New Orleans Saints' road woes continue in stunning 27-16 loss to St. Louis Rams

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St. Louis -- Murphy's Law states "everything that can go wrong, will go wrong."

Perhaps Murphy's Law originated in St. Louis -- at least as far as the New Orleans Saints are concerned.

The list of things that went awry for the Saints against the St. Louis Rams on Sunday was long: two interceptions, a fumble, failure to recover a surprise onside kick by St. Louis, two missed field-goal attempts (one blocked) and seven penalties, including one that negated a touchdown.

Not to mention starting left tackle Charles Brown was benched in the third quarter after allowing two of four sacks on Saints quarterback Drew Brees.

Just one of those misdeeds is enough to lose a game. Put them together, and the outcome is usually ugly.

That wouldn't even begin to describe the Saints' performance in a 27-16 loss to the St. Louis Rams at the Edward Jones Dome on Sunday.

New Orleans (10-4) went into the game with the possibility of clinching a playoff spot and avenging a 31-21 loss at the same venue in 2011, but they again were humbled by the Rams (6-8). 

Now the Saints will have to take care of business against the Carolina Panthers on the road next week. The Panthers defeated the New York Jets, 30-20, on Sunday and are tied with New Orleans for the NFC South lead.
If they lose to the Panthers, the Saints will need to beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Panthers to lose to the Falcons to earn the No. 2 seed.
Sunday was a nightmare scenario for the Saints that likely gave them an uncomfortable reminder of a 34-7 loss to the Seattle Seahawks two weeks ago.
It was the loss to the Seahawks that fueled the perception of the Saints' road struggles. The loss to the Rams practically sealed it.
The Saints have consistently denied that distinction, citing their 24-14 road record since 2009, the best in the NFL in that span, as proof.

But with a 3-4 road record this season, the latest defeat against a Rams team reduced to playing only for pride, they aren't refuting it anymore.
"Much has been written about how we play on the road and how we play at home, and you know what? That's where it is right now," said Saints coach Sean Payton.
But the issues the Saints faced in Seattle, with a roaring crowd and cold temperatures, had no bearing Sunday in a warm dome with a lethargic crowd. For whatever reason, the Saints came out flat, Payton said.
It didn't help the Saints dug themselves a hole right away. Brees was intercepted on the first play from scrimmage while looking for tight end Jimmy Graham over the middle. St. Louis capitalized the next play with a 31-yard touchdown from quarterback Kellen Clemens to Corey Harkey.
"You want to talk about waking the whole place up? That did it," Brees said.
Brees drove the Saints down the field on the next drive, but was intercepted again while looking for Graham in the end zone despite triple coverage. It was a throw Brees admitted he should not have made.
The Rams countered with a 93-yard touchdown drive that was aided by two consecutive unnecessary roughness penalties on the Saints. Clemens threw his second touchdown pass after finding Lance Kendricks behind defenders in the end zone.
The Rams were up 14-0 before the first quarter was over. And they were just getting started.
Taking a page from the Saints' Super Bowl XLIV playbook, St. Louis executed a surprise onside kick to perfection, getting the ball back at New Orleans' 47-yard line. The Rams kicked a 31-yard field goal a few plays later to increase their advantage to 17-0.
Whatever momentum the Saints tried to establish was snuffed out quickly. New Orleans' opening drive of the second quarter ended with a sack of Brees on third-and-1 at the St. Louis 19-yard line.
New Orleans settled for a 45-yard Garrett Hartley field goal instead. Those were the only points the Saints would get in the first half.
Rams rookie running back Zac Stacy, who rushed for 133 yards, scampered 40 yards for a touchdown to extend the lead to 24-3. And the Saints' biggest chance to get back in the game fell flat when a touchdown pass from Brees to Lance Moore was nullified by an illegal use of hands penalty by Brown just before halftime.
Hartley's ensuing 36-yard field-goal attempt was then blocked by former LSU standout and Rams defensive tackle Michael Brockers.
The troubles continued to pile up in the second half. Rams defensive end Robert Quinn sacked Brees and forced a fumble on the Saints' first drive.
It was the last straw for Payton regarding Brown, who was promptly benched and replaced by Zach Strief, who shifted over from right tackle. Bryce Harris then moved to right tackle.
"I saw enough, period," Payton said of the benching.
But nothing the Saints tried seem to help. Strief, in his new position, committed two penalties on the next drive to help stall it, and the Rams tacked on a 35-yard field goal to take a 27-3 lead in the fourth quarter.
That's when the Saints finally showed some signs of life. They converted a fourth-and-1 at their own 29-yard line to extend a drive that ended with a 1-yard touchdown sneak by Brees.
On their next drive, a clock-chewing struggle that took 8:14, the Saints converted three fourth-down attempts and finally scored on a 5-yard pass from Brees to Colston to narrow the gap to 27-16 after a failed two-point attempt.
With 3:07 left and facing a two-possession game, New Orleans recovered an onside kick and drove to the Rams' 8-yard line. But after failing to convert on third down, Hartley missed his second field-goal attempt, from 26 yards, to end any chances of a comeback.
"Both the early turnovers really helped us put them in a hole, and then we played the rest of the game with time on our side," said Rams coach Jeff Fisher, who is now 5-0 in his career against the Saints.
Fisher wasn't on the Rams' sideline during the Saints' 2011 loss to the Rams, but the script was essentially the same. New Orleans handed the winless Rams their first victory two years ago, when Quinn and fellow end Chris Long combined for four sacks and a blocked punt.
The duo again terrorized the Saints on Sunday, along with the rest of the front four, which kept heavy pressure on Brees the entire game.
Now the Saints will have to regroup with their showdown against the Panthers coming up next Sunday.
"We'll have to break down the film again and get right for this next week," said Saints defensive end Cam Jordan. "Again we've got Carolina, who we just played. They're watching this film, and they're probably pretty happy about this."
Added Saints safety Malcolm Jenkins: "Sometimes you just have to take your lumps and get better from it. ...
"We have a big road test coming up against and everything is pretty much riding on it, so we will have to bounce back fast and figure out what it is that we need to do to get better."