Saints’ Spencer Rattler nearly pulls off the win vs Commanders | Saints

Every time Jake Haener was flushed out of the pocket Sunday’s game against the Washington Commanders — and boy, that happened a lot — the New Orleans Saints quarterback scanned the field determined to live up to his pregame promise to let it rip.

Haener said days earlier that he had worked too hard to enter his first career start with a cautious mentality. The 25-year-old knew he might never get another opportunity to start in the NFL. Then he asked, what did he have to lose?

Haener found out the answer during the break.

But good thing the Saints have Spencer Rattler.

And even then it wasn’t enough.

The Rattlers nearly led a remarkable second-half comeback that fell just short in a 20-19 loss to the Commanders. New Orleans nearly pulled off the upset by scoring a touchdown as time expired — but failed to convert to two points.

The rookie, who replaced Haener with the Saints trailing 17-0, provided an immediate spark to New Orleans’ offense, even if his final numbers weren’t pretty. Rattler completed just 47.6 percent of his passes, but the Saints still had a chance to win it even without Derek Carr — New Orleans’ regular starter who missed the game with a concussion and a left hand injury.

The Commanders survived and won the game thanks to a strong performance from rookie Jayden Daniels, the former LSU star who was drafted second overall this year.

Daniels went 25 of 31 for 226 yards and two touchdowns. He was the main source of Washington’s offense, which stalled in the second half.

What made the Saints bench Haener? Here’s a stat that explained the move: At halftime, New Orleans had just 38 net yards — their fewest in a half since 2002, according to ESPN Stats and Information. Haener was only 5 years old at the time, and Aaron Brooks was the Saints’ quarterback.

Under Haener, the Saints had as many first downs as the Commanders had first-half incompletions – 2.

Washington was not the type of opponent the Saints could afford not to keep up with. In addition to the Saints containing Daniels for stretches of Sunday’s games — five of their eight sacks came in the first half — Daniels was still more than capable of carving up New Orleans’ secondary.

That was evident on the game’s first touchdown, as Daniels danced and danced, avoiding oncoming pressure to find star wide receiver Terry McLaurin for a 16-yard touchdown in the tightest of windows.

Haener, meanwhile, was under almost constant pressure. He was sacked three times, and when he wasn’t knocked down, it looked like Haener was pushing too hard to play. He was picked off by Commanders cornerback Mike Sainristil on third down. The turnover led to the Commanders’ second scoring drive: a 10-play, 53-yard drive that ended with another 3-yard touchdown to McLaurin.

Haener’s final stat line was almost as ugly as the first half: 4 of 10 for 49 yards.

At least Rattler gave the Saints a spark. The Caesars Superdome crowd cheered as the rookie quarterback entered the huddle, and he soon hit wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling on a 39-yard gain that put the floor even higher.

Offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak also got creative to get the Saints on the board. The play caller called a play where Rattler threw it to Cedrick Wilson — who then unleashed a 21-yard bomb to a streaking Alvin Kamara on the opposite side of the field for a touchdown.

With the Saints trailing 17-7, New Orleans’ defense bent but didn’t break. The unit held the Commanders to a 41-yard field goal on the following drive, and the defensive line continued to get pressure on Daniels.

The Saints managed to get another pair of field goals to stay in the game. And then chaos ensued.

Washington’s Greg Joseph missed a 54-yard kick and Rattler led an 11-play, 56-yard drive over 1:55 to hit Moreau for a touchdown. But Rattler’s pass to Kevin Austin on the two-point attempt was incomplete, sealing the victory for the Commanders.