In their first game of the 2024 season, the New Orleans Saints blew out the Carolina Panthers 47-10 at the Caesars Superdome. All three phases — offense, defense and special teams — showed out for the Saints, who dominated the game from the opening kickoff and found themselves up 30-3 at halftime.  

In offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak’s debut, the Saints offense looked as explosive as ever in the Derek Carr era. The offense clicked right from their first drive, which ended with a 59-yard bomb from Carr to Rasheed Shaheed. The offense capitalized on the short fields gifted to them, scoring on their first nine drives of the game. Carr looked sharp, going 19/23 for 200 yards and three touchdowns.  

As always, superstar running back Alvin Kamara led the offense and had his 50th career game with over 100 yards from scrimmage. Kamara rushed for an efficient 83 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries. To cap off the 100 yards from scrimmage, Kamara also caught five balls for 27 yards, bringing his final total to 110. 

The Saints tight ends also had themselves a day, with both Foster Moreau and Juwan Johnson accounting for a touchdown apiece. Moreau scored toward the end of the first quarter on a broken play that found Derek Carr rolling to his right. The entire stadium held their breath as Carr dangerously threw the ball across his body toward the middle of the endzone, where, luckily, Moreau was left open for the touchdown. Johnson’s score was a great route to the front pylon, where Carr threw a beautifully placed ball that allowed Johnson to keep both feet inbounds and complete the touchdown catch. 

While the offense was fantastic all day, the Panthers never had a chance thanks to the Saints’ defense. They forced Panthers’ quarterback Bryce Young into just 160 yards, two interceptions, and a dreadful 43% completion percentage. Young simply could not get comfortable, as the Saints brought pressure from the opening kickoff and never let up.  

Tyrann Mathieu had a solid day, as he recovered a Jonathan Mingo fumble in the second quarter and recorded four tackles. However, the true superstar on the defensive side of the ball for the Saints this weekend was cornerback Alontae Taylor, who broke a franchise record as the first Saints defensive back ever to record three sacks in a game. Taylor’s speed and aggressiveness helped him constantly reach the Panthers’ backfield, as defensive coordinator Joe Woods was dialing up pressure all game.  

For “Who Dat Nation,” this was a fantastic way to start the season, as the Saints head to Dallas next weekend with tons of enthusiasm after this emphatic win. For the Panthers and their fans, this game will be a painful one to watch back. Both sides of the ball were flat, and it felt like they never really had a chance. 

The Saints will look to keep their hot start rolling next weekend as they take on the Dallas Cowboys at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. The game will be streamed on FOX at noon CST.