New Orleans must escape their one-dimensional identity by unleashing Alvin Kamara and Travis Etienne Jr. to relieve pressure on Tyler Shough against an unbeaten Las Vegas defense.
The New Orleans Saints have already learned plenty about Tyler Shough through two weeks. He can throw for 400 yards when the offense needs fireworks, and he can protect the football and efficiently manage a comeback when New Orleans needs patience. Now, as the Saints prepare for Sunday's home opener against the unbeaten Las Vegas Raiders, I'd like to learn something about everybody standing behind him.
Can the Saints actually run the football?
New Orleans enters Week 3 ranked 28th in the NFL in rushing offense at 78 yards per game, while averaging 383.5 total yards. Meanwhile, the passing offense is producing 305.5 yards per game, second in the league.
That's quite a gap. Shough has been good enough to keep the offense moving anyway. But asking your young quarterback to compensate for an ineffective running game every Sunday isn't a formula I'd want to test for 17 games.
New Orleans Can’t Afford to Become One-Dimensional
The Saints return home Sunday, Sept. 27, to face the Las Vegas Raiders at Caesars Superdome, and for me, one of the biggest keys to this game is pretty simple. And that's run the football and stick with it.
New Orleans enters the matchup 1-1 after beating Baltimore 24-17, while Las Vegas comes to town at 2-0. This is also the Saints' 2026 home opener, so establishing some physicality early would be a great way to get the Superdome crowd involved.
Through two games, the Saints have produced only 156 rushing yards, compared with 662 yards through the air. Travis Etienne Jr. has 71 rushing yards while averaging 4.2 yards per attempt. Those numbers tell me New Orleans doesn't necessarily have a bad running game. The bigger issue is that the Saints need to make it a bigger part of their offensive identity.
Against this Raiders defense, that balance could make all the difference.
Alvin Kamara Is Back — Now Get Him Going
Alvin Kamara returned against Baltimore after missing Week 1 because of a knee injury. The production wasn't there. Kamara carried nine times for 15 yards and caught five passes for seven yards.
Nobody should panic over one game, particularly when a veteran running back is returning from an injury. But New Orleans needs more. Kamara enters the season as the franchise's all-time leader in rushing yards (7,250), yards from scrimmage (12,198), total touchdowns (87) and rushing touchdowns (61).
This isn't about questioning whether Kamara can play. It's about finding ways to give him opportunities. I'd like to see coach Kellen Moore use Kamara and Travis Etienne Jr. together more often. Motion one outside, run with the other and use play-action.
Make Las Vegas linebackers declare their responsibilities before the snap. Don't simply line up and run into a loaded box.
Hand the football off. Make the Raiders' defensive front play the run. Make those edge rushers hesitate for that extra half-second before attacking Shough. Then start mixing in play-action, bootlegs and intermediate throws to Chris Olave and the rest of the receiving corps.
The Offensive Line Needs the Run Game, Too
The loss of left tackle Kelvin Banks Jr. makes establishing the run even more important.
Banks is expected to miss time after suffering a severe high ankle sprain against Baltimore, with Asim Richards likely stepping into his place. That's a major adjustment for an offensive line that now has to protect its young quarterback without its starting left tackle.
Instead of asking that reshuffled group to drop into pass protection all afternoon, New Orleans should give the offensive line opportunities to attack.
Let those big guys fire off the football.
Run between the tackles. Mix in outside-zone concepts. Use motion. Get Etienne moving downhill and give the Raiders multiple looks instead of allowing them to focus entirely on chasing Shough.
Etienne's health will obviously be something to watch. He was listed as a limited participant Wednesday with a hamstring injury, so his status and workload deserve attention as the week progresses.
If he's ready to go, however, New Orleans needs to give him a legitimate opportunity to establish a rhythm.
My Two Pennies
This game doesn't need to be complicated. The Saints are at home. They've got a young quarterback, an offensive line adjusting to the loss of Kelvin Banks Jr. and a Raiders defense that has already shown it can get after quarterbacks.
So don't make life harder than it needs to be. Establish the run. Stay patient with it. Let Travis Etienne Jr. get into a rhythm if he is full strength and start rotating the hand-off with Kamara, to make Las Vegas defend the entire offense.
If New Orleans can consistently create manageable second and third downs, the whole playbook opens up. Play-action becomes more dangerous. Shough gets cleaner throwing opportunities. Olave gets more chances downfield. And the offensive line doesn't have to spend the entire afternoon trying to survive obvious passing situations.
The Saints don't necessarily have to dominate Las Vegas on the ground. But they absolutely need to make the Raiders believe they can.
Because if New Orleans finds that balance Sunday, I think we'll see a much more dangerous Saints offense inside the Superdome.
