Unfortunately, I just came back from the range and have the same problem as the OP. It is not the shooter. It is the sight setup. It is not workable. Yes, the front sight blade has to be higher.
I will contact Savage to see what they say. I am NOT happy about this and I expect much more from Savage.

I am planning to run a scope on this, but I want the irons to be proper. Otherwise, I just take off the scout rail and irons and get an EGW rail for a conventional scope setup. Not what I want to have to do. But I will.