Preseason analysis: What went right and what went wrong in Saints vs. Chargers

Remember folks, it's only preseason. But, exhibition game No. 1 for the New Orleans Saints is in the books. It wasn't a pretty one, as the Saints lost on the road to the Los Angeles Chargers by a score of 27-13. Preseason games aren't important by their score. What's more important are what you can take away from it and to not overreact. Since the latter is impossible for some (most?) fans, let's focus on the former.

• What went right?
• What went wrong?
• What's the bottom line?

What went right

Tyler Shough had some impressive moments in his professional debut. Yes, there is still plenty to work on. That was shown in the interception return for a touchdown and some other decisions with the ball that you'd expect a rookie to make in his first game action. However, Shough stayed aggressive after the pick, hung in the pocket with good toughness, and displayed tremendous arm talent. His accuracy was also pretty solid throughout most of his reps. On a two-minute drill to end the first half, Shough completed 5 of 8 passes for 42 yards with one throw a spike and another essentially a throwaway. He moved the team fairly well, despite little help from his receivers, even less from his offensive line, and no running game to speak of.

Albeit against second and third teamers for the Chargers, the Saints showed that they might have some depth in their defensive front seven after all. Nathan Shepherd had a nice pressure on a 3rd down win for the defense in the first quarter. Khristian Boyd showed good power in the middle and had an impressive sack in the first half. At linebacker, Isaiah Stalbird flew around like a heat-seeking missile in the second half and looks like he'll be tough to keep off the field. Jaylan Ford had some nice plays in coverage, while D'Marco Jackson looked more comfortable than he ever has. Fadil Diggs and Mike Rumph II both had a sack and were aggressive against the run. Speaking of the run, until a few breakdowns in the fourth quarter the Saints did a nice job of controlling the line of scrimmage and containing the Los Angeles rushing attack. You'd like to see more disruption from the first teamers, the ones that played, but New Orleans flashed the possibility of better depth here than many expected.

What went wrong

Good God, the offensive line was horrendous. Dillon Radunz was a disaster at right tackle. Guard and center play was equally bad, even up to starters Cesar Ruiz, Will Clapp, and Torricelli Simpkins. Quarterbacks Shough, Spencer Rattler, and Jake Haener had little time to go through reads and each took some bones jarring hits even beyond the five sacks the Chargers registered. New Orleans running backs managed a measly 30 yards on the ground and an embarrassing 2.2 yards per carry. While the backs need to perform better, there was simply no lanes to run into more often than not.

Isaiah Foskey still looks like a clueless non-factor. Foskey was out with the starting unit and logged a lot of snaps. He's lost as a run defender and invisible as a pass rusher. We'll explore which individual players helped and hurt their cause in a later article. However, it's hard to envision Isaiah Foskey keeping a roster spot at this stage. Especially when Diggs and Rumph have been so clearly outplaying him so far in training camp.

The quarterback competition is far from settled, but Spencer Rattler most certainly did not stake a strong claim with his performance against the Chargers. As stated above, none of the quarterbacks got any help from their line, receivers, or running game. But Rattler looked exactly as he did as a rookie: oblivious to pressure, often inaccurate, and struggles to read coverages. He made a couple nice plays with his legs and one quick decision on a broken coverage throw to Cedrick Wilson. His statistics weren't awful: 7 of 11 for 53 yards with a sack-fumble and 22 yards rushing. Shough had better stats with 15 of 22 for 165 yards and 1 touchdown with an interception. More than statistics, Shough clearly had better command of the offense, moved the ball more consistently, and showed far more upside than Rattler in this game. If the same plays out next week, when Shough is expected to start and Rattler come in second, than the quarterback competition might be wrapped up before the preseason's third week.

What's the bottom line?

Injuries are the biggest thing to watch this week. Trevor Penning, Bub Means, and Will Clapp all left the game with potentially concerning injuries. This team is simply not deep enough to withstand a rash of injuries, especially on the offensive side. With the abysmal performance of both the offensive line and wide receivers, don't be surprised if the Saints bring in a few tryouts at each position.

Remember that this is only the first week of the preseason. Most of the New Orleans top talents didn't even suit up. There were certainly some red flags to take away from this loss. There's also some room for excitement, especially with the defensive aggression and diverse play-calling by coach Kellen Moore on offense.

This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: Preseason analysis: What went right and wrong in Saints vs. Chargers