So that was discouraging. Things went from surprisingly good to disappointingly bad to worse for the New Orleans Saints as Week 9’s games drew on. At first, the early Sunday slate set up well for them — both the Atlanta Falcons and Carolina Panthers fell flat in losses, further leveling out the division standings.
And the Los Angeles Rams were in command of their game with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers until well after sundown, only to choke in the final minutes with the sorriest soft zone coverage this side of the Mississippi River. The Buccaneers won, the Rams let the Saints down once again, and the Saints went into Monday night’s game just hopping to tread water.
Instead, New Orleans was outmuscled on both sides of the ball and they fell to pieces in front of a national audience. They aren’t ranked dead-last within the NFC South, but they’re awful close. Here are the division standings after Week 9: