The New Orleans Saints left Ford Field with a loss, but they also left with proof they can hang around when things go sideways. Down 21-0 midway through the third quarter, they clawed all the way back, pushed the Detroit Lions into overtime, and even went for two late in the extra period with a chance to steal the game. It was a wild season opener, and for the Saints, a messy one that still showed some fight.
The first half offered a little bit of order in the chaos. New Orleans was flagged only twice for 18 yards, while Detroit drew four penalties for 25 yards. One of those Saints advantages came on a third-down illegal contact call on Lions cornerback Rock Ya-Sin after tight end Juwan Johnson forced the issue, and the defense benefited from a more disciplined stretch than what the Saints showed last year.
That defense also did enough early to keep the game within reach. Detroit’s offense, which averaged 28.3 points per game last season and scored on 44.4% of its drives, was held to just seven points across its first seven possessions.
Jared Goff managed only 91 passing yards and never completed a pass longer than 19 yards. For New Orleans, that’s the kind of defensive baseline worth remembering.
Then came the second half, when the Saints finally started to look like a team built to score in bunches. Tyler Shough, after a brutal opening stretch, settled down and turned the game into a shootout.
He opened 10-of-23 for 85 yards, two interceptions, and a fumble, but after that third turnover he responded by going 25-of-33 for 326 yards and three touchdowns. The early damage was ugly; the recovery was real.
Still, the rough start was impossible to ignore. Shough looked rushed, and the Saints didn’t give him much runway to settle in.
He had only started nine games last year after playing one full college season, and New Orleans asked a quarterback with limited seasoning to handle a big stage without much preseason preparation. Jared Goff, by contrast, didn’t play in the preseason either, but he’s a 150-game starter.
Shough isn’t there yet, and the Saints played like a team that learned that the hard way.
The offense had other issues, too. Chris Olave had several drops that cost the Saints chunk plays, and Noah Fant was involved on both of Shough’s interceptions.
Even so, the fact that Shough kept going back to those targets stood out. Olave finished with two catches of 40-plus yards, and Fant caught the penultimate touchdown pass.
The talent is there. The timing just wasn’t.
The biggest problem on the other side of the ball was the run defense. Jahmyr Gibbs was a headache all afternoon, ripping off four carries of at least 10 yards before punching in his second touchdown.
Detroit finished with 156 rushing yards, and the Saints never found a clean answer. It had the feel of a defense still missing pieces, even if the names in the lineup have changed.
The larger picture is easy enough to see after one game: this Saints team has enough firepower to score with anybody and enough resilience to erase a three-score deficit. But it also has a habit of starting slow and sloppy, and that’s the part Kellen Moore has to clean up fast. The run game never got rolling despite all the offseason talk about a more athletic offensive line and backfield, and for now the passing game looks like the unit carrying the load.
There’s at least some perspective in the standings. Every NFC South team lost in Week 1.
The Falcons fell 20-13, the Buccaneers came up short 33-27, and the Panthers were blown out 59-37. So New Orleans’ 31-30 overtime loss doesn’t look quite as bad in that crowd.
Next up is Baltimore, fresh off a 41-23 win over Indianapolis, and the Saints will have to be sharper against Derrick Henry after allowing 156 rushing yards and two touchdowns to Gibbs. They may also get Cameron Jordan and Alvin Kamara back from injuries, which would be a welcome boost.
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Tyler Shough Gave Saints Fans Hope Before A Brutal Late Twist
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Then Shough helped turn the whole afternoon around, throwing for 410 yards and fueling a second-half rally that carried the Saints into overtime tied at 30. Even after the late push, the ending turned brutal in the extra period, leaving New Orleans to absorb a 31-30 loss after a controversial overturned touchdown tied to an obscure rule about quarterback intent. [Read more 🡒]