Week 17 Saints Snap Counts and Observations

New Orleans closed out the season with an impressive win over the Panthers. Here's one last look at Week 17's Saints snap counts, playing time percentages, and observations.

Author:
John Hendrix
Publish date:
Jan 5, 2021 11:14 AM EST

The Saints ended their 2020 regular season on a high note, finishing 12-4 on the year after dismantling the Panthers in Week 17. New Orleans became the first team in the NFC South to sweep their division, and finished as the NFC's No. 2 seed in the playoffs. They'll host the Chicago Bears on Sunday afternoon for Wild Card Weekend. We take one last look at their game against the Panthers for the snap counts and playing time percentages.

Offense

Ryan Ramczyk, Andrus Peat, Erik McCoy - 64 (100%)
Peat played pretty well, which is something many won't talk about. Drew Brees was sacked twice on the day, as the Saints rushed for 156 yards.
Nick Easton - 57 (89%)
Easton's return from concussion was a good sign for New Orleans. The interior line will be a huge point of emphasis for how the Saints fare in the playoffs.
Terron Armstead - 56 (88%)
Armstead had a brief scare on the final drive that most of the starters were in, but missed a single snap.
Drew Brees - 52 (81%)
Brees didn't set the world on fire in the stat department, but was fairly efficient on the day. He finished 22-of-32 for 201 yards and 3 touchdowns. He had a 116.8 rating.
Marquez Callaway - 47 (73%)
Callaway finished as the second leading receiver on the day, catching 3 balls for 51 yards on 4 targets, which included a long of 27 yards.
Ty Montgomery - 44 (69%)
Montgomery performed excellent in place of Alvin Kamara and Latavius Murray, averaging 5.8 yards/carry en route to 105 yards on the ground on 18 carries. He had one catch for 2 yards on 2 targets.
Adam Trautman, Emmanuel Sanders - 41 (64%)
Sanders was targeted 13 times on the day, securing 9 catches for 63 yards and a score. His 8th catch of the game netted him an extra $500,000 from an incentive in his contract. He celebrated it accordingly with his teammates.
Garrett Griffin - 32 (50%)
Griffin played both fullback and tight end on Sunday, and did pretty well for the offense. There was one play in particular where he knocked a linebacker to the ground. We'll have to pay close attention to what happens with both the Hill boys, so Griffin could be back.
Lil'Jordan Humphrey - 23 (36%)
Humphrey had a single catch for 17 yards on his only target. After some struggles against the Chiefs, he's made the most out of limited opportunities.
Taysom Hill - 21 (33%)
Hill left early due to injury and stayed in the medical tent for quite some time. He later exited and walked to the locker room. The suspicion is a concussion, and will be a situation to monitor. He finished with 7 carries for 41 yards and a score, while having a catch on a lone target for 5 yards.
Jared Cook - 20 (31%)
Cook had another good game, finishing with 4 receptions for 43 yards and a score on 5 targets. He's been hitting his stride lately, which is a big sign for the postseason.
James Hurst - 17 (27%)
Juwan Johnson - 15 (23%)
Austin Carr - 11 (17%)
Carr had a lone target, but made it count by hauling it in for an 11-yard touchdown grab from Brees.
Ethan Greenidge - 9 (14%)
Cesar Ruiz, Tommylee Lewis, Jameis Winston - 7 (11%)
Lewis had two punt returns for 20 yards and a failed jet sweep play. He filled in as a COVID-19 reserve, and likely won't be in the postseason equation unless something disastrous happens.
Tony Jones Jr. - 5 (8%)
In his first career game, Jones Jr. had 3 carries for 13 yards. Montgomery was the featured back, but it was good to see the undrafted rookie have a small role in a game where New Orleans missed most a ton of their normal ball carriers.

Defense

P.J. Williams - 62 (100%)
Williams went the distance for the Saints defense, finishing with 5 total tackles (4 solo, 1 assisted) and an interception near the goal line. He also had a pass defense.
Alex Anzalone, Malcolm Jenkins, Demario Davis - 61 (98%)
Jenkins was all over the field, but that's nothing new. He had a key end zone interception to go along with a pass defense and 4 solo tackles. Davis finished with 5 total tackles (2 solo, 3 assisted) and a pass defense.
Marshon Lattimore - 60 (97%)
Lattimore had one of the five picks on the day after getting it off a receiver's bobble. He also had a pass defense.
Janoris Jenkins - 57 (92%)
Jenkins had a near pick-six, but was credited with a pass defense and 5 solo tackles.
Grant Haley - 39 (63%)
From practice squad to active roster, Haley found himself playing more of the C.J. Gardner-Johnson role. He led the way for the Saints defense with 6 total tackles (5 solo, 1 assisted), finishing with a pass defense and QB hit to go along with an end zone interception he read all the way.
Marcus Davenport, Cam Jordan - 36 (58%)
Jordan had 2 pass defenses and went over 50 for his career. Davenport had a big hit on P.J. Walker on one of the Saints interceptions.
David Onyemata - 34 (55%)
Sheldon Rankins - 31 (50%)
Shy Tuttle - 28 (45%)
Malcom Brown - 27 (44%)
Getting Brown back was a big thing for the Saints run defense. He had 3 total tackles (1 solo, 2 assisted), including a tackle for loss.
Carl Granderson - 26 (42%)
Granderson closed the books on a big season, getting 2 sacks in the process to finish with 5 on the year. He had 2 QB hits, 2 tackles for loss, and 2 solo tackles.
Trey Hendrickson - 23 (37%)
Hendrickson picked up right where he left off, getting a sack to finish 2020 with 13.5 sacks. He tied for the franchise's fourth-highest single-season performance, putting him right up there with Charlie Clemons (2001) and Rickey Jackson (1992).
Zack Baun - 22 (35%)
J.T. Gray - 13 (21%)
Craig Robertson - 2 (3%)
Justin Hardee, Chase Hansen, Ken Crawley - 1 (2%)