Assessing how New Orleans Saints match up with Carolina Panthers, Bryce Young

Another week, another NFC South showdown.

The Carolina Panthers (0-1) will play their second division game in as many weeks against the New Orleans Saints (1-0) on ESPN Monday night — an early but consequential contest.

Here’s a quick rundown of how the teams match up and which players fans should know.

QB Derek Carr looks settled in New Orleans

Derek Carr might not be as polarizing of a figure as Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins seems to be, but Carr’s career has drawn the question fans and pundits have debated since his NFL debut in 2014:

What should we make of Derek Carr?

In a Saints uniform, at least, he’s been pretty good.

Carr finished his Saints debut Week 1 against the Tennessee Titans completing 22-of-33 passes for 305 yards, a touchdown and an interception. He also ended it with a win — a 16-15 grinder against a team expected to win a lot of games this year. His most memorable throw of the day wasn’t his touchdown toss but rather the game-sealing third-down seam he threw to Rashid Shaheed to put the Titans away for good. (He called the play, too.)

That all speaks to Carr’s reputation as a leader, which defined his tenure on a Raiders team that tended to overachieve. But there were flaws in his performance last week, too.

The biggest wasn’t his interception right before halftime — a late over-the-middle post in double coverage — but that he took four sacks. That’s encouraging for a Panthers defense whose strength is its pass rush.

It’s worth noting that Carolina will have more chances to get after the quarterback than it did in a 24-10 loss to the run-heavy Atlanta Falcons. The Saints had only 19 carries between their two running backs in Week 1, and only two of those carries yielded first downs.

How will Bryce Young fare vs. Saints pass rush?

Carr wasn’t the only NFC South quarterback to make his debut for his team last week. In fact, all four NFC South teams had a different starting QB to open the season than they did in Week 1 of last year — the first time that’s happened in a division since 1973.

Bryce Young’s debut didn’t go nearly as well as Carr’s did, though.

Young looked like an NFL rookie. Two interceptions (both ill-advised tosses over the middle). No real deep shots. He took two sacks, too, against a Falcons’ pass rush that was expected to rank among the worst in the league.

The Saints’ defensive front also isn’t amazing on paper, but it has seemingly transformed. The team recorded three sacks Week 1 — one of which came from 2023 draft picks Cam Jordan and Bryan Bresee (0.5 sacks apiece) — and got a ton of pressure on Titans QB Ryan Tannehill on throwing-down situations. This new production plus a still-great linebacker Demario Davis, who started his 12th NFL season with nine tackles, will be a handful for Young.

Saints backfield not deep without Alvin Kamara

New Orleans’ star running back Alvin Kamara is suspended for the first three games of the 2023 season for violating the league’s personal conduct policy.

That has set the stage for Jamaal Williams.

Williams didn’t necessarily impress against a run-stout Tennessee defense. But he finished with 18 carries — 15 more than the next-closest rusher (tight end/wildcat QB Taysom Hill) — and that will almost certainly bear more fruit against a Panthers team that gave up 130 rushing yards Week 1 (sixth most in the NFL). Let’s not forget, either, that Williams led the league in rushing touchdowns last season with 17.

Saints notched 3 interceptions in Week 1

It was tough to discern what to make of the Saints’ secondary coming into this season. Data showed they rarely gave up big plays last season — but that they were also second-to-last in turnover margin and third-to-last in interceptions caused.

The latter weakness didn’t follow them into 2023.

The New Orleans defensive backfield, led by cornerback Marshon Lattimore and safety Tyrann Mathieu, recorded three interceptions against the Titans.

All three interceptions came after great pass rushes:

▪ The first saw Lattimore jump and pick off a flag route near the sideline.

▪ The second was again in double-coverage and was again a deep ball near the sideline on the first drive of the second half. This one was made by Marcus Maye.

▪ And the third was thanks to Paulson Adebo jumping a back-shoulder fade on the sideline.

Fantasy football sleeper picks in Saints-Panthers

Michael Thomas, New Orleans, WR: The last few years of the once-prolific Michael Thomas have been ravaged by injury. But the 30-year-old looked solid Week 1, notching five receptions for 61 yards with a team-second-best eight targets. The Panthers’ defensive backfield has substantially weakened after Jaycee Horn’s serious hamstring injury, so expect the Saints to exploit matchups with the Panthers’ second- and third-option cornerbacks (Donte Jackson, CJ Henderson) — and Thomas could be a beneficiary. (So could Rashid Shaheed, too, for that matter.)

Jamaal Williams, New Orleans, RB: See above for more on this, but simply put: He’s the premier back playing against a team whose defense struggled against the Falcons’ backfield a week ago.

Hayden Hurst, Carolina, TE: Hayden Hurst was on the receiving end of Bryce Young’s first touchdown pass. That affirmed a modus operandi the Panthers operated under all season: The tight ends will be important. Look for Hurst, a South Carolina product, to be valued in the red zone Monday.

Laviska Shenault, Carolina, RB/WR: He took handoffs out of the backfield — including on a critical third-and-2 on the team’s first possession — and caught two passes for 16 yards, too. Laviska Shenault, like Hurst, will be an asset in the Carolina red zone.