The New Orleans Saints faltered in a tight 26-24 loss to the Atlanta Falcons, largely due to costly turnovers that gave Atlanta 14 points. Special teams missteps and a defensive pass interference penalty late in the game unraveled a promising effort by the Saints, who appeared in control when Alvin Kamara’s late touchdown gave them a 24-23 lead.
However, a 30-yard penalty on Paulson Adebo set the stage for Falcons kicker Younghoe Koo to seal the game with a career-long 58-yard field goal. The Saints defense failed to hold strong, contributing to back-to-back losses.
Two critical turnovers allowed the Falcons to stay within striking distance, despite their offense failing to score a touchdown. A muffed punt by Rashid Shaheed deep in Saints territory gave Atlanta an early touchdown when the Falcons’ KhaDarel Hodge fell on the loose ball in the end zone.
Later, linebacker Troy Andersen capitalized on a deflected Derek Carr pass, taking it 47 yards for a pick-six. These errors handed Atlanta an undeserved lead, forcing the Saints to claw back, yet New Orleans could not recover from its own mistakes.
For the Saints, Taysom Hill was a bright spot, scoring twice on the ground. However, his exit from the game due to injury, coupled with Alvin Kamara’s limited presence after battling through a hip pointer and rib injury, left the offense struggling in key moments.
Dennis Allen’s squad now faces a critical turning point as they prepare for the Kansas City Chiefs, needing to clean up mistakes and maintain composure to avoid falling into a deeper slump.
