Is Deonte Harris the difference? What I’ve learned about the Saints in January

There’s a narrative the New Orleans Saints would like to ignore as they go into the divisional round of the playoffs.

“It’s hard to beat the same team three times.”

The Saints aren’t really viewing it that way as they prepare for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Each week is an entirely new challenge, regardless if the team is a divisional opponent they’ve beaten twice this year.

“You read, oh, it’s hard to beat a team for the third time or whatever, and I think statistically speaking, it’s in the 60 something percentile that you do or you don’t, you know what I mean? I think that’s a little bit of a myth, if you really do the math,” Saints coach Sean Payton said.

Each Bucs game could represent one-third of the season for the Saints: the opener, the midpoint and the final stretch. Both teams have evolved considerably over the season due to COVID-19, additions, injuries and more. So it’s hard to take much from either of those games, but Payton always had a feeling things could go this way.

“You kind of felt like this was a team we were going to end up playing again,” Payton said. “I did.”

So with that in mind, we’ll focus on what I’ve learned from the Saints as they continue their playoff run and the final stretch of their season. Here’s what I learned

The offensive line is holding up better than expected

One year ago the interior of the offensive line struggled enough that it spurred the Saints into action after the loss to the Vikings in the NFC wild-card round. It’s why they released Larry Warford and drafted Cesar Ruiz. When Brees was injured, however, there were valid questions about whether they actually fixed anything at all.

Andrus Peat’s inconsistency, Ruiz’s struggles while learning how to play guard and Nick Easton’s worrisome concussion history have all played into those concerns. The interior play is thought to be one of those things that could define the postseason.

But the Bears game might have alleviated some of those concerns. Their regular-season pass rush numbers were pretty bad going into that game (only 35 sacks), but that didn’t diminish the fact that they had very good players like Khalil Mack off the edge and Akiem Hicks in the interior. If the offensive line wasn’t on top of its game, those players could’ve given the unit trouble.

Instead, the interior held up nicely for most of the game. Brees mostly had a clean pocket, and even when there was a blown block, he was getting the ball out quickly. On a third-and-9 play that resulted in a 17-yard gain to Deonte Harris, Ruiz came over from the right side to help block the left side of the formation. Brees turned left and hit Harris for a huge gain.

While Terron Armstead and Peat were beat on a second-and-11 play that resulted in an interception that was overturned, the pass didn’t seem to be a product of pressure. Brees already seemed to know where he wanted to go, the pass just happened to bounce off Jared Cook’s hands.

Some of the worst moments were products of the situation, such as when Taysom Hill came in at quarterback and held the ball too long despite Harris coming open downfield. A free rusher came through the gap and swatted the ball out of his hands. A few plays could be attributed to tight ends not holding their blocks (such as a third-and-12 play where the rusher brushed off Cook to hit Brees). Hicks blew right past Ruiz on one play to force an incompletion, but overall it was a solid performance in pass blocking all around. It was an encouraging performance.

“I think he did well. He played a solid game. Obviously, there’s corrections just like there’s corrections with all of us. As a whole, I think he did a good job,” said right tackle Ryan Ramczyk.

Said Payton: “Not bad. A tough matchup. I think he was probably better in some of the protection elements. There’s some things in the run game we have to clean up. But overall, solid.”

One thing to watch for on Sunday: If Latavius Murray, who picked up several blitzes against the Bears, can’t play, the Saints are going to lose a key blocker there. It could help that Tre’Quan Smith looks to be on his way back, but the Saints will certainly miss Murray.

Brees looks more comfortable than he has in months

Brees will rarely admit if something is bothering him or if he’s particularly worried about a matchup. When he displays a rare moment of frustration or emotion during practice or a game, it’s actually notable. It’s why every teammate repeats the same thing when asked about Brees’ mood during any given week: They have no idea. His preparation is the same whether it’s Week 1 or Week 20.

“I really haven’t noticed anything because he’s always that guy,” Ramczyk said. “He’s always coming in and competing and doing everything he possibly can to be better to be back on the field after injury. Like I said, he’s just always like that.”

Maybe that’s why it was so surprising to see him act almost downtrodden after he took himself out of the win against the San Francisco 49ers on Nov. 15. Brees only stopped playing that day because his numerous rib fractures wouldn’t allow him to be effective. The uncertainty about his future was almost foreboding.

But as the Saints approach what’s potentially Brees’ final NFL games, he seemed to be relaxed and happy in his session with the media, joking about memes, his age and his text thread with Tom Brady. It’s clear he’s enjoying this again, however long it lasts.

And that translates to his play on the field too. There’s no doubt Brees looked shaky after he returned from his injury against the Chiefs. But he didn’t look like that against the Bears. Even when the offense was slow to get rolling, Brees looked decisive, getting the ball out quickly and even rolling out of the pocket without much issue. For a man who turns 42 on Friday, he looked almost ageless.

It was with Brees’ urging that the Saints called for a Brees leap to try to get a late touchdown against the Bears. It was a bit of a head-scratching move considering his age and injury history, but it spoke to the level of confidence he has in himself. If he was still worried about his ribs, he wouldn’t have even considered it.

No, Brees didn’t pull out any heroics against the Bears, but he showed in little ways all the reasons he’s so good: the improvised touchdown to Latavius Murray, his ability to get the ball out of his hands under pressure, his lightning-quick reads and, on occasion, a deep ball, like the 38-yard completion to Michael Thomas on third-and-4 early in the third quarter.

If the Saints lose in the next few weeks, it won’t be because of Brees’ ribs or concerns about getting hit holding him back.

Harris is the difference-maker

Perhaps a little-used receiver was what the Saints’ offense was missing all along.

It was obvious they missed Harris and his speed as a returner, but his role as a receiver has been hit-or-miss in his first two seasons.

I wrote after the first game that Harris can and would be used more, but ultimately that didn’t really happen despite the coaches urging a bigger role for him over the summer. The idea in 2019 was to ease the undrafted free agent into things, but he showed what he could do as a receiver when he caught a 50-yard pass against the Vikings a year ago. Brees got hurt, then he got hurt, so Harris ended the regular season having played only nine games and never more than half the snaps.

When Harris returned from his injury against the Bears, he showed what they’d been missing. He can practically shake defenders out of their cleats with his change of direction, and he can squeeze between two defenders before they have time to blink. His seven catches for 83 yards don’t really tell the whole story of how impressive it really was.

“Well, he’s someone that has good instincts, and the trick is, how do we get him the ball in space quickly? And I think when we’re able to do that, oftentimes, he can make the first guy miss,” Payton said. “So yeah, there are some skills. And I think he’s a pretty savvy player, he understands the game and leverage. And that helps a lot.”

One of the issues the Saints had in Brees’ first game back against the Chiefs was the inability of the receivers to get separation. Thomas being back to almost full strength and Harris coming back from injury might be the difference. The Bucs have barely seen Harris play in person this season. In those two games, he played a combined 15 snaps, catching two passes (one for 40 yards). If he’s healthy, there’s no way that’s the case in Round 3.

(Photo of Deonte Harris: Chris Graythen / Getty Images)