What we learned from Saints’ loss to the Chargers

The New Orleans Saints lost their preseason opener to the Los Angeles Chargers 27-13. The Saints played a few starters, but for the most part kept their stars on the sideline. It was never really close, and Los Angeles held control of the game since they first put points on the board. Sunday’s match was the first time the coaching staff had the opportunity to check the roster against an opposing team in real time, and it taught us a lot about the upcoming 2025 season.

There was some speculation that New Orleans could name their starting quarterback for the 2025 season after Sunday’s preseason matchup. Spencer Rattler has been lighting it up in training camp and looked like the best quarterback on the roster, but rookie quarterback Tyler Shough’s performance on Sunday will keep the competition going.

Rattler started for the Saints at quarterback for the game, but failed to put any points on the board despite good field position on multiple drives. Shough first came in with 1:38 left in the second quarter and led the team to their first scoring drive of the game. The rookie signal caller was also the only quarterback to lead the team to a touchdown, throwing a 54-yard bomb to receiver Mason Tipton one drive after throwing a pick six.

Rattler didn’t look bad on Sunday. The second-year quarterback finished the day 7/11, passing for 53 yards. Rattler looked decisive in his decision-making and used his feet when there weren’t any openings in the pass game. Despite the positives, he wouldn’t lead the team to any points and finished the day with more turnovers (1 fumble) than points.

It hasn’t been revealed who will start for New Orleans against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday, but it’s likely Shough’s turn to play with the starting offense. The quarterback battle will be evaluated the whole way through, and the Saints are making sure to make the right move.

One of the Saints’ biggest problems in recent years has been containing the quarterback. New Orleans will lock the secondary down, but the pass rush will fail to get to the quarterback, and he’ll make plays with his feet. This was only emphasized on Sunday after Trey Lance was able to rush for 49 yards on 7 attempts, adding a touchdown on the ground.

But Lance wasn’t the only runner to find success against the Saints’ run defense. Los Angeles ended the day with 148 rushing yards on 34 attempts, averaging 4.4 yards a carry. Running backs Raheim Sanders and Hassan Haskins each put up 42 and 33 yards, respectively, with Haskins averaging 5.5 yards a carry.

The Saints brought in plenty of personnel to help fix the run. Draft picks such as Danny Stutsman, Jonas Sanker, and Vernon Broughton were all great run defenders in college, and New Orleans traded for Davon Godchaux early in the offseason. The Saints didn’t have all their best players on the field at the same time, but struggling to stop the run down the depth chart is still a concern.

Head coach Kellen Moore has had a sports science approach to training camp in hopes of preventing injuries. From shorter practices to plenty of light days for the veterans, Moore wanted to cut down on the injuries that seem to follow the Saints into every season.

And it worked…for the most part. New Orleans saw very few injuries to start training camp, and players emphasized how good they felt after practices. Despite the positive feedback, the sport of football is rough, and you can never prevent every injury. The Saints had four players go down on Sunday with significant injuries and not return.

Moore didn’t give context to the injuries after the game, other than a list of who left and did not return. Wide receiver Bub Means, tight end Mason Pline, OL Will Clapp, and LG Trevor Penning. Each player who left seemed to be in significant pain and was carted off. While injuries in preseason usually result in the cart coming out for precautionary reasons, these are all ones to keep an eye on.