Statistical Roundup: How the Saints offense stacked up with the rest of the league
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By: Luke Hubbard
The Saints offensive numbers weren’t as bad as they seemed.
There’s no secret that the New Orleans Saints offense struggled to get much of anything going this year, but just how bad was the offense compared to some of the other teams in the league?
Today, we set out to answer that question. We’re going to go through stat-by-stat and see just how bad/good the Saints offense was in 2023.
Points Per Game – 10th
Believe it or not, the Saints offense actually ranked 10th in the NFL in points per game, scoring an average of 23.6 points. They ranked just below some of the top offenses such as the Green Bay Packers, LA Rams, Philidelphia Eagles and Buffalo Bills.
Now, this number is a bit inflated due to a bunch of late offensive surges when they were trailing by two scores, but either way, this number is much higher than I thought it would be. I imagined the Saints being around the 17-20 range, but some high scoring games late in the season helped boost their average.
Yards Per Game – 13th
The Saints ranked slightly lower in total yards per game than PPG, coming in at No. 13 in the league. They averaged 337.2 YPG, which was their highest total since Drew Brees retired prior to the 2021 season.
Again, this stat is somewhat inflated by their late “comebacks” that always fell short, but 13th in the NFL in YPG isn’t too bad.
Passing Yards Per Game – 11th
Derek Carr managed to help lead the Saints to the 11th ranked passing offense, throwing for 234.7 yards per game. In most years, that number would rank a lot lower, but in the past couple of seasons, we’ve seen passing numbers take a bit of a decrease across the league.
I would say this spot feels about right. There were quite a few games where Carr threw for 250+, but only threw one or no touchdowns, so 11th feels pretty correct.
Rushing Yards Per Game – 21st
I was honestly expecting this number to be a lot lower. The Saints, despite having what felt like one of the worst rushing attacks in the league, finished 21st in rushing yards per game with 102.5.
A lot of this was thanks to Taysom Hill’s rushing ability, but I still felt they should’ve finished lower than 21st. I guess they just had a larger volume than most teams, because the Saints finished 31st in the league in yards per carry (3.6).
Redzone Touchdown Percentage – 18th
The Saints redzone performance this season was such a roller coaster. They began the season as one of, if not the worst redzone team in the league, but then they hit a five or so week stretch where they converted their redzone drives into touchdowns at a 90% rate.
Despite starting the season towards the bottom of the league in redzone TD percentage, they managed to finish the season in 18th with a 53.33% conversion rate.
Average Scoring Margin – 7th
I noticed this a few weeks before the season ended, but the Saints were one of the best teams in the league in score differential. Despite finishing 9-8, the Saints average scoring margin was +4.4, meaning they were outscoring opponents by nearly 5 points per game.
Obviously, it helps when you blow a team out 34-0, 28-6 and 24-6, but still, I was very surprised to see them up there with the Miami Dolphins, Kansas City Chiefs, Bills and Dallas Cowboys… Just goes to show you how much coaching matters.
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Originally posted on Canal Street Chronicles – All Posts
