forget, CSP had his new QB on a "pitch count" early in the 2006 season, to protect him and to gauge his progress. I expect CSP will have his 2021 QB on a "pitch count" early in the season, for a similar reason (although not medically-related).

I believe this is what our Saints will look like for the first 4 games +/-. After that, it all depends on how things are shaking out...