You knew it was going to end this way.

Admit it.

From the moment Lance Moore grabbed that last touchdown pass and you looked at the clock and saw 3:11 left, you knew the Saints would somehow snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.

It was inevitable.

A last-minute Carolina drive and game-winning field goal was as certain as death, taxes and New Orleans humidity.

"Gilligan's Island" has less predictable endings.

"We just couldn't finish," fullback Mike Karney said. "It's kind of been the story for us all season. Somehow, we've got to learn how to finish."

Get used to the "F" word. You're going to hear it a lot this offseason. It'll be the buzzword for 2009. The T-shirts are probably already being silk-screened for Millsaps as we speak.

The Saints have been in nine fourth-quarter dogfights this season. Nine times they've gone into the final minutes either needing a touchdown to win or needing a defensive stop to prevent a loss. And six times they've faltered.

The plots change. The endings don't. Gilligan never gets off the island, and other than the Scott Fujita interception in the season opener against Tampa Bay and the Scott Shanle-Jonathan Vilma combo pick against San Diego, the Saints never made a big defensive play to win a game.

In Washington, it was cornerback Tracy Porter being burned by Santana Moss for a 67-yard touchdown bomb.

Against Minnesota, it was safety Kevin Kaesviharn's 42-yard interference against Bernard Berrian.

In Chicago, it was safety Roman Harper's 38-yard pass interference against Devin Hester.

Sunday it was Steve Smith victimizing Harper and cornerback Jason David.

When Jake Delhomme floated that pass down field on the first play of the Panthers' winning drive, three players had an equal opportunity to come down with the ball. Two of them were Saints. Guess who ended up with the ball for the 39-yard gain.

"We made one stop when we needed it, and we didn't make the stop when we really needed it," Fujita said. "We were excited to get back on the field. They throw the ball up and the receiver catches it miraculously. We've been through those plays this year. Steve Smith's one of those guys that's going to make big, game-changing plays."

It has been the story of a bitterly disappointing season for the Saints (8-8).

"It's a tough pill to swallow when you're walking off the Football field and the other guys are coming up to you, wiping their brow and saying, 'Whew, you guys had us,' " Karney said. "That's what Brian Urlacher said to me a few weeks ago. Teams know the Saints are a good team. We've just got to figure out how to not beat ourselves."

And on it went. From player to player and coach to coach, they all repeated the same loser's lament.

"We are going to have to get better at finishing," Saints Coach Sean Payton said. "That'll be the challenge for the team this offseason."

"Finishing games, that's what we've got to figure out this offseason, what that means," said Saints wide receiver Marques Colston, who finished more than his share of plays with seven catches for 123 yards and a spectacular 26-yard touchdown catch.

It's not that difficult: Find some finishers.

The Saints don't have enough of them, especially on defense.

The Saints need a counterpart to Drew Brees on defense.

The Panthers have Smith on offense AND Julius Peppers on defense. Did you see Peppers on Sunday? Brees did. Every time he dropped back to pass Peppers was in his face mask. He finished with three tackles, two tackles for loss, two quarterback hurries, one sack and one pass break-up.

The Saints need a difference-maker like Peppers on defense.

All the playoff teams have them.

The Falcons have Matt Ryan and John Abraham.

The Giants have Eli Manning and Justin Tuck.

The Vikings have Adrian Peterson and Jared Allen.

The Eagles have Brian Westbrook and Asante Samuel and Brian Dawkins.

The Saints have Brees and . . . a bunch of guys. Good guys. Solid, serviceable players. But no true difference-maker.

They need to find at least one, in free agency, in the draft, in a trade. Somehow, some way, under whatever stone they must turn, the Saints must make that Priority One this offseason.

Until they do, their seasons will continue to finish in December rather than in January.

. . . . . . .

Jeff Duncan can be reached at jduncan@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3404.