New Orleans Saints: 3 Standouts from Week 1 vs. Texans

On Monday night in the Big Easy, the host New Orleans Saints outlasted the Houston Texans. Who excelled for Sean Payton’s squad?

When it was all said and done on Monday night at the Superdome, experience prevailed over emerging talent. In a game which saw the two teams combine for 17 points in the final 50 seconds, the New Orleans Saints rallied for a thrilling 30-28 victory over the Houston Texans.

It was a contest in which the two defending division champions combined for 924 total yards, with Peyton’s club prevailing owning the edge (510) in that department. Both the Texans and Saints were able to mountain solid ground attacks.

It was a game that didn’t feature a lot of defense, although it should be noted that the New Orleans’ pass rush got to Texans’ quarterback Deshaun Watson six times by night’s end, two by third-year defensive end Trey Hendrickson.

After 30 minutes of play, it certainly didn’t look good for the defending NFC South champions. In recent years, Sean Payton’s club struggled at the start of the year. And by halftime on Monday night, the Saints were down, 14-3. A team that had dropped their previous five season openers had some work to do. And a squad that was limited to three points and 181 total yards after 30 minutes of play rolled up 27 points and 329 yards in the final two quarters.

The onus here is obviously on offense as Dennis Allen’s defensive unit, despite his group’s ability to get to Watson. So which players came up big for the Saints on Monday night?