By Ross Jackson
CHARLOTTE, NC —In what may be the most consequential loss of the season for the New Orleans Saints, their seventh in a row, the Carolina Panthers closed out a 23-22 victory that will be a stain on the Saints franchise for some time.
Penalties, missed tackles and some pivotal miscues in play calling all amounted to exactly what New Orleans needed to avoid–a loss to the worst team in the NFL.
Missed tackles created explosive plays in important moments for the Panthers offense including Carolina’s first 40+ yard play of the season. Coverage allowed a big third-and-10 conversion that would eventually lead to the go-ahead rushing touchdown by Panthers running back Chubba Hubbard.
On the offensive side, the return of quarterback Derek Carr was extremely underwhelming. Of course, the loss of wide receiver Chris Olave to injury earlier in the game impacted the team’s gameplan. But it was clear that he has a lot of rust to knock off after missing three games with injury. His passes were often off-target and erratic at times.
The only thing that did go consistently well for the Saints offense was their run game. Running back Alvin Kamara and tight end Taysom Hill combined for 275 total yards, Kamara contributing 215 on his own.
New Orleans became the first team in the last 20 years to outgain their opponent by more than 150 yards and win the turnover battle in a loss. Those teams are now 275-1 with the Saints as the lone loss. This certainly intensifies the magnifying glass on head coach Dennis Allen.
Allen said in his postgame availability that he will be “fighting his ass off” as long as he remains at the helm of this club. The New Orleans front office certainly has everything they need to warrant questioning whether or not a change is necessary. But with the first seven-game losing streak for the franchise since 1999, it will be hard to sell things moving forward as they are. Especially with additional injuries piling up.
The Injuries:
- One of the scariest injuries the Saints have seen this season. Olave was hit up high by Panthers safety Xavier Woods. He was taken to a local hospital and has since been discharged. He will travel with the team back to New Orleans.
- Wide receiver Cedrick Wilson Jr. was seen in the injury tent for a shoulder injury. He returned to the game. He was questionable this week with a hip injury.
- Tight end Juwan Johnson was taken to the injury tent after also being hit high. He returned to the game quickly.
- Left guard Lucas Patrick was ruled out with a calf injury. He was replaced by second-year guard Nick Saldiveri.
- Safety J.T. Gray was also seen for an injury in the tent before exiting to the locker room with an undisclosed injury.
The Plays:
- Hill ran in a 7-yard touchdown in the second quarter, allowing them to retake the lead. It was Hill’s first score since Week 4 at the Atlanta Falcons.
- Tight end Foster Moreau came up with one of the most impressive catches for the season so far for New Orleans, reeling in a jump ball from Carr for a 17-yard touchdown reception to give the Saints the lead with just under 12 minutes to play.
The Stats:
- Running back Alvin Kamara ran 29 times for 155 yards.
- Carr completed just 58% of his passes in his return to action. Carolina came into the game as the No. 25 ranked passing defense.
- Shemar Jean-Charles came up with his first career interception.
- New Orleans scored points in its opening drive for the first time since Week 4.
- The defense surrendered a late fourth quarter lead for the fourth time this year.
