So much for the idea of improving each week in the preseason.
The New Orleans Saints' offense was downright dreadful throughout Saturday's 16-9 loss to the Houston Texans -- from the starters on down.
The Saints officially had only three turnovers (interceptions thrown by Drew Brees and Garrett Grayson and a fumbled kickoff return by Marcus Murphy). But the ball seemed to be on the ground all night, from dropped passes to fumbles that were overturned by penalties or replays. They couldn't score touchdowns, they couldn't protect Brees and they couldn't run the ball to save their lives.
Coach Sean Payton said "it was as bad as we've been in a while" offensively, and "it was across the board."
It was an ugly end to an ugly week that started with first-round draft pick Sheldon Rankins suffering a broken leg in practice Monday and continued with cornerback Keenan Lewis announcing Friday night that he was being released.
At least the defense played well again at Houston -- and at least the Saints still have two more weeks to try to reverse the momentum.
QB depth chart: Brees' performance was a far cry from last week, when he threw only one pass and completed it for 37 yards. This time, Brees stayed in for three frustrating series and finished 5-of-8 for 29 yards and an interception. In his defense, the officials missed a blatant holding penalty against intended receiver Michael Thomas on the interception. But Brees also got away with a fumble that was overturned by a penalty. He had a downfield pass dropped by receiver Brandon Coleman. And he was sacked once for a 14-yard loss.
Veteran Luke McCown played most of the game after that, with Grayson entering in the fourth quarter. Grayson actually put a decent drive together late, but it ended with him throwing that final interception in the end zone as time expired. The Saints might reverse the backup order in the final two preseason games, but McCown still seems like the clear front-runner for the backup job.
One reason to be concerned: Of all the things the offense did wrong, the most concerning issue continues to be the guard play. At one point in the third quarter, the Saints had run for 25 yards on 16 carries, and the pass protection wasn’t much better. Tim Lelito, the projected starter at left guard, had a particularly rough night. So did Andrus Peat, the projected starter at right guard, who split his time between right guard and left tackle.
When it was starters vs. starters, the Saints looked ...: Hideous on offense, but pretty good on defense. Defensive tackle Nick Fairley was especially disruptive early in the game with a sack, a tackle for loss, a quarterback hit and four tackles (one chasing down a runner on a screen pass). His performance was especially key considering his role became bigger when Rankins was injured.
Maybe that player could start: Second-year cornerback P.J. Williams had one of the worst plays and one of the best plays of the night. He was beaten for a touchdown by rookie receiver Will Fuller in the first quarter when he didn't turn his head to locate the ball. But later, he did the exact opposite, aggressively snatching the ball in front of Fuller for an interception on fourth-and-goal in the end zone. Williams has drawn some rave reviews in camp this summer and he appears to be the front-runner to replace Lewis in the starting lineup.
Expect more highs and lows like he showed Saturday, but it's a good sign if he can recover from mistakes like that.
A surprise player who impressed: Does Tommylee Lewis still count as a surprise player? The 5-foot-7, 168-pound receiver has had a tremendous camp, but he made two of his most important catches yet by converting third downs into first downs. He caught a short pass from Brees on the first series and turned it into a 9-yard gain on third-and-8. That will go a long way toward building trust.
Lewis also got a long look as a kick and punt returner, a position where he could threaten Murphy for a job if he continues to show inconsistency.
After the game, Payton said, "We'll find another returner."
Who got hurt? There were no reported injuries of note. Receivers Brandin Cooks and Willie Snead watched from the sideline, but a source said Cooks was OK and just being rested.
Bubble bursting? Coleman continued to show the inconsistency that has plagued him for three years now, really. His first-quarter drop was bad -- and he followed with another drop soon after. But he also rallied to finish with six catches for 47 yards. His roster spot remains undetermined.
The guy who hurt himself the most, though, was tight end RaShaun Allen, who dropped one high pass when he was wide open in the end zone in the fourth quarter and another high pass deep down the field in the final minutes.
