NEW ORLEANS -- The Saints have lost both of their games this season in similar fashion.
Good, but not good enough.
The Saints' 26-21 loss to the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday was the latest example of a team still trying to figure things out under new coach Kellen Moore. In both games the Saints got off to slow starts and were left scrambling to try to mount comebacks.
They also missed field goals in consecutive weeks and gave up several big plays. In Week 1 against the Arizona Cardinals, it was Marvin Harrison Jr. shaking free for a 45-yard gain. Against the Niners, it was backup quarterback Mac Jones connecting with Jauan Jennings for a 42-yard touchdown.
Three of the longest plays given up by the Saints occurred on third down against San Francisco.
"It hurts when you lose games like this and that's how it's supposed to feel. ... There's no feel-good moments out of this," Moore said.
The Saints had the ball and a chance against the Niners, but they failed to convert on fourth-and-1 with one minute left after Saints quarterback Spencer Rattler was sacked and stripped of the ball.
"Just starting faster, finding a rhythm, thought we ran the ball well all day. Man, we're close though. We're close," Rattler said. "These games come down to the wire and [we've] got to do what winning teams do. That's what Kellen was telling us. ... We moved the ball well all game, just got to start faster."
The loss left the Saints in an 0-2 hole to start the season for the first time since 2017 -- something they dealt with every season from 2014-17. Of those teams, only the 2017 team made the postseason after winning its next eight games.
The Saints aren't keen on stretching this record to 0-3, but climbing out of the hole won't be easy with road games against the Seattle Seahawks (1-1) and Buffalo Bills (2-0) up next.
Moore and the players were searching for the positives after the loss, of which Moore said there were "plenty." But he admitted there was pain associated with losing another game in that fashion.
"We've got to pounce on opportunities when they're presented and we've got to give ourselves a better chance, and so there's too much good in there to miss these opportunities," Moore said.
One positive mentioned was Rattler's play. Rattler, who is now 0-8 as a starter, threw three touchdown passes for the first time in his career. He finished 25-of-34 for 207 yards and also rushed four times for 14 yards, converting a fourth-and-1 in the third quarter.
Rattler also found a rhythm with some of his receivers that he played sparingly with last season because of injuries. Rattler completed his first touchdown to Rashid Shaheed in the third quarter, found Devaughn Vele, who was acquired last month in a trade, for a fourth-quarter score, and had a 14-yard completion to Chris Olave to set up that score.
Rattler agreed it was probably his best game as a starter so far.
"I mean, yeah, but you want to win at the end of the day. We play this game to win. We play together. We battle every week, and we're so close as a team. We're doing the right things throughout the week," Rattler said. "Our coaches have us prepared. We got to go out there and execute at a high level from start to finish. But I think there's growth in all of our games, but just got to keep building, got to keep building. It's that simple."
As the Saints attempt to get that elusive win, safety Justin Reid said the key is to continue asking how they can be better as a team instead of pointing fingers. Reid said he thinks the team is improving despite the record, and they need to keep trending up.
"The NFL is about, as the season goes on, continuing to move this way," he said, gesturing upward with his hand. "As long as you're moving this way ... you're going to be OK. And I think that we are making strides, but we got to pick up the intensity on that. We got to feel the pressure of, we got to start winning games and start capitalizing on these situations."
Saints linebacker Demario Davis was on two teams that started 0-2 or worse: the 2016 Cleveland Browns, who finished 1-15, and the 2017 New York Jets, who finished 5-11. When asked how his experience helped him approach a difficult start to the season, he said the start isn't always an indicator of the finish.
The 2024 Saints started 2-0 and finished 5-12, he pointed out.
"I don't think you have to make it any more than it is," Davis said. "This game is about execution and you stay locked in and you don't let one game turn into two games. I mean last year we started 2-0 and it totally went off the cliff, so you can start 0-2 and it can totally go the other way."