New Orleans Saints Pound New England On MNF

NFL News - December 1st, 2009 - Written by John

They announced a city-wide holiday, closing town hall early, so they could celebrate all day. And when Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints left the field, oh, how they celebrated all night.

In his first blockbuster game of the 2009 NFL Season, Drew Brees threw for a season-high 371 yards and five touchdowns to five different receivers in a 38-17 mauling of the New England Patriots on Monday Night Football. Brees completed 18 of his 23 passes, continuously rifling through New England's secondary for big chunks of yardage.

Both Marques Colston and Devery Henderson had over 100 yards receiving, and four different receivers had a catch of 25 yards or more.

"It only counts for one win on the stat sheet, but emotionally, those types of wins can mean a little more," Brees said. "Anytime you can win, and win that way, it builds confidence for you."

In just 60 minutes, fans learned two imporant issues. New England is not the elite team it once was, and New Orleans really is. The Patriots led for only a few fleeting moments in the first quarter after Laurence Maroney pounded home a four-yard score. After that, it was all Saints, who kept pace with the Indianapolis Colts as the only unbeaten teams in the NFL, and they quickly erased the stigma of only beating up on bad teams. It is the first time two teams have ever gotten to 11-0 in the same year.

Brees treated the Patriots like he did the Detroit Lions or Tampa Bay Buccaneers, teams that are not believed to be anywhere near the same class, even though the visitors didn't commit a single penalty. It is the sixth time New Orleans has scored at least 38 points, and are still barely on pace to pass the 2007 Patriots as the scoringest team in NFL history. Brees finished the night with a flawless rating of 158.3, and he set a team record with 16.1 yards per attempt.

"(Brees) was special," Saints head coach Sean Payton said on ESPN.com. "Let's just say he's playing really well."

He did it because he was able to bomb through New England's secondary, throwing each touchdown pass for more than 18 yards each. His biggest came on the team's second possession of the second quarter when he looked left and then threw right to Henderson. Henderson's coverman, Leigh Bodden, was blitzing on the play, leaving the receiver wide open downfield. He wasn't touched and raced into the end zone 75 yards untouched to make it 17-7.

At the tail end of the half, Robert Meachem also made the highlight reel when he leaped into the end zone to secure a 38-yard toss that made it 24-10.

The Patriots seemed to be poised to make a comeback in the second half, driving the length of the field to open the third quarter with a two-yard plunge by Maroney.

But that was all superficial. Just over a minute later, Brees hit Darnell Dinkins for a two-yard score, and then followed with a 20-yarder to Colston to close out the night.

Tom Brady was held out of the end zone for only the second time this year for New England. He only threw for 237 yards and was picked twice. His 55.0 rating was his lowest this season.

"There's obviously a big gap between us," Brady said. "It wasn't nearly as competitive as we all were expecting...There's a reason why they are 11-0. They played really well and we didn't play up to their level."