Saints gearing up for an early season stress test after dispiriting primetime loss to rival Falcons

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — New Orleans Saints coach Kellen Moore sounded encouraged by the number of players who showed up at team headquarters during Tuesday's scheduled day off.

He's looking for — an urgently needs — his team to bounce back with a prideful response to their disheartening 45-24 loss to rival Atlanta on Monday night — a game that kicked off after hours of pregame celebrations to mark the 20th anniversary of the Superdome's reopening after Hurricane Katrina.

Moore described the scene at the team's training facility Tuesday as “a lot of motivated guys — a lot of guys that want to get things right."

“We certainly recognize the disappointment (Monday) night and I think our guys are looking forward to the path moving forward,” Moore said. “You saw a lot of our guys in our building trying to get better today, whether it be rehab treatment, in the weight room, in the film room.”

For the past half decade since Hall of Fame quarterback Drew Brees retired and Sean Payton took a year off from coaching before returning with Denver, the Saints have had little to feel good about beyond the franchise's accomplishments of an increasingly distant past.

The club was optimistic that this season, led by second-year coach Moore and second-year quarterback Tyler Shough, would boost fan optimism about the future.

Instead, fans left the Superdome early and in disgust, judging by the audible boos coming from the stands before they emptied out.

"We’re a 1-3 football team with good moments, but not enough consistent football to ultimately be where we want to be,” Moore said.

Receiver Devaughn Vele, who made an acrobatic catch along the back of the end zone for one of the Saints' few highlights against Atlanta, said he and fellow Saints players understand the character test they're facing now.

“We're going to have to dig deep, look ourselves in the mirror and understand the jobs that we have to do," Vele said. “A lot of reflection we've got to do this week.”

The connection between Shough and receiver Chris Olave in the passing game has been exceptional. After catching eight passes for 116 yards against Atlanta, Olave now has 35 catches for 491 and one TD through the season's first four games.

The Saints have not had much of a running game yet this season. They have 354 yards rushing as a team, or 88.5 yards per game, which ranks 27th in the NFL. Their 3.6 yards per carry ranks 28th.

“The first and second down run game has got to be a little bit better," Moore said. “We just haven’t been able to get those going.”

By contrast, the Saints' four opponents this season have totaled 591 yards rushing and nine touchdowns while averaging 5.1 yards per carry. The Falcons, who scored five of their six TDs in New Orleans on running plays, outgained the Saints 205 yards to 50 on the ground.

Veteran running back Alvin Kamara , who injured his knee during training camp and did not play in Week 1, began to look a bit more like his old self. He scored his first two touchdowns of the season on runs of 3 and 5 yards on Monday night.

Running back Kendre Miller had a chance to play a central role in the Saints' running game after Travis Etienne Jr. (hamstring) was placed on injured reserve last week. He carried six times for 9 yards and lost a fumble on the Saints 22-yard line. The Falcons parlayed that turnover into a touchdown for an early 14-0 five plays later.

The Saints were without two key defensive starters: End Carl Granderson (ankle) and linebacker Kaden Ellis (calf). Tight end Noah Fant (abdomen) was a game-night scratch. So was rookie defensive tackle Christen Miller, a second-round draft choice who was limited by a sore toe early last week but was taken off the injury report at the end of the week.

“He had a good week of practice," Moore said of Miller. "But, you know, with the time on task with those other guys, I felt like (it was) the right decision for us.”

6 — The total of points scored in the first quarter of their first four games combined this season. They have had to play from behind in all four.

“We’ve got to put some of those early drives together, got to score more points early on and get it going,” Moore said.

The Saints host Minnesota in the last of three straight home games. Avoiding three straight losses in front of their own increasingly disgruntled fans will require outplaying a Vikings squad that comes in unbeaten through four games and on the heels of a 15-10 victory over Miami .

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