What we learned from the Saints’ loss to the Chiefs | Saints

The New Orleans Saints lost to the Kansas City Chiefs 26-13 at Arrowhead Stadium on Monday night and are 2-3 on the season.

It was the Saints’ third loss in a row.

After a promising 2-0 start, they have fallen behind Atlanta and Tampa Bay in the NFC South Division standings. They will start their big division game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday in third place in the division standings.

Here’s what we learned from the game:

Mahomes magic

The Chiefs’ injury-ravaged offense was missing three of its best playmakers, but it still had Patrick Mahomes, and that’s all that mattered. The All-Pro quarterback ripped through the Saints defense with a season-high 331 yards and repeatedly tormented the unit with his uncanny scrambling skills and off-platform throws.

The Chiefs played 30 more plays than the Saints and doubled their yards (460-220), first downs (28-14) and time of possession (39:56-20:04). The Chiefs’ yardage and first down totals were season highs against the Saints. The Chiefs punted just one and ended nine of their 10 drives in Saints territory.

The Saints had no answer for Mahomes and receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster (seven receptions, 130 yards) and tight end Jason Kelce (nine receptions, 70 yards).

It felt and looked a lot like last season, when the Saints were promoted up the league and completely inferior. Just the total dominance of the Chiefs – and that includes the coaching and game plans.

Injury to insult

The Saints might have lost more than just one game. Quarterback Derek Carr left the game in the fourth quarter with an oblique injury after being hit by a Chiefs defender during a full tackle. Carr was taken to the locker room for medical examinations and did not return. Backup Jake Haener finished the game at quarterback.

Carr struggled behind a makeshift offensive line. He completed 18 of 28 passes for 165 yards and a touchdown. He threw an interception on the sixth play of the game after being pressured by a Chiefs blitz, a game-setting play that led to the Chiefs’ first touchdown.

Carr’s health will be of utmost importance this week, and he doesn’t have much time to recover with just a short week left until Sunday’s game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Shaky start

The Saints couldn’t have started the game worse than they did. Carr threw an interception on the sixth play of the game, sending the sellout crowd at Arrowhead Stadium into a loud frenzy from the start. The Chiefs quickly marched down the field to score a touchdown and the Saints trailed 7-0 less than 10 minutes into the game. They added a field goal a few minutes later and the Saints found themselves facing a double-digit deficit early on.

Catching up against the reigning Super Bowl champions on the road is not a recipe for success.