The New Orleans Saints’ loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, their sixth straight, may have been their ugliest one yet. That is impressive, considering last week on “Drew Brees night,” they put up only 10 points and 271 yards of offense against the Denver Broncos. While they put up 366 yards Sunday — most of which was in garbage time — the Saints were unable to get into the end zone for the first time all year, a shock considering the dominance Klint Kubiak’s offense displayed the first two weeks.  

It’s not like they had a shortage of opportunities, either. The game was in the balance up until late in the fourth, with the score deadlocked at 3-2 up until the end of the half with the Chargers ahead, when the Chargers marched down the field on a 15-play drive for a touchdown.   

The Saints tried it all, using everything but the kitchen sink to try to get something going on offense, but to no avail. Spencer Rattler, a rookie who showed many signs of promise in the preseason and his first game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, struggled mightily, throwing for only 156 yards on a 50% completion rate. The Saints then turned to second-year player Jake Haener for the last few drives, who went only 9-for-17 for 122 yards. Three different running backs also got time — not including Taysom Hill — with Alvin Kamara leading the way with 60 yards and Kendre Miller getting a few snaps in.  

Nevertheless, the Saints only came away with 8 offensive points, certainly not enough to come out of any NFL game with a win.  

With only nine games left, there is pretty much no room for error from now on, especially considering the consistent play of the Atlanta Falcons and Tampa Bay Buccaneers so far. Luckily for New Orleans, the Saints have their quarterback healthy, with Derek Carr set to start Sunday against the Carolina Panthers, who the Saints 40-pieced on opening day. I remember the days when Carr was starting and fans were begging for Rattler.  

A loss to Carolina on Sunday would not only effectively end their season but force them to look internally. Winning in the NFL is hard, don’t get me wrong, but the common denominator is a basic formula: good coach + good quarterback. Through 78 games as a head coach, Dennis Allen is 26-52, the worst in history. With Carr under center, the Saints are 11-11. It is safe to say those two added together are not a winning combination. With the Saints currently picking sixth in NFL mock drafts, it is safe to say another loss would make Who Dat Nation turn to college football to gain hope for their team.  

The game against the Panthers will be on Sunday, Nov. 3 at 12 p.m. CST, and will be nationally broadcast on CBS.