NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Through 10 starts spanning two seasons, Saints quarterback Spencer Rattler has yet to walk off the field with that winning feeling — something rookie Jaxson Dart experienced in his debut as the Giants' starting signal caller last week.
“You wish you already had one, but it's a team thing," Rattler said when asked about his protracted wait to have a maiden NFL victory to his name.
“It’s in the past and we’re focused on the future.
So, it’ll come,” Rattler continued. “We’re working hard this week to get it.”
When the Saints (0-4) host the Giants (1-3) on Sunday, New Orleans' defense will line up across a QB who went into last spring's NFL draft wondering whether he might be calling the Superdome home.
“I felt like my visit with them went good,” Dart said of his pre-draft meeting with Saints coaches. “You kind of have thoughts in your head during the draft of what options are really realistic, and I definitely felt like that was a place that could have panned out.”
Although Derek Carr hadn't yet retired when the draft took place, the health of his throwing shoulder was already in question and the Saints were expected to draft a quarterback.
They did, taking Louisville's Tyler Shough early in the second round with pick No. 40 — after passing on Dart when New Orleans instead selected left tackle Kelvin Banks Jr. at ninth overall.
Dart was still available when the Giants traded up to take him with the 25th overall pick, which previously belonged to Houston.
New York planned on Dart serving as an understudy to veteran Russell Wilson this season, but scrapped that after an 0-3 start.
With one TD running and another passing, Dart helped the Giants beat the previously unbeaten Los Angeles Chargers to become the first 0-3 team to beat a 3-0 team since 2008.
“I feel like that was good for the locker room and for the guys," Dart said. "But at the same time, it was just one game. We’ve got a long season and that’s just kind of how I view it. Don’t make it anything bigger than what it is.”
Any win would be big right now for the Saints, who've lost eight straight since beating the Giants in the Meadowlands last Dec. 8.
But first-year Saints coach Kellen Moore, in search of his first victory as a head coach, isn't ready to make a quarterback change.
Moore doesn't want to read too much into Rattler's six losses as a rookie last season under a different coaching regime.
“What happened in the past is relevant, but it’s only a piece of the puzzle. So, for Spencer and I, we’re 0 for 4,” Moore said. "He's grown a ton through this whole entire process.
“He's a young quarterback. Nothing's going to go perfect. We understand that," Moore added, alluding to losses by a touchdown or less to Arizona and San Francisco in the season's opening weeks. “He's put us in position to win these games, we just haven't gotten it done.”
Giants No. 1 receiver Malik Nabers is out for the season with a torn ACL in his right knee. His absence could hurt Dart’s development, yet it’s also a huge opportunity for a pair of young wideouts: rookie Beaux Collins and 2023 third-round pick Jalin Hyatt.
Veterans Darius Slayton and Wan’Dale Robinson also figure to get more targets from Dart. Collins, an undrafted free agent out of Notre Dame, and Hyatt, who has underachieved so far in the pros, are competing with returner Gunner Olszewski for increased snaps.
“The biggest thing I just want to bring is consistency,” said Hyatt, who had a long talk with Nabers earlier this week. “That’s the biggest thing: just being consistent -- being consistent at getting open and being where I need to be at for the spots that Jax needs to throw the ball.”
Chase Young, the Saints' highest-paid pass rusher, has missed the first month of the season with a calf strain and won't play this Sunday, either.
Still, the Saints have found ways to get to the quarterback 11 times, tied for seventh in the NFL, four behind league-leading Denver's 15.
Carl Granderson has 4 1/2 sacks, placing him a half-sack off the individual league lead, while 15-year veteran Cam Jordan, a projected reserve this season who has started in Young's place, has 2 1/2.
Each of them took down Buffalo's Josh Allen last week.
Dart passed for just 111 yards last week, but scrambled for 54 yards — including a 15-yard TD — and completed enough clutch throws to win. Jordan noted that he was impressed by Dart's determination to bounce back from five sacks and his ability to escape at least three others.
“He showed he has big playmaking ability, so we have to be aware of that,” Jordan said. “It's going to be up to the D-line to contain him.”
New York’s feared pass rush wreaked havoc against Justin Herbert last week, taking advantage of a banged up offensive line for the Los Angeles Chargers that went in without one starter and lost another during the game.
Nose tackle Dexter Lawrence had one of two interceptions off Herbert, while Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux each sacked him. Lawrence draws a lot of double teams, while Burns is tied for the league lead with five sacks.
“He means a lot,” rookie linebacker Abdul Carter said of Burns. “You see the way he practices, the way he goes about his business. It all shows up in the game, so we look up to him a lot.”
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AP Sports Writer Stephen Whyno in East Rutherford, New Jersey, contributed to this report.
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