Saints-Redskins Preview: Position-By-Position Comparisons

Week 1 for the New Orleans Saints could not have gone much better as they opened the season with a divisional win in front of their home faithful.  The defense was surprisingly good as they got productions from familiar faces and newcomers alike.

The Redskins, on the other hand, fell in their season opener on the to the New York Giants.  Coach Jim Zorn's offense failed to muster much of anything, especially in the passing game. 

Here is a position-by-position comparison of the two teams:

Quarterback

Drew Brees is a Pro Bowl quarterback who picked apart the Tampa 2 defense for over 300 yards and three touchdowns last week.  Despite all of the talent on this offense, he is their unquestioned leader.

Jason Campbell has the tools to become a good quarterback in this league but has yet to realize his potential.  He has had to learn a new offensive system each year that he has been in the NFL.  Currently, he is stuck in a West Coast offense that is not suited to his strengths.

EDGE: Saints in a landslide

Running Back

Though technically a running back, Reggie Bush did most of his damage in the passing game, including a 42-yard, highlight-reel touchdown catch and run.

As Deuce McAllister sat on the bench still recovering from off-season knee surgeries, Pierre Thomas took over some of the tough carries between the tackles against Tampa Bay and gained 52 yards on just 10 carries. 

Washington's workhorse back, Clinton Portis, carried the ball 23 times for 84 yards in the Week 1 loss to the Giants.  Portis has been one of the top running backs in the league since his rookie season in 2002.

EDGE: Saints, narrowly

Wide Receiver/Tight End

The big story of the week for the Saints was news of Marques Colston's thumb surgery.  This void will leave veteran David Patten and speedster Devery Henderson as starters.  Second-year pro Robert Meachem looks to get his first opportunity to play in a regular season game in his career.  Tight end Jeremy Shockey caught six passes last week in his initial start for the Saints.

Starters Santana Moss and Antwan Randle El were the only two receivers who caught more than two passes last week for the Redskins.  Both, though. have the ability to make big plays every time they touch the ball.  Chris Cooley is as big of a receiving threat for the Redskins as Shockey is for the Saints. 

EDGE: Redskins, narrowly

Offensive line

The Saints have the best pass-protecting line in the NFL.  They must show improvement, though, with Jonathan Goodwin at center.  Goodwin, mostly a backup in his career, started just his third game for the Saints last week.  His poorly timed snap against the Bucs cost the Saints at least a field goal and was later flagged for an illegal snap.  The Bucs defensive touchdown was the result of a missed blitz pick up by a lineman.

The Redskins' line is not the Hogs of old, but they are above average.  The left side of the line is one of the best in the NFL with Chris Samuels at tackle and Pete Kendall at guard.  The line did not have one of its best outings against the Giants.  5 out of 52 offensive plays went for a lost compared to just 3 out of 60 for the Saints against a strong Tampa Bay front. 

EDGE: Saints by a slim margin

Defensive line

Both of these lines got gashed for over five yards per carry last week.  Both lines will improve their run defense when they improve upon tackling.  Luckily for the Redskins, they don't have to worry about bringing down a 264-pound running back when they play the Saints.

New Orleans' defensive ends Charles Grant and Bobby McCray combined for two sacks on Jeff Garcia.  Sedrick Ellis provided a bigger push up the middle than the Saints have been accustomed to over the past few years. 

Newly acquired defensive end Jason Taylor made little impact last week with just two tackles.  Andre Carter and Chris Wilson combined for 1.5 sacks on Eli Manning. 

Both of these lines have their work cut out for them against formidable offensive lines.

EDGE: Redskins by a whisker

Linebacker

Jonathan Vilma quickly made a positive impact on his new team.  He led the way with nine tackles against the Buccaneers.  He will be playing this week, however, without fellow linebacker Scott Fujita due to a knee injury.  Fujita sealed the Saints' win with an interception with less than a minute remaining in the game.

London Fletcher led all Redskins with 17 tackles against the Giants.  In all, the Washington starting linebackers contributed on 30 tackles last week.

Before Fujita's injury was announced, these teams appeared fairly evenly matched at linebacker.  Now, the edge clearly goes to Washington.

EDGE: Redskins by a solid margin

Secondary

What seemed to be a position of concern for the Saints heading into the start of the season, was a real strength against the Buccaneers even without Mike McKenzie.  Rookie Terry Porter proved to be a solid contributer and Randall Gay held Joey Galloway in check. 

Unfortunately for the Saints, they will be without two of their starters due to injury.  Sean Payton announced that Gay and Roman Harper will not play in this Sunday's game. 

The Redskins held the Super Bowl MVP without a touchdown and intercepted him once.  Plaxico Burress did get over 100 yards against them, but no other Giant got to 30. 

EDGE: Redskins, due to injuries

Special Teams

Neither team boasts spectacular special teams units, though Rock Cartwright had a 50-yard kickoff return against the Giants. 

EDGE: Redskins, slightly

Coaching

Sean Payton is in his third year as head coach of the Saints.  He has led the Saints to the brink of the Super Bowl and won Coach of the Year honors in 2006.

Jim Zorn is a head coach for the first time and has never called plays before this season.  Zorn will be looking for his first NFL win as a head coach.

EDGE: Saints by a wide margin

Prediction

The Saints have been a good road team under Sean Payton going 10-6 in two seasons.  For the Redskins, there's no place like home after suffering a loss on the road to the Giants.  Good leadership will win you a lot of football games and the Saints have big advantages in two leadership positions, quarterback and head coach.

Saints win, 26-17.