Saints fall to Falcons in season finale, 19-17, giving Carolina NFC South title

ATLANTA (WVUE) - Baker Mayfield says he’s never liked the Saints. His distaste only grew Sunday (Jan. 4).

A late interception by Saints rookie quarterback Tyler Shough wound up a decisive moment in New Orleans’ 19-17 loss to the archrival Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

Losing the season series to their bitter rivals ended the Saints’ first season under Coach Kellen Moore with a 6-11 record. It also snapped a four-game winning streak that had given fans some cause for optimism.

But in the bigger picture, the Saints’ loss also created a three-way tiebreaker that propelled the Carolina Panthers (8-9) into the playoffs by virtue of their intra-division record, ending Tampa Bay’s run of four consecutive NFC South Division titles. Mayfield and his Buccaneers teammates saw their season end with the final whistle in Atlanta.

With division title at stake, Baker Mayfield and Bucs left rooting for Saints

With few offensive weapons at his disposal -- Alvin Kamara and Chris Olave were ruled out before the game and Taysom Hill was injured during it -- Shough did his best to end on a winning note.

But the game turned with 3:24 to play. Shough had driven the Saints deep into Atlanta territory, seeking a go-ahead touchdown, when Falcons cornerback Dee Alford jumped a pass intended for Dante Pettis at the Falcons’ 14-yard line and returned the interception 59 yards to the New Orleans 27.

“I think the (defensive back), that kid made a phenomenal play,” Moore said.

The late turnover set up a 38-yard field goal by Zane Gonzalez -- the fourth of the game for the Falcons’ kicker -- that provided a two-score margin with a 19-10 lead.

Shough drove the Saints 65 yards in seven plays in response, connecting with Ronnie Bell for a spectacular one-handed touchdown catch with 1:11 to play.

“His ability to respond, that’s credit to the way that he’s wired,” Moore said of Shough.

But 19-17 would be as close as the Saints would get as the Falcons recovered an onside kick attempt and ran out the clock.

New Orleans outgained Atlanta, 340-208.

“I love what Tyler’s done,” Moore said. “He’ll get a whole off-season now to study, watch a ton of film, and get ready from there.”

Earlier, Atlanta blocked a punt, recovered at the New Orleans 8-yard line, and took a 7-0 lead with 3:02 left in the first quarter. Quarterback Kirk Cousins found Drake London alone in the end zone for a 15-yard scoring pass. The score came two plays after an apparent 5-yard touchdown run by Bijan Robinson was nullified by a holding penalty.

The Falcons extended their lead to 10-0 when Gonzalez connected on a 40-yard field goal with 10:19 left in the second quarter.

The Saints ended the shutout with 4:31 left in the first half, when Shough faked a handoff at the Atlanta 1 and scampered into the end zone on a bootleg to the right. Charlie Smyth’s extra point made it a 10-7 game.

Shough completed 23 of 35 passes for 259 yards, one touchdown and the costly interception, but has put himself in contention for offensive rookie honors in the NFC.

Gonzalez hit a 51-yard field goal with 8:50 to play in the third quarter, putting Atlanta back ahead by six at 13-7.

New Orleans sought its first lead of the game with 2:25 to play in the third, when Shough hit Kevin Austin with a scoring pass from the 1. But the touchdown was erased by an offensive pass interference call against Pettis. The Saints wound up having to settle for a 29-yard field goal by Smyth that cut their deficit to 13-10.

A third Gonzalez field goal -- this time from 38 yards out -- put Atlanta up 16-10 with 10:43 left in the game.

Saints defensive end Cam Jordan took down Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins in the first quarter, running his season total to 10½ sacks at age 36.

Hill, 35, in what possibly was his final game with the Saints, was knocked out of competition early with what was described as a shoulder injury.

Despite getting a win, Falcons owner Arthur Blank fired Raheem Morris and Terry Fontenot, saying the results did not meet the expectations of fans or leadership.

In his two seasons as head coach, Morris led the team to back-to-back 8-9 records.

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