The New Orleans Saints kickoff their season against the Arizona Cardinals in 20 days. When we do our countdown to kickoff, we typically have to go back years to find a play of the day. Not this time. We continue counting down to Saints kickoff with a look at Spencer Rattler's touchdown from Sunday's preseason game versus the Jacksonville Jaguars.
This had to be one of the more dramatic conclusions to a Saints preseason game in years. Rattler connected with Dante Pettis with just under 30 seconds left on the clock. That's not where the dramatics ended, however. The Saints were still two points behind. Rattler used his legs to convert the two point conversion.
It didn’t get simpler when the Jaguars got the ball. With less than 10 seconds left, they attempted to get in closer field goal range. That’s when the ball was tipped up and Jonas Sanker caught an interception. Even the interception return was a subject of controversy.
Spencer Rattler comes up clutch with big time throw
If Spencer Rattler wins the quarterback battle against Tyler Shough, this is going to be the play and moment that everyone points back to. Rattler showed good ball placement to not lead Pettis out of bounds. That was a major part of the play, because without it, the Saints are trying to punch it in from inside the 10 yard line. That hasn't been a strong suit of the team in preseason.
Rattler showed the ability to drive the team down the field in a must-have situation, as well as the poise to bounce back from a critical mistake. The battle will continue into the final preseason game, but it's hard to see that scene and not see a team rallying around their guy.
The play occurred within a clutch drive, so it makes sense the attention goes to the quarterback. Honestly, Pettis doesn't get nearly enough credit for his contributions on this play. Obviously he caught the pass, but it's treated like it was an easy play for him. It wasn't.
Pettis had to deal with late interference from the defensive back. He showed the ability to focus on the ball then turn upfield for the score. It looked relatively routine, but this was a big time play by Pettis, just like Rattler.