Despite an outstanding effort from the defense and a stirring comeback from the offense, the New Orleans Saints fell to the Atlanta Falcons 19-17 in the season finale on Sunday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. The Saints ended their first season under Coach Kellen Moore with a 6-11 record.
The Saints’ loss gave the Carolina Panthers (8-9) the NFC South title, ending Tampa’s long run atop the division.
Quarterback Tyler Shough, playing without almost all of the team’s starting skill players, was 23 of 35 for 259 yards. He scored on a 1-yard touchdown run in the second quarter and threw an amazing 16-yard touchdown pass to Ronnie Bell with 1:11 to play to set up an onside kick, which Atlanta recovered. The one downside to Shough’s performance, he threw an interception with 3:14 to play while in scoring range, setting up Atlanta’s final field goal. Kevin Austin was the team’s top receiver with four catches for 37 yards while tight end Juwan Johnson had three catches for 61 yards.