Neil Rackers

Neil Rackers, bothered by a lingering groin injury, had two chances to make a 50-yard field goal at the end of the first half and missed both of them. Saints coach Sean Payton called a timeout just before Rackers’ first kick sailed wide right. His second attempt landed just short.

Rackers, who also missed a chip shot that would have beaten Green Bay in the final seconds last Sunday, was 16-for-17 during the regular season.

Whisenhunt blamed the blown field goals and a second-half kickoff that was short and out of bounds on the groin problem.

“He obviously struggled to come back from that (injury),” Whisenhunt said. “We thought he was healthy. All indications from practice were he was ready to go.”