The final score makes it look as if this was a game for four full quarters. It wasn't. The Saints impressively bounced back from their early-game (majority of the game) struggles with an almost unfathomable comeback, but ultimately fell short.
New Orleans remarkably sits 3-4 after another loss and two games out of first in the NFC South. The division's mediocrity may keep them in for an extended period.
Another loss? Who is to blame? These figures take the most of it.
Absent from this list is tight end Foster Moreau who dropped a very catchable pass on third-and-goal that would have put New Orleans an extra point away from tying.
The ball bounced off his fingertips. While black and white, those points would have put the Saints in a good position to win the game, this was a loss that has to be shouldered by other figures first and foremost who had better and more frequent opportunities to get a tally in the win column.
Dennis Allen
Most of the concerns and issues having to do with the Saints the last several seasons have landed on Dennis Allen's shoulders, whether fair or not. Such is life as the head coach and ultimate leader of a pro football team.
Tonight, I keep him on the list of people to blame, though I feel more guilty about it this week than usual.
The Saints defense -- which Allen calls plays for -- was OK but not necessarily good or great, but that was not the problem on a night like tonight. The chokepoints of the performance were all on the offensive side. Allen carries the blame for the team at large but doesn't catch quite as much flack for the offensive performance.
That said, the defense should have looked way better tonight than it did. Trevor Lawrence was a game-time decision quarterback with a brace on his knee. Such a predicament should have rendered the Jags offense virtually one-dimensional, yet, they managed to put up 31 points. Worse, Lawrence, who was thought to be pocket-locked given the concerns over his knee, escaped the pocket eight times and scrambled for 59 rushing yards.
Then, there is the offense. No, Allen doesn't call the offensive plays, but the more this problem continues, the more one has to start thinking he's not exactly tackling the issue with much aggression. Outside looking in, he seems quite passive in regards to the whole paralysis of the scoring side of the ball.
I'm not saying come out with fire and brimstone in press conferences, but put the heat on a little bit. Say something about all 11 starting jobs being on the line if things don't change. Anything to make us feel like the issue is at least as big to the coaches as it is to the fans.
Pete Carmichael
Pete Carmichael's offense has years of goodwill built up in New Orleans. With the team since 2008, he has helped architect years of the dynamic, pass-heavy scheme the team rolled out under Drew Brees. He is part of the reason Brees, despite physical limitations, is a future Hall of Fame, Super Bowl-winning quarterback.
Working with Sean Payton helped his reputation, no doubt, but Carmichael had over a decade of trust from Payton. That means something, and Payton is not the kind of coach to let someone ride his coattails or take undue credit.
His offense even made Jameis Winston and Taysom Hill look like serviceable starters for short periods of time in previous years. So why isn't it working for Derek Carr, a thought-to-be far better quarterback than those two?
For what it's worth, this week's play-calling was much better. But in a game where you don't score a touchdown, the offensive coordinator must bear some brunt of the blame. Carr and Carmichael were engaged in a fiery discussion on the sideline during the game. Clearly, they are out of sync. Regardless of whether it's Carr's fault or Carmichael's, it's the coordinator's job to keep things calm and build a positive working relationship with his QB.
That, clearly, isn't happening.
Though receivers were more open this week than in prior weeks, red zone play calling still felt curious at times. A pitch backward to Kamara on a third-and-goal in the fourth quarter down by 15? Was that really going to work? We can claw away at the minutae of it all forever, but a quick glance should show you this offense just isn't working. That's on Pete.
Derek Carr
There were high hopes for Derek Carr in New Orleans. After the post-Drew Brees era featured Jameis Winston, Taysom Hill, and Trevor Siemian as starting quarterbacks, a reliable steady quarterback like Carr sounded like a good idea.
Even better when you consider the weapons he inherited: Michael Thomas, Chris Olave, Rashid Shaheed. Speedy, dynamic receivers galore. Mixing in a quarterback who can feed the ball but just needs open targets was going to be a dream setup.
That is, until it wasn't. The Saints aren't even lukewarm on offense, they're straight-up ice cold. Carr is missing open receivers. Whether that's something to do with the reads he and Carmichael are strategizing or something else, it's hard to say.
Carr misses the open man and throws to empty space. Or, he misses the easy check-down and throws to the player in double coverage.
The fact that Carr isn't taking more sacks or throwing more interceptions is remarkable, because optically spoethe results should be far worse.
Then, there's body language. Arguably the worst part of this whole situation. Carr, supposed to be a leader of the team, is engaged in shouting matches with Carmichael and Chris Olave throughout the night. Yes, it's frustrating when the playbook isn't working itself out. It's frustrating when a reeceiver gives up on a route.
But the optics of throwing a borderline tantrum and losing cool on the sideline are not good. Doing it multiple times in one game? Even worse.
As tough or unfair as it is, Carr is expected to keep himself level and steady in these moments. He couldn't do that on Thursday.
