Underhill: How Marshon Lattimore, the Saints took a step toward regaining their 'swagger' against the Giants

09-30-2018, 10:12 PM

jeanpierre · 09-30-2018, 10:13 PM

BY NICK UNDERHILL | NUNDERHILL@THEADVOCATE.COM SEP 30, 2018 - 8:45 PM

EAST RUTHERFORD, New Jersey – Marshon Lattimore began dancing in his seat as soon as the words hit the air.

An intrepid New York reporter was determined to find out why the Giants didn’t use their best player more often during the Saints’ 33-18 win over New York on Sunday. “Were you surprised they didn’t have Odell (Beckham Jr.) more involved in the game plan?” the reporter asked cornerback Ken Crawley while Lattimore sat with his back turned just over Crawley’s right shoulder.

“I don’t know,” Crawley said. “It seems like he wasn’t open most of the time. We knew with the different coverages that we played he couldn’t get open, and Marshon and those guys did a helluva job on him.”

There was no conspiracy here. The Giants didn't decide to take their best player out of the offensive game plan this week. Beckham just wasn’t open for most of the game, and that’s because Lattimore was often covering him. The two paired up on 31 of Eli Manning’s 41 passing attempts. Beckham was targeted with Lattimore in direct coverage seven times. During live viewing, it appeared he made four catches for 49 yards.

That isn’t a bad number for Beckham. It’s respectable. But his longest reception against Lattimore was for 27 yards, and it came late in the fourth quarter when the Saints were playing prevent defense and Lattimore was lined up several yards off the line of scrimmage.

Beckham added another catch for 16 yards against this coverage, but it wasn’t immediately clear who was in responsible for the zone where he caught the ball. And it is only fair to note that earlier in the game Manning over threw him when it looked like Beckham had gotten open against Lattimore on an out route.

The Giants receiver finished the game with seven catches for 60 yards. The rest of his receptions came against zones over the middle, which New Orleans often used to help limit the wide receiver. One of the times the Saints stayed in man over the middle and Beckham ran a crossing route, Lattimore got cut off by linebacker Demario Davis, which allowed the receiver to get open for a gain of 12.

So, Marshon, why wasn’t Beckham more involved in New York's game plan?

“Our goal is to take him out of the game,” Lattimore said. “I’m pretty sure he was in the game plan. That’s Odell Beckham. We did a good job of that today.”

Was Lattimore the key to that?

“I followed him,” Lattimore said. “Of course. That’s my dog. I’m not going to talk bad about him. It is what it is.”

This marks the second week in a row Lattimore has held his own against a top opponent. He paired up against Atlanta’s Julio Jones for most of the first half of last week's game, and then occasionally during the second half as New Orleans mixed things up to try and limit the damage being one by Atlanta's other receivers. He surrendered just one catch for 17 yards to Jones.

These two games are a big turnaround for Lattimore after a slow start. With Lattimore shadowing him in the opener, Tampa Bay wide receiver got open against the cornerback four times for 115 yards. It was a shocking result considering Lattimore locked down just about everyone he faced last year before suffering a late-season ankle injury.

There were some concerns about how Lattimore played in that game, but those should be melting away after how well he's played the last two weeks. And there might be an underlying reason for how the reigning defensive rookie of the year performed early in the season.

Lattimore made it very clear that he wasn’t trying to make excuses, but he also let it slip that his body was tired early on this year and that he didn’t start feeling like himself until getting worked on by his masseuse this week.

The other issue is Lattimore battled an ankle injury this offseason which kept him down for about two months. That set back his training schedule, which impacted how he prepared for the start of the season. He's now starting to feel like himself.

“Not fully to where I (want to be),” Lattimore said, who later added that he might start seeing his masseuse more often. “But I told them on the sideline I felt the best I’ve felt all year.”

Sunday's game was probably the best the New Orleans secondary has looked all year after struggling each of the last three weeks with communication issues that led to explosive plays down the field. That wasn’t an issue against the Giants.

The Saints were organized. They made sure they kept their top shoulder over the guys they were covering and didn’t let anyone get behind them. The few opportunities New York had to take shots down the field, like one to Russell Shepard, was handled by Lattimore and his teammates.

The only real negative was the rub route New Orleans failed to cover on a 2-point conversion. Otherwise, there wasn’t much notable about Manning completing 31-of-41 passes for 255 yards.

“Do the little things right,” safety Marcus Williams said. “We do the little things right, and we’re disciplined, we’ll eliminate those big plays.”

Earlier this week, Lattimore said the Saints just needed to play a good game to get their swagger back. Sunday’s performance was undoubtedly a step in the right direction, but the team says there is still work to be done.

“I definitely feel like this game could be that game,” cornerback P.J. Williams said. “We just got to say locked in. We know what we’re capable of. We just got to do it week to week.”

As the team celebrated in the locker room to a soundtrack that included songs by New York-based artists including The Notorious B.I.G., Jay-Z and Method Man, it was easy to see a secondary that was enjoying itself in a way that wasn’t as apparent the first three games.

It will take more than one game, but it looks like there might be reason to be cautiously optimistic about things clicking for this group.

ChrisXVI · 09-30-2018, 10:20 PM

Beckham just wasn’t open for most of the game, and that’s because Lattimore was often covering him. The two paired up on 31 of Eli Manning’s 41 passing attempts. Beckham was targeted with Lattimore in direct coverage seven times. During live viewing, it appeared he made four catches for 49 yards.

Doesn’t get much better than that. Heeee’s baaaack!

09-30-2018, 10:12 PM	#1
Threaded by jeanpierre Site Donor 2018 Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Thibodaux Posts: 43,543 Blog Entries: 39 Rating: (0 votes - average) Twitter
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09-30-2018, 10:13 PM	#2
jeanpierre Site Donor 2018 Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Thibodaux Posts: 43,543 Blog Entries: 39	Re: Underhill: How Marshon Lattimore, the Saints took a step toward regaining their 'swagger' against the Giants BY NICK UNDERHILL \| NUNDERHILL@THEADVOCATE.COM SEP 30, 2018 - 8:45 PM EAST RUTHERFORD, New Jersey – Marshon Lattimore began dancing in his seat as soon as the words hit the air. An intrepid New York reporter was determined to find out why the Giants didn’t use their best player more often during the Saints’ 33-18 win over New York on Sunday. “Were you surprised they didn’t have Odell (Beckham Jr.) more involved in the game plan?” the reporter asked cornerback Ken Crawley while Lattimore sat with his back turned just over Crawley’s right shoulder. “I don’t know,” Crawley said. “It seems like he wasn’t open most of the time. We knew with the different coverages that we played he couldn’t get open, and Marshon and those guys did a helluva job on him.” There was no conspiracy here. The Giants didn't decide to take their best player out of the offensive game plan this week. Beckham just wasn’t open for most of the game, and that’s because Lattimore was often covering him. The two paired up on 31 of Eli Manning’s 41 passing attempts. Beckham was targeted with Lattimore in direct coverage seven times. During live viewing, it appeared he made four catches for 49 yards. That isn’t a bad number for Beckham. It’s respectable. But his longest reception against Lattimore was for 27 yards, and it came late in the fourth quarter when the Saints were playing prevent defense and Lattimore was lined up several yards off the line of scrimmage. Beckham added another catch for 16 yards against this coverage, but it wasn’t immediately clear who was in responsible for the zone where he caught the ball. And it is only fair to note that earlier in the game Manning over threw him when it looked like Beckham had gotten open against Lattimore on an out route. The Giants receiver finished the game with seven catches for 60 yards. The rest of his receptions came against zones over the middle, which New Orleans often used to help limit the wide receiver. One of the times the Saints stayed in man over the middle and Beckham ran a crossing route, Lattimore got cut off by linebacker Demario Davis, which allowed the receiver to get open for a gain of 12. So, Marshon, why wasn’t Beckham more involved in New York's game plan? “Our goal is to take him out of the game,” Lattimore said. “I’m pretty sure he was in the game plan. That’s Odell Beckham. We did a good job of that today.” Was Lattimore the key to that? “I followed him,” Lattimore said. “Of course. That’s my dog. I’m not going to talk bad about him. It is what it is.” This marks the second week in a row Lattimore has held his own against a top opponent. He paired up against Atlanta’s Julio Jones for most of the first half of last week's game, and then occasionally during the second half as New Orleans mixed things up to try and limit the damage being one by Atlanta's other receivers. He surrendered just one catch for 17 yards to Jones. These two games are a big turnaround for Lattimore after a slow start. With Lattimore shadowing him in the opener, Tampa Bay wide receiver got open against the cornerback four times for 115 yards. It was a shocking result considering Lattimore locked down just about everyone he faced last year before suffering a late-season ankle injury. There were some concerns about how Lattimore played in that game, but those should be melting away after how well he's played the last two weeks. And there might be an underlying reason for how the reigning defensive rookie of the year performed early in the season. Lattimore made it very clear that he wasn’t trying to make excuses, but he also let it slip that his body was tired early on this year and that he didn’t start feeling like himself until getting worked on by his masseuse this week. The other issue is Lattimore battled an ankle injury this offseason which kept him down for about two months. That set back his training schedule, which impacted how he prepared for the start of the season. He's now starting to feel like himself. “Not fully to where I (want to be),” Lattimore said, who later added that he might start seeing his masseuse more often. “But I told them on the sideline I felt the best I’ve felt all year.” Sunday's game was probably the best the New Orleans secondary has looked all year after struggling each of the last three weeks with communication issues that led to explosive plays down the field. That wasn’t an issue against the Giants. The Saints were organized. They made sure they kept their top shoulder over the guys they were covering and didn’t let anyone get behind them. The few opportunities New York had to take shots down the field, like one to Russell Shepard, was handled by Lattimore and his teammates. The only real negative was the rub route New Orleans failed to cover on a 2-point conversion. Otherwise, there wasn’t much notable about Manning completing 31-of-41 passes for 255 yards. “Do the little things right,” safety Marcus Williams said. “We do the little things right, and we’re disciplined, we’ll eliminate those big plays.” Earlier this week, Lattimore said the Saints just needed to play a good game to get their swagger back. Sunday’s performance was undoubtedly a step in the right direction, but the team says there is still work to be done. “I definitely feel like this game could be that game,” cornerback P.J. Williams said. “We just got to say locked in. We know what we’re capable of. We just got to do it week to week.” As the team celebrated in the locker room to a soundtrack that included songs by New York-based artists including The Notorious B.I.G., Jay-Z and Method Man, it was easy to see a secondary that was enjoying itself in a way that wasn’t as apparent the first three games. It will take more than one game, but it looks like there might be reason to be cautiously optimistic about things clicking for this group.
	It's not that my way is the right way, I just make the right way my way...

09-30-2018, 10:20 PM	#3
ChrisXVI 10000 POST CLUB Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Madison, WI Posts: 11,482	Re: Underhill: How Marshon Lattimore, the Saints took a step toward regaining their 'swagger' against the Giants Beckham just wasn’t open for most of the game, and that’s because Lattimore was often covering him. The two paired up on 31 of Eli Manning’s 41 passing attempts. Beckham was targeted with Lattimore in direct coverage seven times. During live viewing, it appeared he made four catches for 49 yards. Doesn’t get much better than that. Heeee’s baaaack! frydaddy likes this.

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