Saints Bumble Their Way to an Abysmal Finale

New Orleans finished an infuriating season in infuriating fashion with an atrocious loss to Carolina. Here's how it happened.

Author:
Bob Rose
Publish date:
Jan 9, 2023 11:00 AM EST

In this story:

New Orleans Saints

Mercifully, a bitterly frustrating season for the New Orleans Saints in a loss to the Carolina Panthers on Sunday afternoon. The 10-7 loss was a microcosm of the New Orleans season -- a couple of tantalizing performances only to be done in by infuriating letdowns, bewildering play-calling and adjustments, and inept coaching.

Carolina was only slightly less bad offensively than the Saints as both teams came to a 7-10 record to close the season.

New Orleans tore through the Panthers defense on the opening drive of the game. They flawlessly marched 75 yards in eight plays that ended with an impressive 25-yard scoring pass to rookie WR Chris Olave. The team squandered three other terrific scoring opportunities in the first half to keep the game close. After that, the Saints offense went into a shell for another of countless times this season.

Defensively, New Orleans played well enough to win. Yet Again. The Saints lost a game where they actually won the turnover margin (2-1) and held the Panthers to just 203 yards of total offense. A meager 43 of those yards were through the air. However, 21 of those came on one play during Carolina's final drive to set up the game-winning field goal.

It was an infuriating way to end an infuriating season for the Saints, who finished with double-digit losses for the first time since 2005.

Thumbs Up

Defense

New Orleans Saints defensive tackle David Onyemata (93) tackles Carolina Panthers running back D'Onta Foreman (33). Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports

New Orleans tied a franchise record with their sixth straight game of holding an opponent under 20 points. It's a record they now share with the great Dome Patrol units of 1991 and 1992.

The Saints held the Panthers to just 60 first half yards. They put tremendous pressure on Carolina QB Sam Darnold, sacking him twice and forcing him to scramble or throw the ball away several times. Darnold was just 5 of 15 for 43 yards and two interceptions.

Despite the absence of S Marcus Maye and CB Paulson Adebo, the Saints were outstanding in the secondary. Tyrann Mathieu finished off a disappointing year strong with his third interception of the season and made plays all over the field. Corners Marshon Lattimore and Alontae Taylor blanketed Panthers receivers, leaving Darnold no place to go with the ball.

Carolina Panthers quarterback Sam Darnold (14) scrambles out the pocket against New Orleans Saints defensive end Malcolm Roach (97) and linebacker Demario Davis (56). Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports

Defensive tackle David Onyemata had his best game since 2020, providing excellent interior pass rush and a few key stops against the run. Fellow tackles Malcolm Roach and Kentavius Street also got into the Panthers backfield several times. Ends Cameron Jordan, Tanoh Kpassagnon, and Marcus Davenport (before he was elected) also created havoc for Carolina throughout the afternoon.

The Saints struggled against the run again, giving up 171 yards and allowing the Panthers to move the ball in the second half. Roach and Jordan each missed multiple sacks of Darnold that also could have strengthened momentum.

This game wasn't lost by the defense. The unit has played at a championship-level for the last half of the year. They'll finish the year ranked fifth in total defense and second against the pass. The Saints held 10 opponents to 20 points or less during the year. Incredibly, their record in those games was just 5-5.

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Alvin Kamara

Kamara led all rushers with 107 yards on 23 carries. Most of those were tough yards between the tackles. Throughout the contest, Kamara pushed through first contact for extra yards.

New Orleans started three backup offensive linemen against Carolina. While the unit didn't play badly, it was often on the 27-year-old Kamara to make something happen against a defense geared to stop him.

Kamara's production stalled in the second half after 74 yards on the ground in the first two quarters. Even then, whatever yardage he picked up was a result of tremendous individual effort.

Alvin Kamara has not had a great season, despite finishing with 897 yards on the ground. He saved his best for the stretch run. Kamara rushed for at least 70 yards in each of the last four games, including his 100-yard outing on Sunday and another of 91 yards.

Thumbs Down

Offense

Carolina Panthers linebacker Frankie Luvu (49) blocks a pass from New Orleans Saints quarterback Andy Dalton (14). Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-USA TODAY

New Orleans was facing a Carolina pass defense that had been torched in the last four games. During the first drive, the Saints looked like they were poised for a big outing.

It didn't happen.

New Orleans squandered three scoring opportunities in the first half that would have blown the game open. The first was a missed 44-yard field goal by Wil Lutz, one of his two misses on the day. On that drive Andy Dalton overlooked a wide open Taysom Hill for what would have been a sure touchdown. The second missed chance was when the Saints were stuffed on fourth-and-short at the Carolina 21-yard line. On the third, Olave took a reception inside the Panthers 25, but fumbled away possession.

After completing all four of his throws for 59 yards on the opening drive, Dalton was just 11 of 21 for 112 yards the rest of the game. Olave (5 catches, 60 yards) had okay statistical production. However, he also had a few critical drops, miscommunication on deep routes, and the back-breaking fumble near the red zone.

While the New Orleans defense was holding six straight opponents under 20 points, they were getting no help from their offense. In those games, the Saints offense averaged a meager 12.3 points per contest.

Against Carolina, the Saints managed just 74 yards and were an abysmal 1 of 7 on third downs in the second half. Five of their nine failed third down attempts in the game were with less than five yards to go.

The defense played well enough to win, but the offense couldn't put points on the board or even sustain a drive to put the game away. It was a continuous problem throughout the year with the responsibility being divided between poor execution and play-calling.

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Pete Carmichael/Dennis Allen

New Orleans Saints offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael (left) looks on with head coach Dennis Allen (right). Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-USA TODAY

Remember when Alvin Kamara was the most dangerous receiving back in the NFL? Pepperidge Farms may remember, offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael and HC Dennis Allen clearly do not. Kamara was targeted only twice against Carolina with one catch for 3 yards. It was the fifth straight game that Kamara has been targeted less than five times and eighth such occurrence this year.

Most of the time that Kamara is involved in a pass route, it's out of the backfield rather than lined up out wide, where he provides a mismatch nearly impossible to defend for defenses. The Saints have had a difficult time getting their dynamic running back in space all year. That might have been one way to do it.

How often this season have the Saints been in a crucial short-yardage situation with either Kamara or Taysom Hill (or both) on the sideline? Hill is the team’s best inside runner, but rarely this season have we seen him behind center with Kamara split wide to stretch defenses from sideline-to-sideline. Only once against Carolina did we see Hill attempt a pass, allowing the Panthers to crowd the tackle box when he was in the backfield.

Dennis Allen is a defensive-minded coach who clearly has a conservative offensive mindset. However, he also has the power to influence the play-calling or strategy of Carmichael, his offensive coordinator.

The Saints have gone into an ultra conservative offensive shell through most of the second half of this season and it's often cost them dearly. This team has failed to adjust to their opponents throughout the year and put entirely too much strain on their defense in second halves.

New Orleans Saints tight end Taysom Hill (7) calls a play in the huddle against the Carolina Panthers. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-USA TODAY

In their last 10 games, the Saints have averaged 6.1 points and 37% on 3rd downs in the second half. They've failed to reach the end zone in five of those games, going scoreless in four of them including yesterday. New Orleans has been held to less than 100 second half yards in each of the last two contests, with only their defense saving them last week.

Yes, the offense has been limited by Dalton, injuries along the offensive line, and some personnel shortcomings. However, this is still a unit that has the explosive Kamara, versatile Hill, and saw the emergence of pass catchers Olave, Rashid Shaheed, and Juwan Johnson.

New Orleans played hard down the stretch, which should result in Dennis Allen returning in 2023. However, it seems likely that Carmichael and several offensive assistants will be replaced. Allen may have earned another year of employment, but it's clear that a major philosophical change is also needed along with personnel upgrades at several spots for the 2023 Saints.