The Saints’ second-half rally fell short against the Jacksonville Jaguars Thursday night with New Orleans losing 31-24.
Much of the same Saints fans have seen over the last five games – four of which New Orleans has dropped – a questionable offensive performance plus the opposing quarterback breaking the pass rush wide open led to the loss. Here’s what to know.
The high points for New Orleans
- Even when it looked grim, the Saints didn’t stop fighting and rallied from a 15-point deficit in the fourth quarter to tie the game at 24 with 6:48 left.
- New Orleans outpaced Jacksonville in every offensive category, including total yards (407-330), first downs (25-18), and time of possession (36:10-23:50).
- Running back Alvin Kamara had another good game with 153 yards on 29 touches.
- The defense forced and recovered two first-half fumbles.
- Kicker Blake Grupe was 3 of 4, splitting the uprights from 23, 35, and 42 yards out. The rookie also put every kickoff in the end zone.
The low points for New Orleans
- Despite more yards than the Jaguars, the Saints’ passing attack was much sloppier. Miscommunication, drops, third-down inconsistencies, and one interception returned for a touchdown were prime examples.
- The pass rush was absent with zero sacks and zero quarterback hits. A partially injured Trevor Lawrence was able to take full advantage through both the air and on the ground.
- While the offense’s red zone play continued to sputter, the defense allowed the Jaguars to go a perfect two for two when inside the 25-yard line.
- The cherry on top was a dropped game-tying touchdown by tight end Foster Moreau with 40 seconds left to play. Who knows what overtime could have led to?
What the coach is saying
After the game, New Orleans head coach Dennis Allen was not happy about his team’s performance overall but specifically how they allowed Lawrence to make plays with his feet.
“We have to do a better job of not letting the quarterback freaking scramble,” Allen said. “This was definitely a black eye on the whole performance.”
Lawrence, who is dealing with a sprained knee, finished 20 of 29 passing for 204 yards with one touchdown. He added 59 yards on the ground on eight scrambles for a 7.4-yard average.
Other notable performances
Outside of big games from Lawrence and Kamara, Saints quarterback Derek Carr finished 33 of 55 passing for 301 yards with one touchdown – caught by Michael Thomas – and an interception. Utility player Taysom Hill added a rushing touchdown when the offense looked stalled in the third quarter. Running back Travis Etienne, Jr. had two rushing touchdowns for the Jaguars, while Christian Kirk added 90 receiving yards and a score. The player of the game might have been Jacksonville linebacker Foyesade Oluokun, who had 14 tackles and a pick-six.
Next up
With nine days until they play again, New Orleans (3-4) will travel to Indianapolis on Oct. 29 to take on the Colts, currently being led by Mississippi native Gardner Minshew at quarterback. The Jaguars (5-2) will also hit the road against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
