The Saints are getting more and more desperate as they prepare to face the struggling Panthers again.
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The conditions surrounding the New Orleans Saints and Carolina Panthers’ rematch this season are very different from when they last faced off.
Derek Carr, the quarterback for the Saints, was somewhat fit for their Week 2 matchup in Carolina and was still getting used to the same New Orleans supporters who had heckled him repeatedly in the Superdome the previous weekend. In his debut season in New Orleans, he also suffered his third game-ending knock.
Coach Frank Reich was “encouraged” by rookie quarterback Bryce Young’s reaction to facing hardship for the first time in the NFL when the Panthers started the season.
Since then, Carolina has fired Reich, and the team is getting ready for Sunday’s visit from the Saints (5-7) in its second game under interim coach Chris Tabor.
Meanwhile, New Orleans is facing the possibility of having its season end due to a three-game losing streak that is a season high. The Saints appeared to be the favourite in the weak NFC South after defeating the Panthers 2-0 on a Monday night in September. Since then, they have a record of 3-7 and are now one game behind Atlanta (6-6) in the division.
“We must prevail. There’s no doubt about that,” stated Dennis Allen, the second-year coach of the Saints, who has also faced harsh criticism in New Orleans. We’re going to put in a tonne of effort to figure it out. We’re going to keep cutting wood until we succeed at some point.
It is “very hard” for the Panthers to know they are out of the playoff picture, according to Tabor.
“You have two choices: character or compromise,” he continued, though.
“I like to think I know who I am when I lay my head down at night,” Tabor continued. “Did I work a fair day’s work? That, in my opinion, is the only way to approach it. I don’t consider the record because it was set a long time ago. All I can think about is how we can position ourselves to succeed.
For a large portion of this week, the Saints were uncertain about Carr’s starting quarterback status for Sunday versus backup Jameis Winston. Carr, who suffered his second concussion in 22 days last Sunday, was allowed to practise this week on a limited basis but stayed under the concussion protocol as of the weekend.
