Miscues cost New Orleans in twin v. twin matchup

Destrehan coach owes the public answers
November 6, 2013
LSU heads to Alabama a decisive underdog
November 6, 2013
Destrehan coach owes the public answers
November 6, 2013
LSU heads to Alabama a decisive underdog
November 6, 2013

There were plenty of mistakes to point to in the aftermath of the New Orleans Saints’ 26-20 loss to the New York Jets last Sunday at MetLife Stadium – the Saints’ second in their last three games.

For the second time in as many weeks, the Saints (6-2) incurred a costly number of penalties – nine for 60 yards total. They also turned the ball over twice and converted just 3-of-11 third down opportunities.

They left points on the field with Garrett Hartley missing a field goal attempt in the first quarter and the team failing to convert on a 4th-and-1 attempt in the second half.


The offensive line struggled throughout the second half to contain the Jets’ defense, which forced two sacks, several quarterback hurries and adjusted well enough to hold the Saints to just six points in the final 30 minutes of the game.

On the other side, the Saints’ defense gave up some big plays to an offense that isn’t known for making them. Seven Jets plays went for 19 or more yards, and many of them involved former Saints tailback Chris Ivory, who had a 52-yard scamper in the second half that got the Jets out from deep in their own territory. Ivory finished with 139 yards total on 18 carries.

Add it all up: Jets 26, Saints 20.


“We felt coming in that there were a few key points to this game,” Saints coach Sean Payton said. “We were going to have to be able to hold up against the run and we weren’t able to do that. I thought our protection and the penalties hurt us. We had nine penalties.”

The Saints seemed out of sync early on, burning all three of their timeouts in the first quarter. The team also lost all-purpose back Darren Sproles to a concussion on their first drive of the game.

Even so, the Saints took a 14-6 lead midway through the second quarter and appeared to be setting the tempo of the game against a wildly inconsistent Jets (5-4) team that was coming off a 49-9 drubbing at Cincinnati a week earlier.


But the good feelings didn’t last long.

On the Jets’ ensuing drive, New York went 61 yards on a shortened field, capping a scoring drive with a three-yard Ivory run that made it 14-13.

Then, on the Saints’ next possession, Brees was intercepted on a pass that bounced off the hands of receiver Nick Toon and was grabbed by Antonio Cromartie at the Saints’ 39 yard line.


Five plays later, the Jets were in the end-zone again. New York took a 20-14 lead into halftime, and the Saints never led again.

Afterward, Brees refused to say the Saints beat themselves, but there was no denying the team shot itself in the foot on several occasions Sunday.

“The Jets played very well, but you walk out of this game and say, ‘These penalties hurt us,’” Brees said. “We felt like opportunities were there and yet we just weren’t able to take advantage of them for one reason or another.”


From his perspective, Payton agreed the penalties were what hurt the team the most, particularly because they ended up contributing to some of the Saints’ struggles on third down by forcing the team into longer yardage plays that helped make them more one-dimensional in some critical situations.

One example of that was late in the fourth quarter on the Saints’ final drive when a receiver caught what would have been a 16-yard pass for a first-down at the 35. But a holding call negated the play and backed the Saints up half the distance to the goal, creating a 2nd-and-19 play from the 10 yard line.

“You find yourself getting out of a hole with a completion and it comes back,” Payton said. “Those are the types of things that just make it difficult.”


For Jets coach Rex Ryan, the only thing difficult about Sunday’s victory was who it came against: his brother, Saints defensive coordinator Rob Ryan.

With the win, Ryan improved to 7-3 against Rob in games that have featured the two sons of former NFL coaching icon Buddy Ryan. Rex Ryan said he felt for his brother after joking earlier that he’d gotten the best of him again.

“You realize your bro just took a loss,” Ryan said. “That’s a tough thing. There’s no question I pull for them every single week except one. I’ve mentioned it before that I always look at their game. There’s not one game that I can tell you how it went today, but if the Saints were playing, I would have known.”


Ryan can enjoy watching the Saints in primetime this week when New Orleans returns to the Superdome to face Dallas at 7:30 p.m. Sunday.

That game will be televised before a national audience on NBC.

New York Jets halfback Bilal Powell barrels through the New Orleans Saints’ defense during Sunday’s 26-20 victory. The Jets gashed New Orleans through the ground throughout the entire 60 minutes of the game. With the victory, twin brother and Jets head coach Rex Ryan earned a win against Saints defensive coordinator Rob Ryan. 


New York Jets halfback Bilal Powell barrels through the New Orleans Saints’ defense during Sunday’s 26-20 victory. The Jets gashed New Orleans through the ground throughout the entire 60 minutes of the game. With the victory, twin brother and Jets head coach Rex Ryan earned a win against Saints defensive coordinator Rob Ryan. 

AP PHOTO