Saints-Jaguars preseason final score was New Orleans' first tie sine 1972

USA Today

6 hours ago

It's been a very, very long time since New Orleans Saints fans watched their team end a game with a tie. Regular season or preseason, the Saints haven't finished with a tied final score since 1972, per New Orleans-based statistician Jeff Asher. That changed in Sunday's 17-17 final tally with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Overtime isn't allowed in the preseason this year, so when Spencer Rattler scored the tying two-point conversion, that was it.
Now, sure. It's just the preseason (and, yes, Asher combed through decades of preseason results to verify it). But it's wild that it's taken this long to happen. For context, the author of this article's high school-age daughter wasn't alive the last time the Saints tied a game. Neither was he. Neither was his mother, born a year after the Saints and San Francisco 49ers took it down to the wire.
Archie Manning was the Saints' starting quarterback that day; he completed 17 of 27 passes for 287 yards and two touchdowns, rushing 11 times for another 48 yards on the ground. He also threw an interception and was sacked twice. His counterpart, Steve Spurrier, went 19-of-35 for 286 yards and two scores while throwing three interceptions and taking a couple of sacks himself. At the end of the day, the Saints and 49ers were left frustrated with a final score of 20-20.
And now, decades later, we've seen it happen again. Manning has seen his sons turn pro with a high-profile grandson following in their footsteps. Spurrier became a successful coach and won a national championship with the Florida Gators. Generations of Saints fans have followed their team and never seen a tie. Until now. Seeing Rattler, Dante Pettis, and Jonas Sanker fight back to tie it up against the Jaguars was fun. But let's hope that next time they seal the deal.