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3 Saints the Cleveland Browns should watch out for in Week 16

By Elliot Kennel

Oct 20, 2022; Glendale, Arizona, USA; New Orleans Saints safety Tyrann Mathieu (32) against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 20, 2022; Glendale, Arizona, USA; New Orleans Saints safety Tyrann Mathieu (32) against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports /
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Oct 16, 2022; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Saints linebacker Kaden Elliss (55) sacks Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow (9) during the second half at Caesars Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports /

1. Kaden Elliss, LB

Kaden Elliss isn’t exactly a household name, but he is tied for second on the team with 5.5 sacks. This too is a surprising stat for a SAM linebacker, who is normally not a sackmeister. However, he has teamed with Demario Davis to give the Saints two blitzing linebacker threats.

Elliss was a seventh-round draft pick for the Saints out of Idaho in 2019 NFL. He suffered a torn ACL in his rookie season and didn’t start at all in 2020 before earning just one start in 2021. This season, he’s been a starter all season and has been a mainstay for the Saints’ defense. He is only played in 53% of the Saints’ defensive snaps but nevertheless has accumulated 64 tackles, an impressive number when you consider he has essentially played only half-time up to this point.

Elliss is 6-foot-3 and 238 pounds, which isn’t particularly huge for a SAM linebacker. Nevertheless, Pro Football Focus rates his game as strongest against the run and pass rush, and less strong in coverage, though his grades are well above average in all three categories.

Now, for those who want to do a deep dive into the significance of PFF grades, we might question the significance of high grades and good stats in the NFC South. It’s just a fact that NFL football has not been played at its highest level in that division. However, he played some of his best football against Pittsburgh and Cincinnati, so that argument sort of goes out the window.

Those are legitimate games that the Dawg Pound truly cares about. Thus, the Browns must expect that Elliss will bring his A-game on Saturday.

So there you have it, Dawg Pound. This week, three Saints defenders are highlighted because it is expected that the defensive unit will be the more dominant. When the over/under is 32.5, it is probably appropriate to expect a defensive struggle rather than an offensive shootout.

New Orleans has some true talent on defense, and the Cleveland offense has their work cut out for them if they want to show that they can be a threat to make the playoffs. With all that being said, could the Saints’ offense have a few surprises in store?

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