Gardner Minshew will be the Raiders’ starting QB in Week One (a development that doesn’t exactly excite us); RB Jaylen Warren (hamstring) may not be ready for the season opener; and the Bucs have released OL Randy Gregory, who never did reveal why he didn’t show up to camp.

Can Klink Kubiak Improve New Orleans’ Attack?

Despite averaging fewer yards per game last season, the New Orleans Saints actually improved from 19th to 14th in YPG, but there’s definitely still room to grow. So they brought in new offensive coordinator Klink Kubiak and charged him with revamping the attack.

While it’s foolhardy to put much stock in preseason play, we have yet to see evidence that the Saints are ready to become an offensive powerhouse. In their first exhibition game, they did manage 16 points, but went just 5-for-15 on third downs. On Sunday, New Orleans managed just 10 points, went 1-for-11 on third downs and averaged just four yards per play. Okay, it was against a defensively stout San Francisco team, so the Saints can be excused to an extent. Even so, Kubiak has been impressed with the progress so far (see video below).

As for this new look offense, gone is long-time WR Michael Thomas (knee), who was released in March. In his place is free agent signee Cedrick Wilson Jr., who will probably be WR3 or 4, but more importantly act as a veteran mentor to a very young receiving corps.

Backup QB Jameis Winston departed, to be replaced by Nathan Peterman, who adds a bit of competition for the No. 2 job behind starter Derek Carr.

Speaking of Carr, his yardage numbers may increase because Kubiak-run offenses tend to throw the ball a lot. Carr doesn’t have the greatest set of receivers to target, but there’s upside with this group, so he could reach or surpass 4,000 yards while flirting with 30 touchdown passes, thereby possibly outstripping his preseason projection as a low-end QB2.

We’re also anticipating an increase in value of the team’s core running backs — Alvin Kamara, Kendre Miller and Jamaal Williams. They had a very rough season in 2023 (especially Williams), so some organic growth is to be expected, but better deployment in a new scheme could really help turn things around.

Expect Kamara to go off the board inside the top 20 RBs, likely around the later stages of the sixth round, where his bounce back potential gives him a real chance to provide value out of that slot.

And remember that any offense that features Tayson Hill is bound to throw some surprises at you so we can’t wait to see how Kubiak deploys this weapon.

Atlanta Expected to Dominate Against the Pass

The Atlanta Falcons have been stuck in a seven-win-per-season rut for three years now, but considering how good a roster they have, there’s a great chance they reach the playoffs for the first time since 2017 and perhaps even win the division for the first time since 2016.

The expectations for Atlanta are reflected in the fact that the team is a three-point fave at home vs. Pittsburgh in Week One as per FanDuel.

There’s now enough talent on this squad that some very difficult decisions loom to get their roster down to 53 by next week. And perhaps nowhere is that more evident than in the secondary, a unit that could very well be the best in the NFL.

Holdover Jessie Bates III is a two-time Second Team All-Pro who has racked up 20 career picks. The former Brown is now being paired with free agent signing Justin Simmons, a two-time Pro Bowler who tied for the league lead in interceptions in 2022. Simmons owns 30 picks in his career.

It would be prudent for Fantasy owners to bear this in mind when their quarterbacks and receivers face this unit.

RotoRob Tune of the Day

A David Bowie side project, British-American rock band Tin Machine formed in 1988 and remained active until 1992. Their eponymous debut album came out in 1989 and included the track “Pretty Thing,” featuring guitarist Kevin Armstrong, who also played with Iggy Pop.

The post NFL Today: Will the Saints Have a Top 10 Offense? first appeared on RotoRob.