First-and-10 from the New Orleans Saints' 27-yard line, with 12:21 remaining in the second quarter, incomplete pass intended for tight end Adam Trautman.
Second-and-10, same spot, six seconds later, 5-yard completion to Trautman.
Third-and-5 from the Saints' 32, 11:39 left in the quarter, incomplete pass intended for receiver Marquez Callaway.
It wasn't a blazing start for Saints quarterback Trevor Siemian, who was called upon to replace starter Jameis Winston when Winston injured his knee in a game that was tied at 10, but which the Saints went on to win 36-27 over Tampa Bay in the Caesars Superdome on Sunday.
Not a blazing start, but an aggressive one. And with it, the Saints (5-2) sent a message to their NFC South Division rivals (6-2), who ended New Orleans' season last year in a divisional round playoff win over the Saints in the Superdome.
The message was simple: Even with the starter sidelined, New Orleans' cleat was going to remain on the accelerator on offense. There would be no backing off calls, no conservatism that involved running every first and second down and hoping to pick up a morsel of offense here and there, no tiptoeing around and waiting for the defense to save the day (it did anyway, with three forced turnovers, three sacks and a touchdown of its own).
Siemian attempted a pass on his first three plays, then after an Alvin Kamara run was stopped for a 1-yard loss to begin the next series, he threw a pass on the next four.
The Saints were all about aggression in the passing game, against a team that entered the game with the league's stingiest run defense (67 yards allowed per game). New Orleans did, in fact, manage to run it well (32 carries for 152 yards and a touchdown, with Winston and receiver Deonte Harris combining for 62 yards on five carries), but Siemian finished the game with 16 completions on 29 attempts, for 159 yards and a touchdown, with no interceptions.
In less than three quarters, he attempted his most passes in a regular-season game since he was a starter for Denver and completed 19 of 31 against the Jets on Dec. 10, 2017.
In three throws, though, he – and the Saints – showed that the show would go on as regularly scheduled. And for New Orleans, that proved to be right on time.
