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New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara (ankle) and tight end Juwan Johnson (chest) headline a list of seven players listed as questionable for the Saints' week 18 matchup with the Atlanta Falcons.
SAINTS OFFENSE: OVERALL (20), RUSH (23), PASS (15), SCORING (24 ) SAINTS DEFENSE: OVERALL (5), RUSH (9), PASS (5), SCORING (6) TURNOVER DIFFERENTIAL: Jaguars plus-7; Saints plus-2. JAGUARS PLAYER TO WATCH: RB Travis Etienne will play in his home state for the first time in his three-year NFL career. The former Clemson standout from Jennings, Louisiana, has 191 yards rushing and four touchdowns in Jacksonville's past two games.
Last week he improved his team-leading sack total to 3½, tied a career high for tackles for loss in a game with three and pressured Patriots QB Mac Jones into an interception that Tyrann Mathieu returned for a touchdown. Granderson now has eight QB hurries, which easily leads the club. His play early this season motivated the Saints to sign him in September to a four-year extension worth up to $52 million.
Pleased as Saints quarterback Derek Carr was about the best all-around game by far that New Orleans has played in his first season with the club, he wasn't about to lose sight of the big picture. The 34-0 triumph in New England came only one week after a bitterly disappointing loss at home in a division matchup game to Tampa Bay, and it came against a Patriots team that has been reeling lately. “I’ve been in tough times, and when you do go out and have a good day, it’s always a relief,” Carr said after Sunday's game.
The Saints are eager to see how much more room he has to operate with two-time All-Pro receiver Michael Thomas returning from a foot injury that sidelined him for all but the first three games last season. KEY MATCHUP: The Titans' revamped offensive line against a Saints defense that was among the NFL's best with 48 sacks last season. Only Aaron Brewer returns as a Titans' starter, and he slid from LG to C. KEY INJURIES: Titans: CB Tre Avery (Hamstring), OLB Harold Landry (abdomen), OL Dillon Radunz (knee).