NEW ORLEANS — The New Orleans Saints have struggled this season putting together a 60-minute game, but quarterback Drew Brees, running back Mark Ingram and a suddenly opportunistic defense found a way Sunday night to put everything together and, in the process, throw cold water on red hot Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
Brees completed 27 of 32 passes for 311 yards and three second-half touchdowns and Ingram rushed for a career-high 172 yards, including a 21-yard touchdown sweep in the final quarter, to power the Saints to a 44-23 victory over the Packers at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.
“Without question, it’s been a long time in coming,” said Brees, whose late interception last week contributed to a 24-23 loss at Detroit and dropped the Saints to 2-4. “We’ve obviously had our share of heartbreakers. All we talked about all week long was coming out here and not worrying about the scoreboard but about execution. This was a perfect representation of that.”
Considering each team’s offense, this was expected to be a shootout, and it was. The Saints (3-4) rolled up 495 yards in total offense and 28 first downs, while the Packers (5-3) gained 491 yards and 23 first downs. With both Pierre Thomas and Khiry Robinson injured, Ingram got a career-high 24 carries.
In winning their 11th consecutive game at the Superdome, the Saints scored on eight of their first nine possessions, with the only misfire coming when Ingram was stopped for no gain on a fourth-down gamble on the first series of the second half with the score tied, 16-16. Neither team punted.
“The punters didn’t get a lot of work tonight,” said Saints coach Sean Payton. “The challenge coming into this week was coming off a tough loss. The leaders on this team responded. We played a real good team, and the turnovers were in our favor.”
The victory snapped the Packers’ four-game winning streak and put a dent in a remarkable early-season run by Rodgers, who was picked off twice in the second half after having thrown 213 passes without an interception.
Rodgers threw for 418 yards on 28 of 39 passing, but both of his interceptions led to touchdowns as the Saints broke open the halftime tie with 21 consecutive points.
“Obviously, it’s a very disappointing loss for our football team,” Packers coach Mike McCarthy said. “We had the two penalties in the red zone that were negatives. Defensively, we stopped them on the fourth down, and other than that, we didn’t make them punt. They ran it and they threw it. Not a whole lot of defensive play tonight — a lot of offense.”
When the Packers stuffed Ingram on fourth-and-2 from the Green Bay 43 on the first series of the second half — and then followed up with another trip into the Saints’ red zone — it looked as though they might be taking control.
But just as suddenly, Rodgers threw his first interception since the season opener. His slant pass for tight end Andrew Quarless was broken up by cornerback Corey White, and linebacker David Hawthorne plucked the ball out of the air and returned it to the Saints’ 12.
It took Brees just four plays to drive the Saints 88 yards for a 23-16 lead. Brees got the payoff on a deep post to Brandin Cooks, who split cornerback Tramon Williams and free safety Micah Hyde to give the Saints their first lead, 23-16.
On their next possession, the Packers gambled on fourth-and-1 from their own 40, but Hawthorne hit Eddie Lacy at the line of scrimmage and wrestled him down for no gain.
Four plays later, Brees found tight end Jimmy Graham one-on-one against Williams, and Graham used his body and 8-inch height advantage to leap high for a 22-yard scoring catch for a 30-16 lead.
When Rodgers was picked off by White on the Packers’ next possession, Brees moved the Saints 71 yards in seven plays, getting the payoff on a 2-yard toss to tight end Josh Hill, putting the Saints up 37-16.
The Saints (3-4) tied the Carolina Panthers (3-3-1) in the win column and will face the Panthers on the road for the NFC South lead on Thursday night.
The 16-16 first half could not have been played more evenly. Each team scored on all four of its possessions, and they did it in mirror-like fashion. The Packers scored first on a 70-yard hook-up from Rodgers to Cobb, and then added field goals of 31, 49 and 27 yards by Mason Crosby.
The Saints matched each score to tie the game. Rookie wide receiver Brandin Cooks made it 7-7 by scoring untouched on a 4-yard reverse, and kicker Shayne Graham added field goals of 31, 29 and 37 yards.