Who Dat? New Orleans Saints struggle in loss to Eagles

Destiny control – gone. Win streak – gone. Hope – not gone. But the path gets tougher for the New Orleans Saints.

The Saints went into Sunday’s game against the Philadelphia Eagles knowing full well the situation. They needed to make sure they won against the Eagles to stay a game in front of the Green Bay Packers in the race to have home-field advantage through the playoffs.

They knew they were facing a team that has been struggling lately. And they knew they were facing a rookie QB behind a battered offensive line. They did not step up to the challenge.

The Saints have notoriously played poorly against rookie QBs in their early starts over the years. Add Jalen Hurts to the likes of RGIII against whom the Saints struggled.

But this wasn’t just about the failure to contain a QB, this was about a game plan that seemed to be lackluster. This team was just not good in any aspect of the game. Some have attributed that to it being the third road game in a row.

But the NFL isn’t like the NBA where you’re on the road for maybe a week or more at a time. You play a game and come home. And there are few if any fans (none yesterday) so there is less to overcome on that front.

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No, this wasn’t about road fatigue. It was simply that game. Can’t call it a trap game, because professionals aren’t supposed to be victims of that. Maybe it’s just that time of year – the Saints have lost a game in Week 14 or 13 of the NFL season every year dating back to 2012.

Offensively, the Saints never seemed in sync. Terron Armstead was just returning from missing time due to COVID and he didn’t seem to be himself.

And when Armstead is not 100 percent, Andrus Peat also seems to struggle. They had a tough time with an admittedly good front for the Eagles. It was just odd because the Saints have fared well with other decent defensive fronts.

The Eagles got after Taysom Hill for five sacks. The pressure on him much of the day was the story for the sluggish offensive output.

The Saints tried to run some screens to alleviate that pass rush, but those were likewise blown up. What was odd was that the Eagles had a rash of injuries and the Saints didn’t seem to take advantage of going up the seams or challenging the young DBs.

Some have pointed a finger at Hill, saying he didn’t have a great game. Hill was 28 of 38 for 291 yards and two TDs along with his one interception. That’s as good as one might expect of any QB. They didn’t use him as much in the run game which was odd, but that’s the coaching, not Hill.

Hill did again put the ball in the other team’s hands twice and that cannot happen. But this game was more about the other issues than Hill’s shortcomings. He’s turned the ball over twice a few times before and the Saints won because we did other things well.

They didn’t do anything else well Sunday.

There’s not much to be said about the defense beyond it being their worst performance since the Raiders game.

The Eagles were a team without weapons in the passing game so the task was simple – stop the running game and keep Jalen Hurts contained. We are a strong rushing defense so this shouldn’t be a problem.

Except it was. Their much-maligned offensive line created chasms for RB Miles Sanders to run through. And the Saints didn’t have the discipline necessary to keep Hurts bottled in the pocket, nor did we spy him to keep him honest.

So a Saints defense that hadn’t allowed a 100-yard rusher in 55 games – over three years – gave 100-plus yards to TWO people in one game.

It was as rough performance by the defense as we’ve seen in some time. The black and gold didn’t harass Hurts much and didn’t sack him at all. There was but a single takeaway on defense. Against this offense that had so many issues, these are all disappointing points.

And special teams isn’t quite right. Who Dats absolutely miss Deonte Harris in the return game. Tommylee Lewis is good but Harris is special. Even Marquez Callaway, also injured, would be a better situation for the team.

They made a poor mental mistake on a Morstead punt in playing the returner instead of watching for the ball and allowed a touchback.

Wil Lutz has had a rough go of it lately, missing four field goals in the last four games. That includes two missed Sunday against Philadelphia. One was 57 yards, and those are more tolerable misses. The other was 45 yards. While no one is perfect, Lutz hits those with regularity so that miss was odd; and, unfortunately, untimely.

Suffice it to say this was the equivalent of last year’s home game against the Atlanta Falcons when the Saints – a decidedly better team – came off a bye week and failed to score a single touchdown against the Falcons. It was simply a lackluster performance.

This week the Saints have to get right in a big way. They face the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs, a team many consider as the best in the league and poised to repeat as champions. The Saints have no margin for error.

They now do not control their destiny for home field throughout the playoffs or a first-round bye. A victory against the Chiefs wouldn’t necessarily erase the loss to the Eagles, but it would mark it as an anomaly and have the Saints again completely considered among the league elite.