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Saints secondary stepped up after Marshon Lattimore injury. 'We keep everybody ready'



By Luke Johnson, NOLA.com
The Times-Picayune

This had a chance to take a bad turn for the New Orleans Saints.

Early in the first quarter, Marshon Lattimore and A.J. Klein converged on Washington receiver Maurice Harris. Harris ducked low to avoid the shot from Klein, and Lattimore's helmet caught the full force of the linebacker's shoulder pad.

The Saints' top cover corner left the field and did not return, having suffered a concussion on the play. The final 54 minutes and change would be up to the less heralded -- and, in one case, completely untested -- members of the secondary.

"We keep everybody ready," defensive back P.J. Williams said. "We practice situations like that, we all practice like we're starting and stuff like that.

"When he went down, I knew I had to step up, a couple extra players had to step up. We feel like we got the job done with the guys we have."

They more than held their own.

Even as the Redskins turned to the air to try to dig out of the big hole Drew Brees and Co. put them in, the Saints defensive secondary did its job in keeping the lid on the Washington air attack.

Quarterback Alex Smith finished with 275 passing yards, but none of his 23 completions found the end zone and his 69.9 passer rating was his lowest in his four games in a Redskins uniform.

It was only a few weeks ago when Williams flopped miserably after he was pressed into action against Atlanta in place of Ken Crawley, letting Falcons rookie receiver Calvin Ridley run past him on numerous occasions.

That day stung, but Williams managed not to let it kill his confidence. He played well in Week 4 against the Giants, forcing a fumble, and followed it up with another nice game against Washington.

"Man, just knowing myself, knowing I can play in this league," Williams said. "I gave up some bad plays, but I knew with using good technique and making sure I'm doing the right thing to execute the game plan that I'm good enough to play in this league."

Lattimore's injury did more than put Williams back in a pressure role. It also meant Justin Hardee would see his first legitimate snaps as a cornerback in an NFL game.

Before Monday's game started, Hardee had been on the field for 333 career snaps, all of them on special teams. He had made some notable plays -- a blocked punt against Tampa ...

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“The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.” — Winston Churchill