When was the last time the Saints started 2-5?

The New Orleans Saints lost 42-34 to the Arizona Cardinals on Thursday Night Football and the loss dropped the Saints to 2-5 on the year. It's quite the hole to try to dig themselves out of, as they're three games under .500 and don't look like a competent football team whatsoever.

We knew that there'd be growing pains in the Dennis Allen era but a lot of people thought this team would be a playoff contender entering the season. The Saints clearly believed they were a playoff contender too, as they traded their 2023 first-round pick to Philadelphia so that they could take two players in the first round this year.

Unfortunately, the Allen era is off to a brutal start. While there were certainly some rough seasons during the Sean Payton era, the team never started out 2-5 under his tutelage.

In fact, the last time the Saints were 2-5 to start the year was in 2012, when Payton was suspended for the Bounty Gate allegations.

The Saints have not been 2-5 since 2012.

New Orleans went 13-3 in 2011 and their season ended in the Divisional Round against the 49ers. The following offseason, the bounty gate allegations came about and Payton was suspended for the entire 2012 season as a result. The Saints finished the season with a 7-9 record, which would be a welcomed sight for this year's team if they were able to get seven wins on the year.

This year's Saints team is bad and the first seven games have proven just that. The Dennis Allen-led Saints have turned the ball over, committed sloppy penalty after sloppy penalty, and just overall played gross football.

Allen's thing has always been defense too so why is the defense not playing well? They're not forcing turnovers, they're getting gashed in the run, and the tackling is abysmal. What the heck is going on with Allen's beloved defense?

It's been a really bad start to the Dennis Allen era in New Orleans and if he doesn't turn things around quickly, the Allen era might only last one year.