With receiver Chris Olave, right guard Cesar Ruiz, and versatile playmaker Taysom Hill returning from injuries on Sunday, the New Orleans Saints hoped they had enough offensive talent to avoid their longest losing streak in 19 years.
However, Derek Carr is still injured, and his two younger replacements at quarterback weren’t able to keep the Saints competitive in their 26-8 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers.
It’s uncertain if Carr’s possible return next week could fix the many problems the Saints (2-6) are facing during a six-game losing streak.
“The message is it’s the people in the room in there that are going to have to change it,” said coach Dennis Allen, who is under pressure. “Nobody is coming from outside the building. It’s going to have to be the guys that are in that locker room, the coaches, to fix it.
That’s what it is, and we have to pay better attention to all the details, and we have to do a better job coaching all the details, because details matter in our league, and we don’t get to pick and choose which ones do and which ones don’t.”
Allen switched quarterbacks during the game for the second week in a row, but it didn’t make much of a difference.
Rookie Spencer Rattler completed 12 of 24 passes for 156 yards in his third straight start for the Saints before Jake Haener took over with 4:50 left in the third quarter.
The Saints were down 16-5 when Haener came in, finishing with 9 of 17 passes for 122 yards while playing from behind.
Neither quarterback could lead New Orleans into the end zone at SoFi Stadium. Eight of the Saints’ nine drives with Rattler ended in punts. Although the offense moved better under Haener, getting into Chargers territory three times, New Orleans managed to score only three points.
Rattler was realistic after his third straight loss as a starter.
“Obviously, we didn’t get any wins, so that’s very unfortunate,” Rattler said about his three-game stint in Carr’s position. “We want to win. Our goal is to come in here and win, get some momentum going before heading into another divisional game next week. Got to get back to work and figure it out.”
Haener also took over for Rattler last week in the fourth quarter of the Saints’ 33-10 loss to Denver.
“I felt like I was very composed,” Haener said. “I felt like I went in there and controlled the game. In those situations, you can’t just be a manager. You’ve got to go try and make some throws to create a spark, some energy.”
When asked if Carr could return from his oblique injury next Sunday against struggling Carolina (1-7), which has lost five games in a row, Allen sounded hopeful: “I think there’s a possibility, yeah.”
New Orleans started the season 2-0, scoring 91 points in those two wins, earning praise for offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak. That good feeling has faded without Carr leading the team.
The Saints didn’t turn the ball over against Los Angeles, but they still had many offensive problems.
They went 2 for 16 on third downs against the Chargers. Six of the Saints’ seven penalties were on the offense, with five on offensive linemen. Olave and Alvin Kamara both had over 100 yards of offense, but the playmakers couldn’t score.
The last time the Saints lost six games in a row was in the 2005 season, which led to significant changes. That year, they fired coach Jim Haslett and hired Sean Payton, who quickly turned the Saints into a playoff team and later a Super Bowl champion.
Allen, who is 18-24 in his third season, knows his job could be at risk. He believes he’s aligned with general manager Mickey Loomis.
“We have conversations every day, and so I don’t feel any more sense of having to have these conversations,” Allen said. “Look, I think we all understand that it’s a results-oriented business, and we need to play better football. I think we all understand that.”
