The New Orleans Saints take on the Buffalo Bills at the Caesars Superdome in Week 12 of the 2021 NFL season.
On the night that legendary New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees said goodbye to Saints fans, the New Orleans offense had one of its least effective games as the Buffalo Bills cruised to a 31-6 victory on Thanksgiving night at the Caesars Superdome.
Quarterback Trevor Siemian, making his fourth start in place of an injured Jameis Winston, couldn't get anything working early as the Saints lost their fourth consecutive game to drop to 5-6. New Orleans had 64 yards of offense at halftime and just 190 for the game. The Saints didn't get on the scoreboard until 14:54 remained when Siemian hit tight end Nick Vannett with an 11-yard touchdown pass.
The New Orleans offense was decimated by injuries. The Saints played without their two top running backs (Alvin Kamara, Mark Ingram), their starting quarterback (Winston), their star receiver (Michael Thomas), their All-Pro right tackle (Ryan Ramczyk), their Pro Bowl left guard (Andrus Peat) and their top tight end (Adam Trautman). Taysom Hill was the team's backup quarterback and took no snaps.
Siemian was 17 of 29 for 163 yards with one touchdown and one interception and Tony Jones Jr. was the top rusher with 27 yards on 16 carries. Ty Montgomery was the top receiver with five catches for 31 yards. The Saints were 5 of 13 on third down and had just 12 first downs.
The defense was missing three of its top four defensive ends but held tough through a 10-0 first half, coming up with two interceptions (Bradley Roby and Kwon Alexander) and two sacks (Carl Granderson, Kaden Elliss). But Bills quarterback Josh Allen and his offense eventually broke the game open in the second half, scoring on a 5-yard pass to Stefon Diggs, a 24-yard pass to Dawson Knox, his second touchdown of the game, and a 23-yard pass to Matt Breida.
The Saints will play host to the Dallas Cowboys (7-4) next Thursday at the Caesars Superdome. While Winston and Thomas are out for the season, the Saints could get several of their injured star players back for the game. The four-game losing streak is the Saints' longest since the 2015 season.
The win improved the Bills' record to 7-4.