The New Orleans Saints opened the 2024 NFL preseason on the road in a matchup against the Arizona Cardinals.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Unlike the Cardinals, the Saints played a majority of their starters on the first couple of drives.
New Orleans received the opening kickoff and began their first drive at the 27-yard line. Runningback Alvin Kamara picked up five yards on first down, then quarterback Derek Carr completed the 10-yard sideline pass on 3rd & 5. Carr couldn’t connect with Olave on the following third down and the Saints had to punt after six plays.
Star signal-caller Kyler Murray didn’t make an appearance on Saturday but Arizona did start backup quarterback Desmond Ridder. New Orleans’ defense however didn’t allow an Arizona first down over their first three drives. The Cardinals picked up 17 total yards over those drives as Ridder was sacked twice; once on their first possession by Carl Granderson and Nathan Shepherd and by Bryan Bresee on their second drive.
The Saints couldn’t score on their next three drives either but put up their first points on the following possession after Arizona moved the chains for the first time. Quarterback Jake Haener completed an 11-yard pass on first down to A.T. Perry after starting the drive at the Cardinals 47-yard line. On 4th & 1, Kevin Austin Jr. made the six-yard catch, then Haener found Perry for the 10-yard gain to set up 1st & GOAL from the seven. New Orleans couldn’t find the end and kicked the 28-yard field goal to score the game’s first points with 2:58 left in the second quarter.
The Cardinals threatened to score right before half and Ridder moved the chains a couple of times with his legs, including a 22-yard run to put his offense in the redzone. Saints linebacker Khaleke Hudson stopped Ridder for a four-yard gain on 3rd & 6 and then the Cardinal quarterback’s pass was incomplete on fourth down.
With 29 seconds to go, Haener went to James Robinson for nine yards and then went deep to Perry down the left sideline for a 58-yard completion to the Arizona 21. New Orleans burned their last time out and Blake Grupe knocked through a 33-yard kick as time expired to send the Black and Gold into halftime up 6-0.
Arizona got the ball to begin the second and made the switch at quarterback to Clayton Tune. The third-stringer completed his first pass to Andre Baccellia for 18 yards. Tune then found Blake Whiteheart for another 18-yard gain on 3rd & 6. Runningback Michael Carter capped off the drive with an 11-yard touchdown and gave the Cardinals their first lead of the game.
New Orleans responded with a touchdown of their own on the following drive. Rookie Spencer Rattler replaced Haener for the remainder of the game and took a shot to Perry but a defensive pass interference call set up the Saints’ offense at the Cardinal 24-yard line. Rattler dumped the ball off to Dallin Holker for a pickup of 15 to the five-yard line, then on 3rd & GOAL from the four Rattler scrambled and got to the pylon for the score.
The New Orleans offense stalled the next three drives, picking up just one first down in that time. Arizona had one more chance to take the lead with under six minutes left in the game. Tune completed multiple passes to move the chains on multiple third downs, one of which was a 27-yard pass to Dan Chisena. Four plays later, Tune dumped the ball off to former Saints running back Tony Jones Jr. for the 10-yard touchdown. The Cardinals took the lead with under two minutes to go.
Rattler on his final drive found Stanley Morgan for a gain of 13, then completed three more passes for 14 total yards. A neutral zone infraction by Arizona set up a 3rd & 1 conversion by Jacob Kibodi with 35 seconds to go. After a New Orleans timeout, Rattler hit Samson Nacua for a 13-yard gain to put the offense in the redzone. On 3rd & 10, Saints coach Dennis Allen sent out backup kicker Charlie Smyth for the game-winning 37-yard field goal.
The Cardinals had enough time for one Hail Mary but the pass fell incomplete and the Saints came out on top 16-14.
BIG NUMBER: 4
The front four of New Orleans got after both Cardinals quarterbacks and recorded four sacks while Arizona only had one sack in the game.
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Spencer Rattler
Rattler didn’t complete many passes but found an open running lane on his first drive under center that resulted in a four-yard touchdown. The rookie also led the game-winning drive with under two minutes in the game. That score was the difference as the Saints got the 16-14 win over the Cardinals on Saturday.
UP NEXT: The New Orleans Saints will remain on the western side of the United States for a preseason matchup against the San Francisco 49ers. The kickoff in Levi’s Stadium is set for Sunday, August 18th at 7:00 p.m.