By Ross Jackson
NEW ORLEANS — It’s been a game of “almosts” for the New Orleans Saints in their first half against the Las Vegas Raiders.
For all intents and purposes, the Saints should be up multiple scores over the Raiders. Rookie quarterback Spencer Rattler is dealing, but self-inflicted wounds, penalties and poor defense have kept this one close.
Despite the challenges, the Saints are seeing some promising play from Rattler. However, the story otherwise has been frustrating.
On the opening drive, a great pass from rookie quarterback Spencer Rattler up the seam was dropped upon contact. The pass would have put the team in position to walk away with at least a field goal. But two plays later, after a false start penalty on offensive lineman Oli Udoh, the Saints were forced to punt.
A trick play resulted in the Saints’ first touchdown score, a strike from Rattler to tight end Foster Moreau after a throwback by running back Kendre Miller off of a handoff. That play, right out of the first quarter break, resulted in the team’s only touchdown of the first half.
The next drive, Rattler scrambled away from pressure, after having some time in the pocket. As he scrambled to the right side of the field, he found Johnson wide open over the middle and hit him for what could have been a second touchdown pass, depending on when the tight end was contacted relative to the end zone. Instead, a holding penalty on rookie left tackle Taliese Fuaga negated the play and forced a third-and-20 and an eventual punt.
As New Orleans struggled to get a real evaluation of its young quarterback, those plays will still be a part of what the team reviews. However the impact on the scoreboard is massively impacted.
The “almosts” haven’t been limited to the offense either. What was originally a three-and-out to open the game turned into a 17-play field goal drive.
Several almost-tackles have paved the way to a 5.4 rushing yard average for the NFL’s worst rushing offense.
An almost-sack by Saints defensive Chase Young, instead turned into a 17-yard completion from Raiders quarterback Aidan O’Connell to the team’s star rookie tight end Brock Bowers.
Even with a rookie quarterback and an injured offensive unit, the Saints’ biggest first-half weakness continues to be its defense.
Rattler completed 11 of his 13 passes for 146 passing yards and a touchdown pass. The Saints are trailing 13-10 but get the ball back after some momentum to close out the first half. The task for New Orleans will be whether or not its defense can improve in the final half hour, or if the team’s offense can outproduce what the defense continues to surrender.
