With Jordan and Clark on the edges, the Saints could significantly boost a defensive unit that finished with the fourth-lowest pressure rate (17.5 percent) last season.Ĭlark is a controversial player. In the Kansas City Chiefs’ three playoff outings en route to a Super Bowl victory, he recorded seven tackles, three for loss and 2.5 sacks. Bleacher Report’s Maurice Moton suggested the Saints pursue former Kansas City Chiefs defensive end Frank Clark as the missing piece for their pass-rush unit, writing:Īt 29 years old, Frank Clark is on the back end of his prime years, but he could help a pass rush and make plays in the backfield.ĭuring the 2022 regular season, he registered 39 tackles, eight for loss, five sacks and 24 pressures. Highly-drafted players like Payton Turner and Isaiah Foskey need snaps, and they’ve rounded out the group by bringing in depth pieces Jabari Zuniga and Niko Lalos from the XFL.īut there might be room for one more on top of the depth chart, putting someone like Turner or Kpassagnon on the trade block when it comes time for roster cuts in September. Cameron Jordan and Carl Granderson are playing on lucrative extensions, while Tanoh Kpassagnon signed an extension earlier this spring. And the Saints looked sloppy at the start - by the time they ran their fifth play, they had been penalized twice for false starts and once for delay of game.Are the New Orleans Saints set at defensive end? There’s no question that the group has a lot to prove, but at the same time the Saints have kind of boxed themselves into a corner. Trying to mount their own comeback, the Dolphins dropped two passes and committed two penalties before Chad Henne was intercepted by Porter on fourth-and-13.īrees came into the game with two interceptions and four sacks all season, but the Dolphins mounted a fierce pass rush early. John Carney hooked the extra-point try wide, but he hit a 20-yard field goal with 3:23 left. The Saints forced a punt and mounted the go-ahead drive capped by Brees' score, which made it 37-34. Jeremy Shockey then broke two tackles on a 66-yard reception for New Orleans, and two plays later Reggie Bush scored from 10 yards out on a reverse, capping his run with a balletic leap near the pylon. The Saints drove 82 yards for a score to pull within 27-24, but Miami's Brian Hartline turned a short pass into a 67-yard gain to set up Williams' third score. The pace of scoring soon became frantic, with three touchdowns in less than three minutes. The 42-yard runback came after he snatched a pass that deflected off the hands of receiver Ted Ginn Jr. New Orleans struck again barely a minute into the second half when Darren Sharper scored on an interception return for the third time this season. The Saints then decided to run another play rather than settle for a field goal, and Brees plunged across the goal line to make the score 24-10. When a replay review with 5 seconds left determined the ball should instead be placed at the half-yard line, the Dolphins called timeout. After Davone Bess lost a fumble at midfield late in the first half, Marques Colston caught a 21-yard pass that was initially ruled a TD. Miami then let them back into the game with two turnovers. By the time the Saints picked up their second first down 22 minutes into the game, the Dolphins led 24-3. The Dolphins' Ricky Williams carried only nine times but tied a career high with three touchdowns rushing, including a 68-yard run, the longest of his career. Miami (2-4) fell 2 1/2 games behind AFC East leader New England. The league's highest-scoring team topped 40 points for the fourth time. Tracy Porter's 54-yard interception return sealed the win for the Saints (6-0), off to their best start since 1991. But he scored twice, the second time on a 2-yard keeper with 8:35 left to give the Saints their first lead. NFL passing leader Drew Brees had his worst day of the season, with three interceptions and five sacks.
The unbeaten Saints overcame an early 21-point deficit, mounting touchdown drives of 82, 79 and 60 yards on successive possessions in the second half to overtake the Miami Dolphins 46-34 Sunday. Later there was no stopping them, as usual. MIAMI - For most of the first half, the New Orleans Saints could hardly make a first down.
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