HOUSTON — The New Orleans Saints have consistently been one of the worst football team in the National Football League in regard to red zone efficiency all season. And things didn't improve in the team's 20-13 loss to the Texans in Week 6.
The Saints entered the game having scored touchdowns on 44 percent of their trips inside the 20 – which was a dramatic increase from a woeful 25 percent thanks to a 34-0 shellacking of the New England Patriots in Foxborough, Mass., last week.
Aside from a 34-yard touchdown pass from Derek Carr to wide receiver Rashid Shaheed with 13 seconds to play in the first quarter, the Saints were denied TDs on three trips inside the red zone against the league's 11-th ranked scoring defense which had allowed 20 points per game heading into Week 6.
Even with two potential game-tying drives on the line, the Saints failed to put it in the paint from when a drive stalled on the 11-yard line which led to a missed field goal with 11:10 to play and then again on the 15 on a failed fourth down conversion with 4:37 on the clock.
And while technically not in the red zone, New Orleans had one final chance to tie the game with four consecutive plays from the 24 that ended with a Carr interception with 21 seconds remaining.
Earlier in the third, the Saints got down to the Houston 16, but had to settle for a 45-yard field goal from rookie kicker Blake Grupe – his second successful kick of the game – after a 10-yard offensive holding penalty and 11-yard sack helped backed them up out of the red zone twice.
"The red zone continues to bite us," Saints head coach Dennis Allen said after the loss. "We missed two field goals today, which is uncharacteristic ... just way too many mistakes and missed opportunities.
"Like I told the team in [the locker room], we've got to do a better job of executing our jobs," he added. "And if we are not executing our jobs, we need to find somebody else to execute those jobs – it doesn't matter who you are."
Allen was not the only member of the Saints organization showing frustration.
"Very disappointed. I was livid coming off the field. I was angry coming off the field. I had to calm down a little bit," Carr admitted. "We as an offense had too many details ... those little details, that if we do those things right you're looking like ... oh my gosh ... we would have 28 points."
Shaheed, who caught two passes for 85 yards and scored the Saints' only touchdown of the game, elaborated on what the team needs to do to finish off drives in the endzone.
"I feel like if we do all the little things, we are going to be a hard team to beat," he told media after the game. "We just got to execute. It comes down to each and every play, especially in that area it's a lot less field so everything has to be precise and that's what we have to do to continue to score in the red zone."
Shaheed also rushed for 18 yards on two carries for a 9-yard average.
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