Saints get the W against Chargers despite a gazillion penalties

The New Orleans Saints and Los Angeles Chargers played each other on the field in Southern California under the roof of SoFi Stadium, but the two offenses played like though they were mired in the mud of the tropical storm raging outside. At the half, the Saints built a three-point lead and held on to win 22-17. Three punts were made on each of the game's first six drives, and two of New Orleans' three touchdowns were the result of turnovers.

In order to score the opening touchdown of the match, the Saints required a takeaway. Football calamity struck after Los Angeles shortly after Chargers starting quarterback Easton Stick, who started every snap in lieu of Justin Herbert, who has never played in a preseason game, had consecutive completions for first downs. First-round draft pick defensive end Payton Turner of the Saints knocked the ball out of Stick's hands for a strip sack, and rookie defensive lineman Bryan Bresee pounced on it.

After a takeaway, New Orleans started its subsequent drive at the Chargers 33. Three plays later, the Saints were in the end zone thanks to rookie third-round running back Kendre Miller.

Stick amassed 63 yards on seven rushes, two touchdowns, and 233 yards via the air while also throwing two interceptions.

After Jameis Winston had a strong first half, Jake Haener, a fourth-round rookie backup quarterback for the Saints, had a productive second half, completing 11 of 17 passes for 118 yards.

Jameis Winston put up another effective performance in Week 2 against the Chargers following a standout preseason effort in Week 1 against the Chiefs (92 passing yards and a touchdown on 11-of-13 passing). For 169 yards on 13 of his 21 tries, he was successful, including a great deep pass to rookie running back Kendre Miller that helped set up the opening touchdown of the contest.

The Saints' first touchdown was forced into the end zone by rookie running back Kendre Miller, who was selected in the third round. Jameis Winston, the starting quarterback, threw a pass that the TCU Horned Frog made an amazing over-the-shoulder diving catch on, gaining 27 yards down to the Los Angeles 7. For the final seven yards and the game's first touchdown, Miller ran the ball alone. With 10 carries for a total of 23 yards and a touchdown, Miller was the only ball carrier for the Saints at the end of the first half. On three catches, he contributed 35 receiving yards as well. Miller earlier this summer claimed he "could do the same thing" as Alvin Kamara, and in the preseason setting, he produced a Kamara-like performance. During Kamara's three-game ban, he may challenge Jamaal Williams, who didn't play on Sunday, for touches.

In all three football divisions (offense, defense, and special teams), New Orleans made an astounding 14 mistakes that cost them a total of 141 yards. These 14 violations represent the most by any NFL club in a single preseason game. Naturally, their 141 penalty yards lost in one game this preseason are also the highest of any NFL team. Although several starters didn't play on Sunday, a number this high indicates that head coach Dennis Allen may need to skip a significant amount of practice time to solve the problem.