Oh, when the Saints go marching out.
The Caesars Superdome was filled Thursday night with fans raring to see Sean Payton's reunion and Drew Brees' halftime induction into the New Orleans Saints Hall of Fame. Midway through the fourth quarter, most of them had left, perturbed by the eventual 33-10 loss to the Denver Broncos.
It got ugly early for the Saints, who struggled to move the ball and allowed four consecutive scoring drives as the visitors built a 16-3 halftime lead. It wasn't close much of the second half, with Denver carrying a 26-3 lead into the fourth quarter. New Orleans fans were not shy about raining down boos throughout the contest before eventually departing early.
"I've been here eight years and I've never seen the Dome clear out like that," running back Alvin Kamara said, . "If I was a fan, I would leave too. Just being honest. It's just people fed up."
Fans are fed up with the Saints' five-game losing streak. Coming on the heels of an impressive 2-0 start to the season, the skid could spell doom for Dennis Allen's team.
It's not just that the losses are mounting, but the context of the collapse.
New Orleans has scored 17.2 points per game in the past five tilts while allowing 30.2. The Saints scored 27 points (+3 turnover diff) in the second quarter of Week 6's home 51-27 loss to Tampa Bay but have just 10 points (-4 turnover diff) in seven other quarters of Weeks 6-7.
Thursday marked the sixth time the Saints scored 10 or fewer points in a home game since 2021. The Saints only had four such home games with Brees as the starting QB from 2006-2020. It was the first time the Saints lost back-to-back home games by 20-plus points since Weeks 16-17, 2001.
Payton suffered two 20-plus point losses at home in 15 seasons. Allen has had two in the past week.
The offense is missing major weapons. Derek Carr (oblique), Chris Olave (concussion) and Rashid Shaheed (knee) were out Thursday. Likewise, the defense was missing a few pieces, and Paulson Adebo was injured during the contest. However, the defense's collapse -- giving up 983 total yards the past five days -- is the most troubling for the defensive-minded head coach.
Despite the losing streak and struggles, Allen insisted he's not worried about his job status.
"No," Allen said when asked about the state of his job is a concern.
Allen said the injuries weren't "excuses" but simply realities of the hand the Saints have been dealt. Rookie quarterback Spencer Rattler started his second game on Thursday night and struggled before eventually being replaced by backup Jake Haener on the Saints' lone, garbage-time touchdown drive.
"We have to stand up and lead," Allen said. "We're the only ones who's going to get us out of here. It's not like there's a draft in the middle of the season, there's no one coming to be our savior."
