Can Marshon turn things around against this big-name receiver?
As the New Orleans Saints prepare for a matchup with the Buffalo Bills on Thanksgiving, one matchup to keep an eye on will be that of Marshon Lattimore and Stefon Diggs.
The Saints are currently 6-point underdogs to the Bills, according to DraftKings sportsbook, and one reason for that is the talent of Stefon Diggs.
Stefon Diggs is obviously a name that evokes shudders from Saints fans, but he is a top-notch NFL wideout when healthy.
Last year, Diggs led the league in receiving yards (1,535) and catches (127) on a ridiculous 78.4% catch rate. While he hasn’t quite matched his 2020 dominance, he’s still put up elite level numbers in 2021 on a good offense.
His 773 receiving yards ranks ninth among qualifying WRs, while his 82.6 PFF receiving grade ranks 10th and he only has one drop on 90 targets.
Marshon Lattimore, on the other hand, has had a rough go at it lately. After starting the year off marvelously with a league-leading 11 pass breakups and two interceptions through the first five games of the year, he’s completely fallen back down to earth over the last five games.
His numbers since Week 7 have been shockingly bad.
In that time span, his 431 yards allowed and 199 yards after catch allowed are by far the most among all cornerbacks, and he’s allowing an almost-perfect 156.3 passer rating when targeted. He’s allowing a 75% catch rate, and his 20.5 yards per catch allowed is fifth-worst among CBs.
Whew.
We all know what he’s capable of when he’s locked in and healthy, but this inconsistency is just something that he’s shown year in and year out since the first couple seasons in the league.
Hopefully, a matchup with a star receiver like Diggs can wake him up a bit.
It will be interesting to see if Saints defensive coordinator Dennis Allen has Lattimore follow Diggs around or not, as Diggs does play on the outside on 78.3% of his receiving snaps.
If he does, this will be a showdown worth keeping an eye on in this game, whether good or bad.
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