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The New Orleans Saints rallied back in the second half, but they couldn’t work quickly enough to avoid an upset to the Philadelphia Eagles. Too many mistakes and a poor week of preparation set them up for failure. New Orleans has fallen to 10-3 on the year so far, and they’ll have to rebound in a big way just to clinch the NFC South.
Eagles rookie quarterback Jalen Hurts led the way with 273 total yards, going 17-of-30 for 167 passing yards while running 18 times for 106 rushing yards. He was never sacked behind a patchwork offensive line that recently lost All-Pro tackle Jason Peters to season-ending toe surgery.
Hurts didn’t do it alone, though. Running back Miles Sanders snapped a 55-game streak for the Saints run defense by gaining 115 rushing yards, twice finding the end zone. The Saints typically hang their hats on their run defense, but it fell to pieces on Sunday.
A big part of the problem was the game plan. This same Eagles defense gave up 156 rushing yards to subpar New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones in two meetings earlier this year, allowing him to average 12 yards per attempt. You’d think that the Saints would learn from that and let Hill, marketed as one of the game’s premier mobile quarterback prospects, run wild; instead Saints coach Sean Payton stubbornly tried to win his own way by asking Hill to throw 38 times, with just 5 carries (on which he gained 33 yards, averaging 6.6 yards per rush).
But Hill deserves blame too. His inability to detect pressure and slow processing ability in the pocket allowed the Eagles to get after him without blitzing, sacking him five times on the day. He also wasn’t able to shift gears and run a higher tempo late in the fourth quarter with the Saints down multiple scores and the clock ticking away. Maybe he can learn to play with a deficit. But this performance wasn’t inspiring.
It ultimately came down to the Saints getting outcoached on both sides of the ball. Their highly-decorated offensive line folded in the face of pressure. Their highly-drafted defensive line wasn’t able to get a bead on Hurts. That suggests they weren’t prepared for this much fight from the Eagles, who joined other NFC East teams in a parade of upsets in recent weeks.
Last week, the Washington Football Team upset the then-undefeated Pittsburgh Steelers, 23-17. That followed the Giants’ surprising 17-12 win over the Seattle Seahawks a day earlier. Playoff contenders like the Saints, Steelers, and Seahawks have been taking their matchups with lowly NFC East teams for granted, and it’s bitten each of them.
So where do the Saints go next? The NFC South championship isn’t out of the question, but it’s not going to be easy after dropping this game. But the No. 1 seed in the NFC is a long shot especially if the Green Bay Packers keep stacking wins. The Saints had an opportunity to clinch the division and focus on their playoff positioning. But they couldn’t take care of their business, and they’ve got no one to blame but themselves.
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