The New Orleans Saints fell to the Atlanta Falcons 19-17 on Sunday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. The loss finished the campaign for New Orleans and means the Carolina Panthers have won the NFC South by way of a three-way tiebreaker.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Neither offense had things clicking early on, as Atlanta punted and the Saints fumbled on their first offensive play. The Flacons then threw an interception, but they forced a three-and-out. The two teams traded punts before the Saints had their next punt attempt blocked. The Falcons got great field position and Bijan Robinson punched in the touchdown to make it 7-0 in favor of the home team.
Both teams attempted field goals on their next offensive possession. Charlie Smyth missed the kick for New Orleans, but Zane Gonzalez made his to give the Falcons a 10-0 lead.
The ensuing Saints drive was their best of the first half. They went 10 plays and 65 yards, with Tyler Shough scrambling into the end zone to get New Orleans on the board and make the score 10-7. That score would take us into the halftime break.
After the half, the Falcons again added a Gonzalez field goal. This one was set up by a 37-yard connection from Kirk Cousins to Drake London that put them in range. That made it 13-7 Falcons.
The Saints answered with a field goal of their own, keeping the deficit at three after three quarters. That, however, would not last as the Falcons again added three more in the fourth to go up 16-10.
Shough was looking for a go-ahead touchdown drive, but threw an interception to Dee Alford which was returned into field goal range and allowed the Falcons to go up 19-10.
Shough would throw an incredible touchdown to Ronnie Bell with a minute left, but the onside kick was unsuccessful, allowing Atlanta to hold on 19-17.
BIG NUMBER: 7
With another sack in this game, Cam Jordan marked a franchise record with his seventh season of 10 or more sacks. He finished the year with 10.5 total.
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Dee Alford
Alford led the way with nine tackles for the Falcons. Additionally, his interception was the biggest play in thwarting the Saints’ comeback effort.
UP NEXT: The Saints season comes to a close with a record of 6-11.