This was not the 47-points, 40-first downs, 625-yards pounding the Dallas Cowboys defense endured in their last visit to the Mercedes-Benz Superdome two years ago.
To Dallas cornerback Mo Claiborne, it was worse.
“Any time you lose it hurts,” the former LSU standout said in the gloom of the Cowboys locker room after the Saints’ stunning 26-20 overtime victory. “But this is the kind that rips your heart out.
“It’s just that feeling. We’ve got to just try to put this behind us and go out next week and get it done.”
That won’t be easy.