Saints Report # 9 - November 14, 2021

John Steinbeck’s last novel, published in 1961, was the “Winter of Our Discontent” and the only reason it wasn’t about the New Orleans Saints was because they didn’t exist yet.  If he were writing today about Saints Fandom, it would undoubtedly be titled "Autumn of Our Frustration."

The Saints lost another winnable game 23-21 to the AFC’s best team, the Tennessee Titans, in Nashville.  Probably 75% of NFL Games are close ones that could go either way, and that way is usually decided by just a few points.  In this game it was:

• 2 missed extra points by the 4^th placekicker of the year, soon to be an ex.  Sometimes they don’t matter, but in this game they greatly affected strategy.  The Saints lost by 2, you notice.
• More dropped passes, although not as many as last week.
• A wiped-out Tannehill end zone interception by Marcus Williams.  Kaden Ellis was flagged for illegally playing football when he pressured Tannehill.  It was a terrible call, and it wasn’t just Saints fans who thought so.
• Two critical back to back sacks of Trevor Siemian at the end of the first half.  The Saints were driving in the final minute when he tried to dance out of pressure.  He had time, and should have thrown the ball away.  Siemian shows some promise, but his feet are reminiscent of Drew Bledsoe.  Movement in the pocket is not a strong suit.      
• A Devonte Harris fumble of the second half kickoff that tee’d up an easy TD.  Payton almost always defers when the Saints win the toss, because he wants that first possession of the second half.  In this game, that possession lasted 7 seconds.  His strategy is to score late in the first half, then hopefully back to back to start the 2^nd.  That’s pretty much what happened here, but for the Titans.  They scored a touchdown with 1:38 left in the first half, then 3:00 into the 2^nd half.  The Titans scored their two touchdowns in this 4 minute span.   They kicked 2 field goals before, and one after this sequence, as the Saints defense again played well.
• The Saints got down to the 3 yard line with 8:44 left in the game.  At 5:35 after several miscues by both teams, they settled for a field goal to bring them within 8, and it took way too long.
• Adam Trautman pulled a Brad Edelman and got called for illegal procedure on the two point conversion try late in the game.  A successful conversion would have tied the game.  Instead the Saints got moved back to the 7 and their try fell incomplete.  Game over.

Any of these incidents could have changed the game.  It’s the way things are going for the Saints right now. The wrong way.

The tar on the cake is the same as last week.  A win would’ve moved the Saints ahead of the faltering TB Bucs to lead the division. The Bucs are floundering and the Saints can’t take advantage.  A fifth straight division title is available, as the puzzling Saints remain 1 game back.

Think back.  Going into the season, the typical Saints fan had a preference on who would be the heir to Drew Brees, Jameis Winston or Taysom Hill.  Who would’ve thought Trevor Siemian would be in his third game, and performing quite well?  Who would’ve thought the Saints would be playing well against good teams, and poorly against bad teams?  Who would've thought Mark Ingram would be back starting games for the Saints, and even doing a good job?

The good news, is that the rest of the league is as inconsistent as the Saints. At 5-4 the Saints are still in the playoff hunt, but the injuries continue to cripple them, the late comebacks are falling short, and the Autumn winds don’t blow.  They suck.