The New Orleans Saints were unable to get their third win of the year and win in Paris. This was expected because the Saints have been unable to really find any consistency this season, but what matters most is how they lost rather than the loss itself. If the Saints were competitive all game and looked like a good team, the negativity surrounding this team would dissipate a bit, and the hope would still be strong. 

The way Sunday’s loss happened made things only worse, and there were three clear issues that led to the Saints fall short of victory. 

This season, the Saints have been horrible running the ball, but this game was by far the worst it's ever been. New Orleans finished the game with 18 rushing yards in 17 carries. That isn't just bad; that's historically bad. When we all thought the run game was finally going to be better after doing well against the New York Giants, it was the complete opposite. 

Then, what makes things even worse, the Saints' run defense was catastrophic as well. New Orleans could not stop Jaylen Warren to the point that the Steelers continued to just run the ball on third and fourth down and picked it up every time. It allowed the Steelers to completely control this game. 

Last season, the Saints' red zone issues led to losses, and it was a must-fix this offseason. To Kellen Moore’s credit, he was able to fix the red zone problems, and the Saints have been one of the best in the NFL there, but against the Steelers, that disappeared. New Orleans had opportunities to score touchdowns but couldn't make it happen, and it led to the loss. 

What made it worse, and the same issue happen last year, was that the Saints also couldn't rely on the kicking to help them if they couldn't score in the red zone. Just a bad situation. 

In the first two games of the season, the Saints had to rely on Shough to carry the offense and lead the team. It worked out for those first two weeks (kind of), but it's been downhill since that point. Shough is playing with a broken hand and is being forced into situations that are only negative for his development and health. There's too much pressure on Shough to do everything, and even though he looks like the clear starting QB, the Saints are risking his long-term potential.