SAINTS COULD BENCH DALTON
New Orleans Saints coach Dennis Allen was noncommittal about his quarterback situation after a loss Sunday to the Pittsburgh Steelers, declining to say if Andy Dalton or Jameis Winston will be the starter going forward.
“I know we’re all looking for answers there, but I’m not going to go there right now,” Allen said. “We’ll evaluate where we’re at, and we’ll have a plan for the upcoming week.”
Winston began the season as the starter but struggled with back and ankle injuries, prompting an opportunity for Dalton in Week 4. The former Cincinnati Bengals starter has kept the team in striking distance in an underwhelming NFC South.
Still, the team has been plagued by inconsistency and inefficiency issues that were a problem again in a 2010 loss to Pittsburgh. Dalton’s fourth-quarter interception turned into the clinching touchdown for the Steelers, sending New Orleans (3-7) to its second straight loss.
“At the end of the day, we didn’t make enough plays,” Dalton said.
“That’s what it came down to. We weren’t able to sustain drives and that led to us not scoring enough points.”
Dalton finished 17 of 27 for 174 yards and a touchdown, but two late interceptions helped Pittsburgh pull away.
The first was a deflection snared by recently activated Steelers safety Damontae Kazee. The second allowed the Steelers to close it out.
“Performance wasn’t good enough, really in all phases,” Allen said.
“We fought ourselves back, got back into the game at halftime, felt like we were in a good position, and we really just didn’t do anything in the second half. We have to be better.”
The Saints missed an opportunity against a struggling team to gain ground in the NFC South, where none of the four teams have winning records.
Chiefs not happy with hit
Chiefs wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster was seen laughing among teammates in the Kansas City locker room Sunday, shortly after he sustained a concussion during a victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars that raised questions about how to police helmet-to-helmet hits.
Smith-Schuster was coming across the middle to catch a pass from Patrick Mahomes when Cisco hit him high, drawing a flag from the officials. But while Smith-Schuster lay motionless on the Arrowhead Stadium turf, referee Brad Rogers picked up the flag and ruled that the hit was clean and there would be no penalty.
“After discussion on the field,” Rogers said, “the two officials came in and determined that the defender had set and braced for impact and hit shoulder-to-shoulder. They didn’t feel it was a use-of-helmet foul.”
Yet replays that were on the video boards at each end of Arrowhead Stadium clearly showed that Cisco’s helmet made contact with Smith-Schuster’s head, and that contact more than his shoulder inflicted the damage.
The wide receiver’s hands were initially frozen in a scene reminiscent of the concussion sustained earlier this season by Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, which raised questions about how to police roughing the passer.
“We were mad,” Chiefs safety Justin Reid said. “I’ve had a lot of big hits and not once have I made helmet-tohelmet contact like that.”
Chiefs wide receiver Kadarius Toney was more succinct: “That was illegal,” he said.
Injuries
Buccaneers running back Leonard Fournette
left in the fourth quarter with a hip injury. Bucs cornerback Zyon McCollum
was ruled out at halftime with a concussion.
• Bears quarterback
Justin Fields needed two stitches for a cut behind his right ear.
• Lions safety DeShon Elliott (concussion protocol) left after he was hurt trying to tackle Fields as he crossed the goal line on his touchdown run at the end of the first half. Linebacker
Julian Okwara (knee) and defensive lineman Josh Paschal (knee) were hurt in the first half.
• Bills linebacker
Tremaine Edmunds did not return after a groin injury in the first half.
• Cowboys cornerback
Anthony Brown left with a concussion in the second quarter.
• Colts defensive end
Kwity Paye suffered an ankle injury.
• The Saints lost left tackle James Hurst to a concussion.