By Ross Jackson
NEW ORLEANS — In honor of Tuesday’s New Orleans “Sneaux Day”, we wanted to take a look back at a notable cold weather game for the New Orleans Saints. The first that came to mind was the 2022 Saints win against the Cleveland Browns back in 2022, the coldest game in Saints history before wind chill.
The 17-10 win was played in Cleveland and was also the coldest regular-season game on record played in the city. It was just six degrees with a wind chill of a biting minus-11.
Cleveland got out to a quick 10-0 lead in the first half, but then New Orleans rattled off 17-straight to get the win.
The Saints’ first score came from a Wil Lutz field goal as time expired in the first half. In the second half, the team’s run game took over. Do-it-all tight end Taysom Hill was relatively quiet in the first half, continuing the team’s frustrating trend of not leaning on their top player when it came to scoring potential.
Finally in the second half, then-offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael finally let Hill loose. He was given just four carries in the first half despite averaging a whopping 7.5 yards per carry. He would then get another handful of carries in the second half, finding the endzone for the Saints’ first touchdown of the game.
Running back Alvin Kamara followed up with the eventual go-ahead rushing touchdown late in the third quarter.
Saints quarterback Andy Dalton completed just eight passes for just 92 passing yards in the Christmas Eve game, which was dominated by the ground game. A second-half interception by Deshaun Watson and two late turnovers on downs forced by the Saints’ defense were enough to complete the comeback victory that no one saw coming.
The last time the Saints had won a cold-weather game that was at or below freezing temperatures was back in 2010. A 34-30 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals, led by a 313-yard passing day by Drew Brees, was previously the coldest win for New Orleans.
The coldest game since the win in Cleveland came in Week 16 of last year. The Saints traveled for a winter game against the Green Bay Packers on Monday Night Football. The game was just above freezing at 34 degrees at kickoff. The wind chill made the temperature feel like 25, however. The Saints would end that game with a shutout loss 34-0, one of the more disappointing results of the season.
