The New Orleans Saints found themselves on the wrong side of a painful, double-digit 4th quarter comeback for the second time in less than 10 months. So what went wrong?
GM Mickey Loomis joined Voice of the Saints Mike Hoss on WWL Radio this week and pointed to the culprit.
Listen to the full exclusive interview with Mickey Loomis in the player above. Can't see the embed? Click here.
"We’ve got to as a group, we’ve got to develop a little bit better of a killer instinct," Loomis said. "When we have somebody down, not letting our foot off the gas, not giving them opportunities to get back into the games."
The Saints led by 17 points at halftime and, despite failing to muster any points in the second half, retained that lead to the 11 minute mark in the fourth quarter. That's where it all went wrong, with the Packers kicking a field goal, driving for a touchdown and 2-point conversion, then a go-ahead score on three consecutive possession. The Saints, led by Jameis Winston after Derek Carr went down with an injury, drove into field goal range for a go-ahead opportunity, but the 46-yard attempt sailed wide.
The loss was eerily similar to what happened in Week 13 of the 2022 season, when the Saints carried a 16-3 lead into the final minutes against the Bucs, only to surrender back-to-back scores and fall 17-16.
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One thing worth pointing out: The Packers did earn the win with quality play. The Saints didn't turn the ball over or surrender any short fields. The Packers' final two scoring drives each went for 80 yards.
"It wasn’t like we turned the ball over or had some disastrous play happen that got them back in the game," Loomis said. "But we need to … find a way to close out some of these games, because we’ve had a number of them, last year in particular, that could’ve easily been in the win column for us.”
Some positivity could likely be pulled from the team's response a year ago, when they turned around from that disappointing result to win three straight games, two of which came on the road against the Browns and Eagles. But 2023 is a different season.
"Can’t rely on what happened last year," Loomis said. "Every team is unique and we’re going to see how we bounce back after having a tough loss."
If the Saints can net a similar turnaround, it will have to come against that same Bucs squad in Week 4, though admittedly one without a QB legend in Tom Brady, who retired -- officially -- this offseason. Tampa (2-1) is now led by former No. 1 overall pick Baker Mayfield.
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MORE FROM LOOMIS
On Derek Carr injury
“He got hit pretty hard, slammed on the turf pretty hard, and sometimes that’s how the shoulder injuries occur, and I guess you could say we were fortunate that it wasn’t worse, but unfortunate that it wasn’t better, too. So it is what it is, but we’ll deal with it on a day-to-day basis and go from there.”
On Chris Olave
“He’s taken the kind of leap from Year 1 to Year 2 that you hope for him, you expect, and I think I was most encouraged by the dedication that he had in this offseason to improve in some areas that were identified off of last season, and last season was pretty darn good for him. So there’s a young man that takes his craft pretty seriously and has a desire to get better and then the action to go with it.”
On Carl Granderson
“That’s a credit to our area scouts, our college scouting staff. ... They find a guy that’s got the traits that they like and plays hard, and so they worked really hard at getting the commitment for him and being an undrafted free agent, we got him in the building and look, he is just, no player is self made, and yet this is a guy that has just worked his tail off to go from this raw, talented kid, to being a really productive NFL player. He kind of came into his own a little bit last year and has taken that and improved every year. I think he’s improved … from training camp to the beginning of the season. He’s very productive. He’s high motor. He’s a great kid. He’s really everything that you want in terms of a player in our building, so it’s good to see him as he matures and improves and it’s good to see a guy get a well-deserved contract.”