The New Orleans Saints opened up their season with back-to-back home games. This sequencing allowed for Kellen Moore and Spencer Rattler to settle into their new roles. For the first time this year, the duo is going on the road. This isn’t just any road game. This is a trip to play the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field.
The Saints had to deal with San Francisco 49ers fans taking over the Superdome. Hearing “Let’s go Niners” at a home game can be frustrating, but that’s not the same as the 12th man surrounding you for an entire game.
There is a natural disadvantage that comes with playing on the road. Playing in Seattle is completely different. It’s always a hostile environment no matter who the opponent is. Pump in the crowd noise at practice all you want. It’s not the same. For Rattler and Moore, this will be an obstacle they’ve yet to encounter.
Seahawks are the Saints biggest test yet for two reasons
If the 49ers didn’t have as many injuries a week ago, this would be more of a conversation. However, Week 3 is certainly the biggest test of the season for the Saints at this point. They’re the best team and it’ll arguably be the most hostile environment they see the entire season.
Let’s continue to lean in on the environment. The Saints have had a penalty problem through two weeks. They’ve made mistakes in critical moments and had pre snap penalties. The latter is concerning.
This will be a moment for Moore to show the improved discipline of his team. The Saints have had these issues at home, so you can only imagine how it’ll be on the road. Communication will be harder. The snap count will be trickier. Combine with the Saints’ previous issues with the natural mental miscues associated with playing in loud stadiums, it wouldn’t be surprising to see multiple procedural penalties.
Can Spencer Rattler take his improvements and poise on the road with him?
We’ve seen a new and improved version of Spencer Rattler this season. He’s still yet to win a game, but the improvement is notable. Moore stated multiple times that there is a jump from Year 1 to Year 2, and Rattler has been proving him right.
At the same time, this success has come in the comfort of his own home stadium. This isn’t his first home game, but this may be his first hostile environment of his pro career. The closest he came was playing at Lambeau Field. Rattler’s poise has been one of his standout traits, so it’ll be interesting to see if that is present on Sunday.
Beyond the environment, the Seahawks will throw some interesting looks at Rattler. It’s going to be an effective pass rush with just four down linemen often. That will put a lot of players in coverage and tighten the windows for the quarterback.
