The New Orleans Saints spent a significant amount of time on the West Coast, playing a preseason game against the Chargers and holding a practice with the Rams. Next up on the schedule was a matchup with the Jacksonville Jaguars. New Orleans was down the entire game until Rattler connected with Dante Pettis late before a late-game turnover sealed a 17-17 tie.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
The Jaguars received the ball first and lined up their first-team players versus the number two defense for the Saints.
Jacksonville moved the ball down the field with ease, getting to the New Orleans 30-yard line by the seventh play of the opening drive. Quarterback Trevor Lawrence threw a quick pass to Tank Bigsby, who cut across the field and set up 1st & 10 after a 19-yard pickup. The Jags fumbled the ball away on the next play as Lawrence was tripped by his center and couldn’t complete the handoff to Bigsby. Rookie defensive tackle Vernon Broughton recovered the ball at the 12-yard line.
Tyler Shough was the starting quarterback for the Saints on Sunday. Their first drive was short-lived, with Shough getting sacked on the third play and then being called for intentional grounding, pushing the offense to a 3rd & 30 from the three-yard line. New Orleans punted, and Jacksonville receiver Parker Wahsignton returned the ball to the 45.
The Jags’ starters continued to move the ball on their second possession. Running back Travis Etienne and Washington recorded the majority of the yards, with the third-year receiver coming up with the seven-yard touchdown catch, putting Jacksonville ahead 7-0 with 2:33 to go in the first quarter.
Three drives later, New Orleans put up their first points. On 1st & 20, Shough found Treyton Welch for the contested 28-yard catch. The offense got the ball to the 33-yard line before Chris Olave dropped an easy catch on third down. Blake Grupe then knocked through a 51-yard field goal, making it a four-point game midway through the second quarter.
Jacksonville answered with another scoring drive, this time being led by backup quarterback Nick Mullens. The veteran signal callers’ first two attempts were completed to Trenton Irwin and Hunter Long for gains of 16 and 26 yards, making it 1st & GOAL from the New Orleans nine-yard line. Rookie running back Bhayshul Tuten carried the rest of the way, scoring from three yards out to put the Jaguars ahead with 3:21 left in the first half.
The Saints went three-and-out, giving coach Liam Coen’s group another chance to extend their lead. Kicker Cam Little closed out the first half with a 53-yard kick, putting the Jags ahead 17-3 going into the locker room.
New Orleans got the ball to open the second half and got into the redzone. Spencer Rattler replaced Shough and completed multiple passes to Clyde Edwards-Helaire for 19 yards. Rattle went deep to Mason Tipton and drew a pass interference penalty, setting up the offense at the Jaguar nine-yard line. Kicker Charlie Smyth was brought out for the 23-yard kick to cut it to an 11-point game.
Saints linebacker Jaylan Ford came down with a big interception on the following drive. The turnover came on 3rd & 4 at the 15-yard line after Jacksonville ran 11 plays and nearly six minutes off the clock.
On the second play of the next possession, Rattler connected with Tipton down the right sideline for a 45-yard pickup. From there, Cam Akers made a six-yard catch to move the chains before a 40-yard Smyth kick to make it a one-possession game with 17 seconds left in the third quarter.
New Orleans had an opportunity to score late in the fourth quarter as Rattler led the offense into the redzone. Rattler found Dante Pettis for a 14-yard pickup on 3rd & 8, then Velus Jones Jr rushed for 11 yards on back-to-back plays, spotting the football at the 13-yard line. Keni-H Lovely intercepted Rattler on the next play and returned the ball to the Jacksonville 34-yard line.
The defense of New Orleans forced a three-and-out punt, giving the offense another chance to tie the game.
The Rattler to Tipton connection was alive and well in the closing minutes, making a 16-yard catch on 4th & 2 and another 26-yard reception to set up 1st & 10 at the Jacksonville 21-yard line. On 3rd & 9 and with under 30 seconds to play, Rattler threw a rifle to Pettis, who shook off a would-be tackler for the 20-yard score. Rattler then scrambled in for the two-point conversion to tie the game with 21 seconds left.
Jacksonville stayed aggressive with Seth Henigan at quarterback. On the play of the game, Henigan’s intended pass was batted up in the air and intercepted by Jonas Sanker, who tried to return the ball for the game-winning score but was forced out of bounds with no time left, resulting in a 17-17 tie.
BIG NUMBER: 14
New Orleans’ second-half effort was impressive as they overcame a 14-point deficit. The Saints’ offense put up a last-minute touchdown drive and nearly had a chance to complete the comeback after an interception by rookie Jonas Sanker was one player away from having a walk-off pick six.
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Spencer Rattler
The second-year quarterback had a big bounce-back game on Sunday, playing under center the entire second half for the Black and Gold. On the day, Rattler completed 18 out of 24 pass attempts for 199 yards, one touchdown, a two-point conversion, and a pick as the Saints’ second preseason game concluded in a 17-17 tie.
UP NEXT: The New Orleans Saints will conclude their preseason on Saturday, August 23rd, when they host the Denver Broncos. Kickoff from the Caesars Superdome is scheduled for noon.
