Saints 1-3 record reflects who they are at this point

I covered the key points after the 28-25 loss Sunday in London by the New Orleans Saints to Minnesota. As I regularly state on CCS, you have to be good and you have to be lucky.

Through four games, the 2022 New Orleans Saints have not been good and have not been lucky.

There is little doubt that the New Orleans Saints have not benefited from and, in fact, have been hurt by key calls by officials.

The ejection of Marshon Lattimore was a bit excessive in the Tampa Bay game, given the circumstances of what unfolded. It had a direct impact on the game. The call against Lattimore on Adam Thielen for pass interference which led to a touchdown Sunday in London was crucial.

Yes, pass interference is a judgment call and quite often could be called. Sometimes it is, sometimes it isn’t. Much of that depends on the officiating crew and their interpretation and their mandate, in their view, for control of the game.

Watching the play more than once, the two players were hand fighting and jostling for position. Lattimore had his head turned as the ball was about to arrive. Thielen grabbed at Lattimore’s face mask and pulled (or pushed him, depending your own view) out of the way.

NFL Analyst Mike Pereira, in his on-air opinion, stated that he felt it should be a no-call either way. Others in other forums have voiced that it should have been a penalty on both Lattimore and Thielen.

Then there is the view of many to “let them play,” to let the players decide the game, not part-time employees wearing black and white striped shirts enforcing a 40-yard infraction to basically give the Vikings a touchdown, clearly factoring in the margin of victory.

Of course, prior to that call, the Minnesota drive was kept alive by a phantom, bogus call on Tyrann Mathieu for hands to the face, which came after the Saints had gotten a stop.

Of course, officials do not have the benefit of instant replay review when watching live action. The two calls that were made are not reviewable, anyway.

Let’s look back at the facts presented by Mike Triplett back in January. The former ESPN online writer noted that since 2018, the Saints have finished 30th, 31st, 32nd and tied for 31st in penalties called against their opponents (both accepted and declined) heading into the 2022 season.

Let the conspiracies simmer!

Officiating is a tough job. I know many who perform that job on both the high school and collegiate level. I count them as friends.

No one is perfect. I make mistakes, more than I would like, and work hard daily to eliminate those. It is certain that anyone reading this does the same.

It is abundantly clear that officials make mistakes. Sometimes, those mistakes have little or no impact on games.

Sometimes, those mistakes have huge impact on games.

Unfortunately, the spotlight on some of those mistakes have fallen squarely on New Orleans and its football team.

The fan base of the Saints is furious and understandably so.

Instant replay was created to correct mistakes.

Unfortunately, many of those mistakes are not reviewable. The NFL does have a review policy of its employed officials, which includes grading those involved. Unfortunately (again), the public will never see that discipline or its results.

The ‘NOLA No-Call’ culprits are still working.

Sometimes, after the fact, the league releases information admitting that a call was incorrect. When player or coach behavior is deemed incorrect, fines and suspensions result and those are made public, for all to see.

Anyone who does not think the two calls on the same drive, resulting in a Minnesota touchdown, did not impact the outcome of the game Sunday is kidding his or herself.

Now, back to the Saints and their performance.

It has not been good enough.

The trend is troubling but it is reversable. There is enough talent on hand but there are simply too many injuries and too many mistakes.

Dennis Allen must decide on who his quarterback will be against a Seattle team which scored 48 points in a win over Detroit. Andy Dalton passed the eye test Sunday. He was efficient and made good decisions, for the most part, other than one poor throw into coverage and holding the ball too long on another occasion which resulted in a fumble.

Jameis Winston is the more talented option but his multiple injuries and questionable decision-making remain real issues of concern if the coaches are to place their trust in him.

Perhaps neither is the quarterback of the future of the Saints but Allen must focus on the present to choose the guy who gives the Saints the best opportunity to win and win now.

New Orleans must win now – right now – if the 2022 season is to be meaningful. Fortunately, the NFC South is mediocre, with no one better than 2-2 through four games. That means the Saints are just a game off the lead even with a pair of division losses.

Anyone who thinks the calls were the only reason the Saints lost the Vikings game is kidding his or herself. The New Orleans Saints are 1-3 and have earned that mark.

When you lead the NFL in turnovers (11), when you are minus seven in the turnover department, when you lead the league in penalties (34) and have accumulated 319 yards in penalties, when you blow an assignment on a punt and allow a fake to take you to the cleaners, you are not a good football team.

As Jim Mora always told us when he coached the Saints and as he continues to state to this day, you are what your record says you are.

The Saints were fortunate, perhaps very fortunate, to win at Atlanta and unfortunate, perhaps very unfortunate, to lose in London.

Reverse either of those games, and you arrive at 1-3.

“You are what your record says you are,” Bill Parcells was once famously quoted to say.

That is who the 2022 New Orleans Saints are right now.