New Orleans Saints: Winners and Losers from Saints' Win vs. Panthers

Coming down to the wire was something very few predicted, but the Panthers looked very good against the Saints. The Saints squeaked by on a late touchdown from Pierre Thomas to win the game 30-27. 

A hard fought and dirty battle between the two NFC South teams saw 14 total penalties with more than a couple personal fouls.

We learned a lot from this game from both sides, including the fact that Cam Newton ended up being a great first-round draft pick and CAN go toe to toe with one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL Drew Brees.

The Saints now sit at 4-1 and lead the NFC South. Here are six winners and losers from the Saints game against the Panthers.

Winner: Darren Sproles

Darren Sproles received the most carries of any Saints running back and showed his explosiveness, finishing with 11 carries and 51 total yards. He has progressed through the season to gain more carries and receptions in every game. 

His open field skills are what have allowed him to creep into the game and show he is worthy to receive those. 

Sproles gives the Saints an option on third and medium and third and long situations besides the typical pass play and opens up the playbook to include quick screens and swing passes. The flexibility he provides allows him to get touches that a normal back wouldn't be able to provide.

He is turning out to be a great offseason pickup and providing greater flexibility than Reggie Bush did.

Loser: Pierre Thomas

Even the announcers are calling Pierre Thomas an afterthought, commenting on how he has become the third option in the backfield behind Darren Sproles and Mark Ingram. Although, he is not a complete loser in this because he became very involved in the game-winning drive by scoring the final go ahead touchdown for the Saints.

In total he had seven carries and three receptions, with most of those coming on that last drive. As Darren Sproles and Mark Ingram work their way into the offense more and more, those numbers should decrease even more. And by the end of the season, he will probably be receiving few more than a couple carries and receptions a game.

Winner: Saints' Offense

Drew Brees is good. We already knew that—but man, he is good. The Saints offense was slow at the beginning of the second half but pulled through in the clutch to provide the close victory. 

The Saints have scored more than 21 points per game this season and in all but one have more than 30 points. That puts them at third in the NFL with 31.8 points per game. They have looked like a well-oiled machine all year even after losing one of their stars in Reggie Bush, having not missed a step after losing the Heisman winner.

They were ranked fourth in the B/R NFL Power Ranking done by lead NFL writer Matt Miller, expecting them to stay there or improve off of their impressive offensive output thus far in the season. 

Drew Brees and company should continue to dominate the offensive side of the ball.

Loser: Saints' Defense

The discipline of the Saints defense was pitiful. The unsportsmanlike conducts, helmet to helmet's, roughing the passer—all of those added up to an ugly day. Chalking it up to the fact that it was a divisional game doesn't make up for it. Those penalties put Carolina in good position to score all day.

The option is very seldom used in the NFL, but with the exceptional talent of Cam Newton in running it, the Panthers have added it to their plays that make Cam Newton the most comfortable possible in that offense. The option worked well and at first set up the 69-yard DeAngelo Williams touchdown in the first half. 

Figuring out that they were going to run it again should have been a no-brainer. Defensive leadership should have figured out assignments on the option, but it clearly wasn't discussed, as Cam Newton had easy runs the couple of times they ran it in the second half. 

They should have allowed way less than 27 points and need to improve defensively or they will remain losers regardless of the score.

Winner: Cam Newton

Regardless of what people thought going into the season, Cam Newton has proved himself in the NFL as a good starting quarterback. His abilities from college have transferred over and allows him to take advantage of small holes in defenses. 

This article is about winners and losers from the Saints, but Cam Newton was too good to leave out. Every football fan can be captivated by the way he plays and has evolved into the passer nobody thought he could become.

He finished the day completing 16 of 31 for 224 yards. Before the last drive he had a higher yard per pass average than Brees and a comparable QB rating.

After five games I think it is safe to say that he is in for a good season and will lead the Panthers to a better future than anything Jimmy Clausen could have mustered up. Newton will continue to get better and take advantage of defenses.

Loser: Saints' Coaching

Although the Saints came away with a victory, the Saints' coaching staff was a loser because they showed flaws that need to be fixed. 

Firstly, the defensive adjustments that were needed at half time were not made and allowed Carolina to take advantage of those and take the lead late in the game. The adjustment that needed to be made was option defense, as Carolina used it a couple times in the first half and gave them ample looks to find out a strategy to stop it.

The Panthers came out in the second half and ran it again, and no man was responsible for Cam Newton, allowing him easy rushes up the field. If the one man responsible for the two people running the option chose Newton, he easily dumped it off to Williams for easy yards. 

On the offensive side the Saints looked drained and unexcited coming out of the gates in the second half. 

If the Saints want to win the NFC South and contend for a Super Bowl, the coaching staff will have to make more halftime adjustments and have their players come out of the locker room ready to play.