GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — Without many weapons around him, New Orleans Saints rookie quarterback Spencer Rattler couldn’t capitalize on his opportunity for a nationally televised showcase.
One week after leading four straight scoring drives in a 20-19 loss to the Washington Commanders, the fifth-round pick from South Carolina didn’t produce any points as the Saints fell 34-0 to the Green Bay Packers on Monday night, the first shutout in the NFL this season.
The Saints (5-10) were shut out for the first time since falling 13-0 to San Francisco on Nov. 27, 2022.
“Embarrassing loss," Rattler said. "I put it on myself. I played not good at all, in my opinion. Just didn’t have any answers. Got to go make more plays, protect the ball. Just got to be better.”
Rattler has started four games in his rookie season, and the Saints have lost each of them by at least 18 points. But he showed promise in his last appearance, when he came off the bench to replace an ineffective Jake Haener and orchestrated a comeback against the Commanders.
That performance earned Rattler another start in place of the injured Derek Carr, but Rattler wasn’t nearly as effective Monday night. He went 15 of 30 for 153 yards with an interception and a fumble.
The Saints were playing without five-time Pro Bowl running back Alvin Kamara (groin) and receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling (chest/illness). Receivers Rashid Shaheed (knee) and Chris Olave (head) and tight end Taysom Hill (knee) have been sidelined for multiple weeks. The Saints lost center Erik McCoy to an elbow injury during Monday's game.
Rattler did not use those injuries as an excuse.
“Our expectation is to try and get it done with anybody,” Rattler said. “Throughout the week, I’m confident in my guys always.”
Rattler was facing a Green Bay defense missing four starters: linebacker and leading tackler Quay Walker, two-time Pro Bowl cornerback Jaire Alexander and rookie safeties Evan Williams and Javon Bullard.
But the Packers still had plenty of answers for Rattler and the Saints.
New Orleans was shut out in the first half for a second straight game, the first time the Saints have been scoreless at halftime of back-to-back games since 1997.
On New Orleans’ first series, Rattler failed to connect with Kevin Austin on third-and-7 from the Green Bay 40. The Saints initially lined up to go for it on fourth down but opted to punt after a false-start penalty pushed them back 5 yards.
New Orleans already trailed 21-0 when Rattler got the Saints inside the Green Bay 30 late in the second quarter. That drive ended when Keisean Nixon sacked Rattler and forced a fumble that Rashan Gary recovered.
The Saints got to Green Bay’s 34 before a sack by Devonte Wyatt pushed them out of field goal range in the closing seconds of the half, leading to an unsuccessful Hail Mary attempt. That drive also included a clock management miscue. The Saints allowed about 24 seconds to run off the clock after Austin recovered his own fumble before New Orleans finally called a timeout with 15 seconds left.
“You saw some flash plays,” Saints interim coach Darren Rizzi said. “I thought he made a couple of really good plays, but then we made a couple of really bad decisions. But, like I said, we didn’t help him much. I think it was an overall team situation. We dropped some passes. We dropped some balls on him, which could have helped us, and made the overall product look a lot better and maybe make his performance look better.”
With the Saints trailing 24-0 in the third quarter, Rattler got New Orleans into scoring position again before Zayne Anderson picked off a first-and-10 pass from the 22.
That was as close as Rattler and the Saints got to scoring.
“We got outplayed,” Rattler said. “We got punched in the mouth.”
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
New Orleans Saints quarterback Spencer Rattler (18) is sacked by Green Bay Packers defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt (95) during the first half of an NFL football game, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Mike Roemer)
Green Bay Packers linebacker Eric Wilson (45) stops New Orleans Saints quarterback Spencer Rattler (18) on a carry during the first half of an NFL football game, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)
New Orleans Saints quarterback Spencer Rattler (18) throws a long pass downfield during the second half of an NFL football game against the Green Bay Packers, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Mike Roemer)
New Orleans Saints quarterback Spencer Rattler (18) passes under pressure during the second half of an NFL football game against the Green Bay Packers, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Mike Roemer)
WASHINGTON (AP) — American Airlines briefly grounded flights nationwide Tuesday because of a technical problem just as the Christmas travel season kicked into overdrive and winter weather threatened more potential problems for those planning to fly or drive.
Government regulators cleared American flights to get airborne about an hour after the Federal Aviation Administration ordered a national ground stop for the airline. The order, which prevented planes from taking off, was issued at the airline's request.
The airline said in an email that the problem was caused by trouble with vendor technology that maintains its flight operating system.
Dennis Tajer, a spokesperson for the Allied Pilots Association, a union representing American Airlines pilots, said the airline told pilots at 7 a.m. Eastern that there was an outage affecting the system known as FOS. It handles different types of airline operations, including dispatch, flight planning, passenger boarding, as well as an airplane's weight and balance data, he said.
Some components of FOS have gone down in the past, but a systemwide outage is rare, Tajer said.
Hours after the ground stop was lifted, Tajer said the union had not heard about any “chaos out there beyond just the normal heavy travel day.” He said officials were watching for any cascading effects, such as staffing problems.
Flights were delayed across American's major hubs, with only 37% leaving on time, according to Cirium, an aviation analytics company. Out of the 3,901 domestic and international American Airlines flights scheduled for Tuesday, 19 were canceled.
Cirium noted that the vast majority of flights were departing within two hours of their scheduled departure time. A similar percentage — 36% — were arriving at their destinations as scheduled.
Meanwhile, the flight-tracking site FlightAware reported that 3,712 flights entering or leaving the U.S., or serving domestic destinations, were delayed Tuesday, with 55 flights canceled. It did not show any flights from American Airlines.
Cirium said Dallas-Fort Worth, New York’s Kennedy Airport and Charlotte, North Carolina, saw the greatest number of delays. Washington, Chicago and Miami experienced considerably fewer delays.
Amid the travel problems, significant rain and snow were expected in the Pacific Northwest at least into Christmas Day. Showers and thunderstorms were developing in the South. Freezing rain was reported in the Mid-Atlantic region near Baltimore and Washington, and snow fell in New York.
Because the holiday travel period lasts weeks, airports and airlines typically have smaller peak days than they do during the rush around Thanksgiving, but the grind of one hectic day followed by another takes a toll on flight crews. And any hiccups — a winter storm or a computer outage — can snowball into massive disruptions.
That is how Southwest Airlines stranded 2 million travelers in December 2022, and Delta Air Lines suffered a smaller but significant meltdown after a worldwide technology outage in July caused by a faulty software update from cybersecurity company CrowdStrike.
Many flights during the holidays are sold out, which makes cancellations even more disruptive than during slower periods. That is especially true for smaller budget airlines that have fewer flights and fewer options for rebooking passengers. Only the largest airlines, including American, Delta and United, have “interline agreements” that let them put stranded customers on another carrier’s flights.
This will be the first holiday season since a Transportation Department rule took effect that requires airlines to give customers an automatic cash refund for a canceled or significantly delayed flight. Most air travelers were already eligible for refunds, but they often had to request them.
Passengers still can ask to get rebooked, which is often a better option than a refund during peak travel periods. That’s because finding a last-minute flight on another airline tends to be expensive.
An American spokesperson said Tuesday was not a peak travel day for the airline — with about 2,000 fewer flights than the busiest days — so the airline had somewhat of a buffer to manage the delays.
The groundings happened as millions of travelers were expected to fly over the next 10 days. The Transportation Security Administration expects to screen 40 million passengers through Jan. 2.
Airlines expect to have their busiest days on Thursday, Friday and Sunday.
Many flights during the holidays are sold out, which makes cancellations more disruptive than during slower periods. Even with just a brief outage, the cancellations have a cascading effect that can take days to clear up.
About 90% of Americans traveling far from home over the holidays will be in cars, according to AAA.
“Airline travel is just really high right now, but most people do drive to their destinations, and that is true for every holiday,” AAA spokesperson Aixa Diaz said.
Gasoline prices are similar to last year. The nationwide average Thursday was $3.04 a gallon, down from $3.13 a year ago, according to AAA. Charging an electric vehicle averages just under 35 cents per per kilowatt hour, but varies by state.
Transportation-data firm INRIX says travel times on the nation’s highways could be up to 30% longer than normal over the holidays, with Sunday expected to see the heaviest traffic. Boston, New York City, Seattle and Washington are the metropolitan areas primed for the greatest delays, according to the company.
——
Associated Press writers David Koenig, Mae Anderson and Mike Pesoli contributed to this report.
An employee wearing a Santa Claus hat walks past boards showing flight delays, in the American Airlines terminal at Miami International Airport, on Christmas Eve, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
An employee wearing a Santa Claus hat walks past boards showing flight delays, in the American Airlines terminal at Miami International Airport, on Christmas Eve, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Cesar Davila, who works for the American Airlines partner providing wheelchair assistance, wears a Christmas tree hat and festive glasses as he waits for a traveler to help inside the American Airlines terminal at Miami International Airport, on Christmas Eve, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Cesar Davila, who works for the American Airlines partner providing wheelchair assistance, wears a Christmas tree hat and festive glasses as he pushes a traveler through the American Airlines terminal at Miami International Airport, on Christmas Eve, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Two travelers nap near the Alaska Airlines ticketing area at the Los Angeles International Airport in Los Angeles, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Travelers wait in line for security checks at the Los Angeles International Airport in Los Angeles, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Marie Digna, traveling to Grand Rapids, Mich., enters security with her two sons, Lucian, right, and Samson, at Los Angeles International Airport on Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Travelers wait in line for security checks at the Los Angeles International Airport in Los Angeles, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
American Airlines employees, some wearing Santa Claus hats, check in travelers in the American terminal at Miami International Airport, on Christmas Eve, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
An American Airlines employee wearing a Santa Claus hat walks through the American terminal at Miami International Airport, on Christmas Eve, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
An American Airlines employee wearing a Santa Claus hat looks toward quiet check-in counters in the American terminal at Miami International Airport, on Christmas Eve, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
FILE - American Airlines planes wait at gates at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport Friday, July 19, 2024, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, File)
