Saints Show Improvements: Few Negatives Against Patriots

Wide Open Backup QB Spot

Aug 22, 2015; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Saints quarterback Luke McCown (7) makes a throw in the second quarter against the New England Patriots at Mercedes-Benz Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Chuck Cook-USA TODAY Sports

To say that it’s wide open after watching last night’s game is being a bit kind…at the very least.

Just when you thought Ryan Griffin was set to possibly unseat Josh McCown as the #2 to Brees, it’s evident that McCown isn’t going down without a fight.

McCown didn’t dazzle with his numbers (4 of 6 passing for 49 yards), but he did engineer a scoring drive, rolling out to his right to find tight end Josh Hill for a touchdown.

Griffin meanwhile was 6 of 8 in passing for 85 yards in an effort that was puzzling since he didn’t seem as comfortable on his home turf as he did in Baltimore last week.

Rookie Garrett Grayson was likewise not as smooth as we’d hoped to see and went 7 of 13 in passing for 80 yards.

When Payton was asked about the status of the quarterbacks performance especially Griffin and Grayson he said it was “not as well as we’d like” and that their tempo and pace needed to be “much quicker.”

Aug 15, 2014; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Saints quarterback Ryan Griffin (4) warms up before a preseason game against the Tennessee Titans at Mercedes-Benz Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

Up to last night, McCown was looking over his shoulder at Griffin who gained some ground last Thursday.

But McCown won’t go quietly and it’s likely that we’ll get a heavier dose of the two next Sunday when the Houston Texans come to town.

If you’re looking at performance alone in the past two games, McCown is 11 of 16 in passing for 124 yards and two touchdowns, completing 68.8% of his throws and a QB rating of 131.3.

Griffin is 16 of 25 in passing for 197 yards and one touchdown, completing 64% of his throws with a QB rating of 101.6.

Grayson isn’t going anywhere since the Saints invested a third round pick in him no matter the numbers but he is 15 of 25 in passing for 167 yards, completing 60% of his throws and a QB rating of 79.9.

The Texans have a defense known for getting after the quarterback so it will be a good test to gauge where the competition stands.

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