The Saints lost a shootout with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, which was

Saints Week 1 Player of the Week: Alvin Kamara What’s up Authentic Max Unger Jersey , Who Dats? Tee Word, the #peopleschamp, is back to bring you the New Orleans Saints Player of the Week for the opening week of the 2018 NFL season. saddled by a poor performance by the defense, falling 48-40 at home. Overshadowed by the surprising outcome was the outstanding showing by the reigning Offensive Rookie of the Year Alvin Kamara. For those who watched the game, player of the week could only rightfully be awarded to an offensive player, and there were four reasonable candidates. Quarterback Drew Brees gets a nod for obvious reasons, playing a clean game while going 37/45 for 439 yards and 3 touchdowns with no interceptions. Masterful. Ted Ginn Jr. caught 5 passes for 68 yards and 1 TD, continuing his rebirth in the Big Easy. Third year stud Michael Thomas made a strong bid for the award by hauling in 16 passes for 180 yards and 1 TD, but did have a fumble at a critical juncture in the game. It would be fair to give the nod to Brees, but that’s just too easy. Kamara was everything you could have asked for in the absence of Mark Ingram. Though not as productive on the ground Sheldon Rankins Jersey Salute to Service , Kamara more than made up for it with impressive catches to keep the saints competitive very late in what appeared to be a blowout late into the game. To go along with 8 carries for 29 yards and 2 TDs, Kamara caught 9 passes for 112 yards and 1 TD. Kamara totaled 13 scores last year, and started the season off with 3 already. If the trend continues, the possibilities would rival some of the Saints most impressive individual seasons. The #giftedglider opened the season with a 5-yard TD off tackle, showing that he could do damage from the backfield. Later Kamara picked up his second rushing TD from one yard out and followed the score with a successful run for the 2-point conversion. On the Saints final scoring drive of the day, Brees found Kamara for a 7-yard TD, which was capped by 2-point conversion to Ginn. The offense did their best to salvage a win, though it was not enough to overcome 2 turnovers and no pass rush. The shining star of the day was Alvin Kamara, let’s all raise our glasses and tip our caps to #AK!Thank you for reading and as always, Be Cool Who Dats! Opposing coaches have a new reason to reconsider making Calvin Ridley the third priority in defensive plans against the Atlanta Falcons' passing game.The New Orleans Saints tried that approach last week, devoting extra defensive help to both Julio Jones and Mohamed Sanu while leaving Ridley in man-to-man coverage. Ridley took advantage of the matchups with an Atlanta rookie-record three touchdown catches Limited Ryan Ramczyk Jersey , even though the Falcons lost to the Saints, 43-37 , in overtime.Ridley's breakout game could pay off for Jones, Sanu and the offense in future games, including Sunday's visit from Cincinnati. It could be more difficult for defenses to devote double coverage to the Falcons' veteran receivers when there is compelling evidence of Ridley's speed and big-play ability shredding a defense."It will help out a lot," Sanu said Wednesday. "Calvin is explosive, as you saw on Sunday. He's definitely a game-changer for us."Ridley's three TD catches in one game matched Jones' total for his entire 2017 season. He had 146 yards receiving on seven catches. He has a team-leading four scoring catches in the last two weeks, making him look like another top target for quarterback Matt Ryan."He creates unbelievable separation," Ryan said after Wednesday's practice. "His acceleration out of cuts is really good. His patience for a young receiver versus man to man coverage, knowing how to win and the timing of the play. All of that stuff usually takes a long time to learn and he's been doing it naturally."Ridley's first touch came at tailback, where he was stopped on a run following a pitch from Ryan. His impact at receiver made that gadget play easy to forget.Ridley said he doesn't know if the big game will lead to more attention from the Bengals' defense."I really don't have any idea Authentic Alex Anzalone Jersey ," he said. "I'm just going to go out there and work and give myself the best chance to produce and give my team the best chance to win."Falcons coach Dan Quinn was careful to point out that Jones helped to create the scoring opportunities for Ridley in Atlanta's partnership of former Alabama receivers."Usually when you open the book, you're staring at 11," Quinn said of opposing defensive coordinators' worries about Jones, the two-time first-team All-Pro selection. "He's the one who gets your attention right off the bat to say 'OK, how is this man not going to wreck the game?'"Now Ridley is another big concern for defenses.Another former Alabama player, cornerback Dre Kirkpatrick, is expected to shadow Jones .Quinn said the strength of Atlanta's rejuvenated offense which has topped 30 points in back-to-back games is boasting "multiple guys who have unique skill sets. Fortunately for us, we have a few of those."The offense may have to carry a bigger load as the Falcons (1-2) attempt to replace three injured starters on defense. Safety Ricardo Allen was placed on season-ending injured reserve on Tuesday with a torn Achilles tendon suffered against the Saints.Strong safety Keanu Neal (knee) is out for the year. Linebacker Deion Jones (foot) also is on IR and must miss at least eight games.NOTES: DE Takk McKinley (groin) returned to practice after missing last week's game. ... Jones (calf) did not practice but his status is not expected to be in doubt for the game. He also was held out of practice last week before being fully cleared for the game. ... RB Devonta Freeman (knee) did not practice and is in danger of missing his third straight game. ... Quinn said DE Derrick Shelby (groin) faces an "uphill" battle to be ready for the game. Custom Atlanta Falcons Jerseys