The New Orleans Saints fell short to the Buffalo Bills, but the loss was much more encouraging than expected it to be. The biggest reason why was the consistency of Spencer Rattler and Kellen Moore on offense, and plays like Jonas Sanker's interception on defense. In many ways, it felt like the best performance by the Saints this season.
It wasn't just the interception by Sanker. The defense made timely stops that put the offense in position. Sometimes they delivered, and other times they didn't. This was the Saints' best opponent of the year, and will probably remain true throughout the season. The Saints pushed that team into the fourth quarter before the Bills eventually created a little distance.
There were moments in the game that held the Saints back, and you'll look to fix those as the season progresses. If you're looking at the process over the results, this was an encouraging performance. The truth is Buffalo is the superior team. We wanted to see how the Saints would play, and they showed sparks on both sides of the ball.
The Saints were much more competitive than expected
There was nobody who thought this was a competitive game between the Saints and Bills. Not only were the Bills expected to win this game, Vegas had the Saints as 15.5 point underdogs. This was the largest odds the Saints had faced in 40 years.
The oddsmakers aren't the only ones who had their jaws on the floor when the Saints had Buffalo engaged in a tight game with less than 10 minutes left in the fourth quarter. You won't find many Saints fans who were expecting the game to be close that late.
Seeing the Saints play the Bills this close was a welcomed and shocking sight after the abysmal performance they put on against the Seahawks a week ago. The team looked competent and competitive, two adjectives you couldn't use a week ago.
Rattler once again showed decisiveness with his legs. The offense showcased the rhythm seen in the first two weeks. Defensively, you're going against Josh Allen and James Cook were going to naturally present you some issues. The ability to show highs in the process, however, was encouraging.