NEW ORLEANS — The Saints dropped their second straight game in a 23-21 loss to the Tennessee Titans. Without their best offensive weapon, the Saints rallied in the fourth quarter but fell just short.
"Disappointing loss. I thought we came in with a good plan. We fought hard. That's what makes it difficult. Just in the end too many little things, you know? A couple of false starts, critical situations. Obviously, the turnover missed PATs, but tip your hat. It was a hard-fought game," said Sean Payton.
Saints kicker Brian Johnson had been reliable since signing with the team but he missed two extra points in the loss that proved to be costly.
New Orleans cut the lead to two on a Trevor Siemian 15-yard touchdown pass to Marquez Callaway with 1:16 remaining in the game but failed on a two-point conversion to tie the game at 23.
With the ball at the two-yard line Taysom Hill lined up to take the snap to tie the game but Adam Trautman was penalized for a false start. With the offense backed up following the penalty, Siemian came back in for the two-point try. Siemian threw a pass to Mark Ingram that fell incomplete.
"I was thinking it was going to have to be a play extension, then I saw the linebacker's back turn on Mark (Ingram), and I thought that was a pretty good chance to get one there. Without having looked at it, I think I've got to give him a better throw and extend the play, and something weird happens," said Siemian on the two-point conversion attempt.
The Saints attempted an onside kick but the Titans recovered and Ryan Tannehill took two knees to clinch the victory for Tennessee.
Both offenses started slow but the Saints defense was able to get stops in the red zone throughout the day.
Tennessee scored the first points of the day on a Randy Bullock 28-yard field goal. The Titans led 3-0 at the end of the first quarter.
Siemian got into a groove on the next drive finding Deonte Harris deep to get them to the Titan's 25-yard line and a few plays later he threw a touchdown pass to Tre'quan Smith. Johnson would miss his first extra point after Smith's touchdown so the Saints led 6-3. That is the only lead the Saints would hold.
The Titan's 10-play 59-yard drive ended with another Bullock field goal to tie the game at 6.
Late in the second quarter, the Titans drove back into the red zone and it appeared the Saints defense had forced a turnover. Tannehill rolled out and lofted a pass into the back of the endzone that was picked off but Kaden Ellis made just a little too much contact with Tannehill after the pass left his hand. Ellis was flagged for roughing the passer and Titans scored a few plays on Tannehill sneak from one yard out.
"It was very hard. We can't worry about what the refs call and stuff like that. We have to be able to stop those guys in those situations. We can do that, we just have to get back to the drawing board and figure it out. We'll be better next week," Said Kwon Alexander.
At halftime, the Titans led 13-6
On the opening kickoff of the second half, Deonte Harris fumbled the kickoff and the Titans recovered.
"Man, it's the attention to detail, obviously. We look at it as coaches, too. Start with me. Pretty soon we start looking at who's doing it. You know, we start evaluating who's making plays and who's not. And it just is what it is. It's our league, said Payton.
Tannehill and the Titans quickly capitalized on the field position scoring 5 plays later on a play-action pass from Tannehill to Mycole Pruitt to increase their lead to 20-6.
Following the touchdown, both teams went three and out. The Saints would put points on the board next on a 13-yard run by Mark Ingram. Johnson would miss his second extra point following that touchdown and the Saints trailed 20-12.
Tennessee added one more field goal before holding off the Saint's late comeback attempt.
Despite the loss, Mark Ingram was able to become the Saints' all-time leading rusher in the third quarter. He rushed for 47 yards and 1 touchdown and caught 4 passes for 61 yards in the contest.
"I'm just thankful to God because without him I wouldn't be here. I'm thankful for all my teammates, coaches, anyone along the way, my family, my wife, my kids, my parents, anyone who's loved me and poured into me all these years of my life. I'm thankful for them. I'm appreciative of them. I couldn't have done it without everyone that I just mentioned. It's just a tremendous blessing. I appreciate it. Still working for much, much more, but to be able to say that for a storied organization, a prestigious organization that's had a lot of great runners come through and a lot of great runners will continue to come through, it's something to be proud of. So, I'm thankful and I'm blessed. That's just another step in the process. I plan to continue to do a lot more," said Ingram.