Copyright Baton Rouge Advocate
If Gayle Benson didn’t already know how bad her two professional franchises are, an embarrassing 4-hour window on Sunday afternoon should've made the message loud and clear. Her Pelicans got stomped 137-107 in Oklahoma City. At the same time, her Saints were experiencing a similar beatdown in California: a 34-10 thrashing by the Los Angeles Rams. On the day that we turned our clocks back an hour to end daylight saving time, the Saints turned the clock all the way back to 1980. That’s the last time the Saints started a season worse than this one. The time change caused it to get dark around here on Sunday around 6 p.m.. That's right about the time things got darker around here for New Orleans' sports fans. The Saints (1-8) and Pelicans (0-6) have combined for one win. The Saints last win came a month ago against the New York Giants. The Pelicans haven't won a game since late March. Sunday's loss to the Thunder was their 13th loss in a row, tied for the longest losing streak in franchise history. Owning the worst team in the NFL and the NBA at the same time isn't a good look. It's a new low for sports in New Orleans, a city where fans once wore paper bags over their heads. The paper bags are making a comeback. Some were spotted at SoFi Stadium Sunday for the Saints’ debacle against the Rams. There will likely be plenty more when the Saints return to the Superdome in a few weeks. Heck, there may be some in the Smoothie King Center, too. Frustration among the fans is at an all-time high. Last season, Benson’s two teams combined to win 26 games. The Saints went 5-12 and the Pelicans went 21-61. They could smash that dubious mark this season the way both teams have played thus far. The Saints are just past the midway point of their season, but they have some winnable games (I think) against struggling teams like the Miami Dolphins, New York Jets and Tennessee Titans on the schedule. The Pelicans are just six games in. Six losses in an 82-game season is too soon to hit the panic button, but it’s more about the way the Pelicans have lost. Three of the losses have been by 30 or more points. Things were so rough Sunday that you could have a serious debate about whose defense was worse: Willie Green’s team or Kellen Moore’s team? Green’s Pelicans gave up 108 points through the first three quarters against Thunder team missing three of its four best players. Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams and Lu Dort all sat out. Moore’s Saints allowed 415 yards of offense and had no answer for Matthew Stafford and Company. To be fair, the overmatched Saints and Pelicans were playing teams that very well could be lifting a Lombardi Trophy and a Larry O’Brien Trophy at season’s end. But Sunday also showed just how far the Saints and Pels are away from being on the same tier with those elite teams. Neither of Benson's teams are trending in the right direction. If there is some light somewhere at the end of the tunnel, the tunnel is too long to actually see it. The Saints currently would have the No. 1 draft pick in next year's draft. But one draft pick won’t solve all the issues the roster Mickey Loomis and his staff have put together. The Pelicans would currently have a very high draft pick, too. Well, except they traded their first round pick away in June to move up in the draft. So neither of these teams will be fixed overnight. It's going to take some time. It’s almost fitting that this is being written on Nov. 3. On that date a year ago, Dennis Allen coached his final game for the Saints in Charlotte against the Carolina Panthers. He was fired the next day. The Saints, after striking out on several coaches they targeted, hired Moore. Across the parking lot, the Pelicans fired executive vice president of basketball operations David Griffin at the end of the second-worst season in franchise history and replaced him with Louisiana native Joe Dumars. Both hires were supposed to be a fresh start and a turning point for the two franchises. Neither has been yet. Green, whose seat is as hot as it's ever been, and Moore are both optimistic they can get things turned around. “The biggest thing is just stay together,” Green said after the Pelicans’ loss on Sunday. “Keep fighting for each other (and) let's try to string together a consistent game." A little over an hour later about 1,300 miles away in Inglewood, Moore had a similar message. “It’s challenging,” Moore said. “We are going through a challenging storm. We’ve faced some adversity. We’ve got to keep pushing. We’ve got to keep pushing together. You get through this storm, you’re going to tell one heckuva story. But you’ve got to get there. We’re not there yet.” Sunday showed that neither team is even close. Players are frustrated. Fans are frustrated. Mrs. Benson should be, too.
