4 Saints who must come up big for New Orleans to be competitive vs. Bills

A rough September for the 0-3 New Orleans Saints concludes with a trip to the 3-0 Buffalo Bills on Sunday. The Saints are coming off a 44-13 road thrashing at the hands of the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday. Buffalo also has a few extra days of rest after defeating the Miami Dolphins at home last Thursday.

Very few give the Saints a chance to even stay close with the Bills. If they do or even pull off a titanic upset, here are the players who will have to come up big.

Bryan Bresee

It goes without saying that the Saints will desperately need a disruptive pass rush to harass Buffalo quarterback Josh Allen. Getting Chase Young (calf) back into the lineup would certainly be a huge boost, but he probably won't play again. Carl Granderson returning to his form over the first two games and Cam Jordan providing disruption is also a big must. Pressuring Allen between the tackles, however, might be even more crucial.

Bryan Bresee has gotten the season off to a solid start. Bresee has yet to record a sack but has 4 pressures and 2 QB hits. He's been in offensive backfields a lot, but he must do a better job at finishing plays. His missed sack of Seattle's Sam Darnold that let to a big completion and eventual touchdown after a bone headed Bresee penalty two plays later is a perfect example.

Josh Allen is a difficult quarterback to sack. He's a strong and elusive athlete who also makes a lot of plays with his legs. If Bresee and the defensive line can get penetration, they can prevent Allen from taking off up the middle. They can also flush him outside, where hopefully Granderson and Jordan can either chase him down or force him into inaccurate throws. Additionally, Bresee and the New Orleans front must slow an underrated Bills running game that quietly ranks first in the league.

Kool-Aid McKinstry

The entire New Orleans secondary has played abysmal football this year. Isaac Yiadom is the biggest liability within this unit and needs to be benched, but McKinstry might be the biggest disappointment of the group. Going into his second year after a promising rookie season, McKinstry was expected to step into the top cornerback role. So far, he's allowed a 66.7% completion percentage, nearly 17 yards per completion, and 11 yards per target.

Most teams are targeting Yiadom with astronomical success, but McKinstry needs to play up to his abilities and second round draft status. He'll go up against an underrated but deep Buffalo receiving corps that include Keon Coleman, Khalil Shakir, Elijah Moore, and Josh Palmer. The Bills also have two outstanding tight ends in Dalton Kincaid and Dawson Knox.

Josh Allen spreads the ball around pretty evenly to all his targets. He particularly feasts on zone coverages, which the Saints npw predominantly play under new coordinator Brandon Staley. McKinstry is the most talented athlete in the New Orleans secondary. He may not be in much man coverage against the Bills, but he must show better instincts and anticipation when the ball is thrown in his area. McKinstry and the entire secondary have had far too many coverage breakdowns through three games. This unit must come together fast to salvage the team's season.

Spencer Rattler

The Saints have zero hope of winning this game if they get into an offensive shootout against the Bills. Still, they need far better output from their offense. Linemen, receivers, and backs must all pick up their play, but it starts at the quarterback position. Spencer Rattler's numbers aren't awful. He's completed 67.2% of his passes for 639 yards with 4 touchdowns and only 1 interception. But a closer look reveals a major flaw in the entire offense, albeit one of many.

Rattler is averaging a meager 5.4 yards per attempt and 8 yards per completion. The few times that the Saints try to take a shot down the field, Rattler has been extremely inaccurate. He's also been ineffective at hitting his receivers in stride consistently to give them a chance for extra yardage on the shorter routes that the Saints have based their game plans around.

Spencer Rattler is not the reason that this team is winless. Nor has he done much to put the Saints in position to win. Rattler needs to be much more accurate when New Orleans does call for a downfield shot, and also when opposing defensive backs tighten up near the red zone. A quarterback change wouldn't necessarily change the team's fortunes, but Rattler must also provide reasons for the coaches to keep him in the lineup.

Kellen Moore

Speaking of coaches, Moore needs to call plays and design game plans to take some chances instead of protecting his quarterback from potential mistakes. The Saints have some explosive athletes, but have not tested opposing defenses in any way. They've instead been content with a vanilla and unimaginative game plan that hasn't put points on the board to remain competitive.

Opening up the offense could result in more mistakes or turnovers. But this unit needs to do something to give their team a chance to win. Rattler needs better placement on his throws, but Moore needs to give him more opportunities with his playmakers Alvin Kamara, Chris Olave, and Rashid Shaheed. This is highlighted by the fact that Kamara has only 9 catches for 47 yards and Olave and Shaheed have combined to average less than 8 yards per reception.

Moore, his staff, and his team are also at a crossroads early in the season. The Saints were listless, unmotivated, and completely unprepared against the Seahawks. Now going against a far superior team in the Bills on the road, first-time head coach Moore should be under a microscope to see if his team comes out with a better performance.

This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: Saints vs. Bills preview: These four must come up big for New Orleans to be competitive