New England Patriots: 3 bold predictions for Week 3 matchup
New England Patriots Bold Prediction No. 1: Defense can’t contain Alvin Kamara
Quite frankly, it won’t end up mattering whether or not the Patriots can slow down Winston. That’s because Alvin Kamara looms large in the Saints backfield, and he’s easily the most important player in this game on both sides of the ball.
Kamara is the most talented player in this contest, but his stats so far this season won’t tell you that. He only managed to pick up five yards on eight carries last week against the Panthers, which was easily the worst line of his career. The talented dual-threat back hasn’t really been utilized by New Orleans through the first two weeks, but you can bet on that changing against New England.
The Jets ground game assaulted the Patriots last week to the tune of 152 yards on 31 carries. If they can manage that, it’s hard to imagine what Kamara could do to this defense. If the Pats front seven gives Kamara room to operate, it’s going to be a long afternoon.
So far, there has been nothing we have seen that suggests Kamara won’t be in for a huge day tomorrow against New England. The Saints will be eager to get him more involved against a porous Patriots run defense, and they should be able to do that early and often. Even if he gets slowed down on the ground, don’t be surprised if he is one of Winston’s favorite targets in the passing game.
Kamara poses mismatches all over the field as a receiver, and you can bet the Saints will take advantage of that. He’s too fast for linebackers, and if you use a safety on him, you expose the back of your secondary. It wouldn’t be surprising to see Adrian Phillips try to shadow Kamara for most of this one, but that’s a big task to assign to just one player.
Next. Ball security a big concern for the Pats. dark
Kamara will be the difference in this one, as he will go for 150 total yards and two touchdowns. The New England Patriots inability to slow him down results in them taking a tough luck loss against the Saints, and they fall to 1-2 as a result. Final Score: Saints – 17, Patriots – 14