Unable to get out of their own way, Saints fall 23-21 to Titans

The New Orleans Saints couldn’t win for losing in Sunday’s game with the Tennessee Titans. It seemed like every big play was wiped out by a penalty, a dropped pass, or a botched assignment. They traveled to Tennessee and left with a 23-21 loss. It was the Saints’ second consecutive two-point loss.

Two missed point-after attempts by rookie kicker Brian Johnson soared wide of the goalposts and loomed large as the game continued. So too did the four sacks that quarterback Trevor Siemian took, most of them coming in an ugly series before halftime. The Saints just couldn’t get out of their own way.

Too many defensive breakdowns let the Titans pick up chunks of yardage, including an early 50-yard gain by backup receiver Marcus Johnson. Marshon Lattimore split time covering A.J. Brown with running against Johnson, and too often he let off the gas to let Johnson rack up 5 catches for 100 receiving yards — Johnson went into the game with just 4 receptions for 60 yards on the season. After a really promising start to his season, Lattimore has sunken back into bad habits and risen and fallen to the quality of his opponents.

But most of our ire should be focused on the Saints offense. Sure, they were banged up without their starting left tackle or left guard, but second-year starters like Cesar Ruiz can’t get bulldozed or slip and fall this often. Last season’s first round draft pick has continued to be a liability. Poor blocking up front allowed too many of Siemian’s passes to be batted down at the line of scrimmage. Despite averaging a healthy 4.1 rushing yards as a team, Sean Payton still had his offense attempt 38 passing plays.

Now their season is on the line in next week’s road game with the Philadelphia Eagles, who upset them in a big way just last year. If Payton can’t get his undermanned offense back on schedule, they risk slipping and falling out of the playoff picture altogether.

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