The Saints came up short on fourth-and-goal from the 1 and barely missed scoring off one defensive stand, two plays that possibly would have swung the outcome.
The offense couldn't take advantage after taking over at the Chargers' 17-yard line following a muffed punt that was recovered by tight end Treyton Welch with 7:56 left in the first quarter; on fourth-and-goal from the 1, Kendre Miller was tackled for a 3-yard loss.
Later, with the Chargers pinned at their 8 with 2:28 left, on second down Saints defensive tackle Khristian Boyd sacked Tayler Heinicke for a loss that initially was ruled a safety, but after review, was deemed to have occurred at the 1.
On the first play of the second quarter, Rattler was sacked for a 7-yard loss and fumbled. The Chargers recovered at the Saints' 33 and seven yards later, Cameron Dicker's 44-yard field goal opened the scoring for Los Angeles.
A stalled drive and punt gave the Chargers possession at their 15, and they used 14 plays to take a 9-0 lead on a 5-yard run by quarterback Trey Lance. A critical defensive penalty (cornerback Rico Payton's face mask on third-and-15 from the Chargers' 27) kept the defense on the field, and Lance escaped the pocket for runs of 14 and 17 yards before scoring on third-and-goal.
New Orleans' offense livened in the final 98 seconds of the half, with Shough at quarterback and the drive beginning at their 35.
Shough completed five of eight passes for 42 yards on the drive and Blake Grupe kicked a 31-yard field goal to pull the Saints to within 9-3 with five seconds left in the half.