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The New Orleans Saints Week 14 thrashing of the New York Jets was a much-needed performance from a team that had dropped its previous three games. The Saints controlled the game from start to finish and never let up against the Jets, securing their sixth win of the season and maintaining a spot in the NFL's wide-open playoff hunt.
Alvin Kamara was the key for the Saints on offense, and he ran all over the Jets in one of his best games of the season. The defense made Zach Wilson look like a lost puppy, shutting him down entirely en route to the 30-9 victory. It was an all-around solid performance from the Saints, who improved to 6-7 on the year.
Sean Payton's side still face some questions at quarterback considering Taysom Hill is battling through injuries, but his performance on Sunday was serviceable. The team has a tough matchup with the Buccaneers looming in Week 15, so with that in mind, here are three New Orleans Saints Week 14 takeaways from their demolition of the Jets.
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New Orleans Saints Week 14 Takeaways
3. Taysom Hill doesn't need to shine in order to earn the win
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Taysom Hill's performance will largely determine how the outcomes of Saints games go, but that doesn't mean the quarterback has to be elite. As he showed on Sunday, a middling performance is enough for the Saints to come away with a win, so long as he's not making mistakes with the football. If Hill can avoid turning the ball over, the Saints won't need him to throw for multiple touchdown passes, or even convert many deep throws. Instead, he can check down to Alvin Kamara or even run the ball himself in order to make safe, positive gains. Of course, there will come times where Hill is forced to attempt to make big plays through the air, it's simply unavoidable, but if the Saints can limit the number of risky throws Hill makes, it will go a long way for the offense.
2. Marshon Lattimore is at the top of his game
Zach Wilson threw at Marshon Lattimore twice early on in Sunday's game, and then realized that was a huge mistake. Lattimore broke up a pair of passes from Wilson and effectively shut down whatever wideout he was lined up against. Wilson didn't record a passing touchdown in the game, and that's largely thanks to Lattimore's lockdown coverage. His play made the work of the rest of the defense easier, and the whole unit excelled in holding the Jets to just nine points, all of which were scored via field goals. Lattimore ended the game with five tackles and the two pass defenses, but his performance was far more important than what showed up on the stat sheet. Lattimore's presence in the secondary dissuaded Wilson from throwing his way after his first couple of attempts, and ultimately changed the Jets' game plan from the get-go.
1. Alvin Kamara needs all the touches
Whether you're handing it off, checking it down, or lining him up as a wide receiver, Alvin Kamara is by far the best football player on this team, and he needs to be involved as frequently as possible. Kamar's Week 14 performance was massive, carrying the ball 27 times for 120 yards and a touchdown. He also caught four receptions for 25 yards, having been targeted five times. With Hill's inconsistent ability as a passer, having Kamara running as both a workhorse back and a reliable pass-catcher will be key for the Saints if they want to put points on the board. The defense has been living up to its end of the billing of late, and with the quarterback carousel seemingly halting in favor of Hill, the game plan needs to keep aiming to feed Kamara as many touches as he can stomach if the Saints want any chance at edging out a playoff spot. Now that the star running back is looking healthy again, there's no reason not to unleash him.
