- The New Orleans Saints defeated the Atlanta Falcons 27-26 in their opening game of 2022.
- With the win, New Orleans moves to 1-0. The Saints return to action on Sunday, Sept. 18 when they play the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in New Orleans. Kickoff is set for noon at the Caesars Superdome. The game will be aired on Fox.
- The Saints improve to 21-35 in season openers and have won four straight season openers for the first time in franchise history.
- It is the first win for Dennis Allen as head coach of the Saints. Allen becomes the fourth Saints head coach to win in his debut, joining J.D. Roberts (1970), Ernie Hefferle (1975) and Sean Payton (2006).
- The Saints totaled 385 yards of offense, featuring 213 yards in the fourth quarter.
- New Orleans allowed 320 yards in the first three quarters but allowed just 96 yards in the fourth quarter.
- The Saints blocked a game-winning field goal attempt as time expired to secure the win.
- Kicker Wil Lutz drilled a 51-yard field goal to give the Saints the lead with 19 seconds remaining. It was his 14th career field goal over 50 yards.
- Quarterback Jameis Winston completed 23-of-34 passes for 269 yards and two touchdowns, including 213 yards and two touchdowns in the fourth quarter.
- Winston had the 13th game-winning drive of his career and his first since Oct. 25, 2021, against the Seahawks.
- At the start of the fourth quarter, Winston engineered a four-play, 75-yard drive that ended with a three-yard touchdown pass to Michael Thomas, with a two-point conversion completed to Chris Olave. Winston followed it up with an eight-play, 87-yard drive that ended with a nine-yard touchdown to Thomas.
- Winston completed five-of-10 passes for 24 yards in the first half.
- Winston has passed for more career yards against the Falcons (2,768) than any other team, surpassing his total against the Carolina Panthers (2,578)
- Running back Alvin Kamara carried the ball nine times for 39 yards and caught three passes for seven yards. Kamara went over 30 yards with a 15-yard carry in the third quarter, moving him past George Rodgers into third place on the Saints all-time rushing yards list.
- Receiver Jarvis Landry led the Saints with 114 receiving yards on seven receptions, including a 40-yard catch late in the fourth quarter.
- Punter Blake Gillikin averaged 54.4 yards per punt on five punts.
- The Saints defense allowed a field goal on the first drive. Linebacker Pete Werner had three tackles on the opening drive.
- Werner finished with 12 total tackles and a forced fumble.
- Tight end Taysom Hill broke the longest run of his career with a 57-yard run on the Saints' second drive. Hill scored later on the drive on an 11-yard run for the Saints' first touchdown.
- Hill finished with four carries for 81 yards and a touchdown.
- The Saints forced their first turnover in the first quarter when Werner forced a fumble that was recovered by cornerback Bradley Roby.
- Saints safety Marcus Maye forced a fumble by Falcons quarterback Marcus Mariota in the third quarter which was recovered by safety Tyrann Mathieu*. *Maye led the secondary with nine tackles.
- Receiver Chris Olave had the first catch of his career in the third quarter on an 11-yard grab. Olave finished with three catches for 41 yards
- Receiver Michael Thomas had his first catch since 2020 in the third quarter as well.
- Thomas scored his first touchdown of the season in the fourth quarter on a three-yard toss from Winston. It was Thomas' first regular season score since Dec. 22, 2019, against the Tennessee Titans.
- Thomas tallied 53 yards and two touchdowns in the fourth quarter. He finished with five catches for 57 yards and two touchdowns
- It was Thomas' first multi-touchdown game since Oct. 6, 2019, against the Buccaneers, where he caught 11 passes for 182 yards and two touchdowns.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
Head inside the New Orleans Saints locker room postgame after the Saints' win against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season presented by Bud Light.
