The New Orleans Saints weren't given much of a shot to beat the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 8, and for good reason. But they pulled off arguably the biggest upset of the weekend by not just beating the Raiders, but shutting them out to the tune of a 24-0 victory. As the Saints begin to work their way back to health, it's looking like they might have a shot at earning a playoff spot this season.
The Saints controlled this game from start to finish, as they got pretty much anything they wanted on offense, and prevented the Raiders offense from doing anything on the other side of the ball. New Orleans needed to win this game to stay afloat in the NFC South, and they put together a stunning performance to prove that they mean business.
It's tough to find bad performances in a shutout victory, but it's not nearly as hard to find standout performances in that same victory. Let's take a look at three Saints players who stood out in this game and were most responsible for New Orleans' perfect win over the Raiders in Week 8.
3. Tyrann Mathieu
In a season that has been marred by inconsistencies, Tyrann Mathieu has been arguably the most consistent Saints player all season long. He hasn't missed a defensive snap for New Orleans this season, and he turned in his best performance of his current campaign to help the Saints send the Raiders home with a loss in this one.
Mathieu finished the day with four tackles, two passes deflected, a QB hit, and an interception that ended up leading to a Saints touchdown. Mathieu's pick of Derek Carr was the biggest play of the game, as it ended up turning an overcomeable 10-0 deficit into a sizable 17-0 hole midway through the second quarter. From there on out, the Raiders couldn't do much of anything.
Mathieu's big day was part of an all around effort from the Saints to keep Carr and the Raiders offense quiet. His interception confirmed that the Saints were legitimately making an upset bid, and he did a little bit of everything to silence Las Vegas. The Saints will need Mathieu to continue to deliver like this if they want to make a playoff run in the NFC South over the next few weeks.
2. Payton Turner
Payton Turner hasn't consistently seen the field early in his career with the Saints, but that may change after a strong performance in Week 8. Turner suited up for the first time since Week 4, and was the most impactful defender for New Orleans on a day where there were many players who stood out. That bodes well at his chance to factor into the defense moving forward.
Turner hadn't done much when he played this season, but he racked up two sacks, which was part of a four tackle day, in just over 50 percent of the Saints defensive stats. Prior to this game, Turner had just three tackles on the season, without recording a sack. In just a few plays, he quickly changed that.
Turner only saw the field because Carl Granderson was out, but by the end of the game, he had played more snaps than Marcus Davenport alongside Cameron Jordan on the defensive line. Turner's explosive outing will certainly earn him more playing time, and it will be interesting to see whether he can continue to make a similar impact in future weeks.
1. Alvin Kamara
Despite all the good done on defense, it's clear this game was all about Alvin Kamara. Kamara torched the Raiders defense all day long, and powered the Saints to victory in a game they weren't even expected to be competitive in. If Kamara is doing this while the Saints offense is at less than 100 percent health, that makes New Orleans a very scary team moving forward.
Kamara did everything for the Saints in Week 8. He picked up 62 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries, while also being Andy Dalton's favorite target in the passing game, hauling in nine catches for 92 yards and two more scores. Kamara accounted for 43 percent of the Saints total yardage on the day and all of their touchdowns; that is going to spell a monster outing every single time.
Given all the injuries and the quarterback change for the Saints, it's reassuring to see Kamara put together this huge outing for New Orleans. The Saints are gradually figuring things out after a slow start to the season, and with Kamara leading the way, they should only continue to improve. He may not have to put up an outing like this every week, but it's clear the Saints offense will ride or die with Kamara's production, and this game is a great sign that he may be heating up at the perfect time.
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