Falcons vs. Saints: New Orleans Grades, Notes and Quotes
In desperate need of a win, the New Orleans Saints turned in their best effort of the season on Thursday Night Football, defeating the visiting Atlanta Falcons, 31-21.
The Saints, who improved to 2-4 with the win, played with a noticeable sense of urgency against their previously unbeaten divisional rivals. They also fed off the rowdy home crowd in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, where they’ve earned both of their 2015 victories.
New Orleans was led by quarterback Drew Brees, who turned in a stellar performance, but it was tight end Benjamin Watson who had the career night with a 10-catch, 127-yard outing.
The Saints quickly jumped on the visiting Falcons (5-1) with an 80-yard touchdown drive on the game’s first possession. Brees went 6-of-8 on the drive, and Mark Ingram powered across the goal line to help give New Orleans a 7-0 lead.
Later on in the first quarter, New Orleans native Michael Mauti blocked a punt and returned it for a touchdown. The play electrified the already boisterous Superdome crowd while evoking memories of former Saint Steve Gleason’s iconic play that unfolded in similar fashion against the Falcons in 2006.
The Falcons answered the Saints’ special teams scoring play with an 80-yard touchdown march, and New Orleans led by seven at the half. Atlanta appeared to take control on both sides of the ball in the second quarter, but two red-zone fumbles gave the momentum back to the home team.
The Saints owned the second half and received inspired play from their defense against Matt Ryan and the potent Falcons offense.
Leading 17-7, a Brees jump pass to Watson for a third-quarter touchdown extended the lead. Atlanta would answer right back, though, trimming the lead back down to 10 with a Devonta Freeman touchdown run.
New Orleans delivered its final haymaker of the night on its next possession, as Ingram scored his second touchdown on another physical, hard-nosed run.
The Saints won the all-important turnover battle in a big way, as they collected three while committing none.
Read on for a further look at New Orleans’ Thursday night win.
Grades
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| QB | A |
| RB | B+ |
| WR/TE | A |
| OL | C+ |
| DL | A |
| LB | A- |
| DB | A- |
| Special Teams | B+ |
| Coaching | A |
Offense
Drew Brees carved up first-year Falcons coach Dan Quinn’s defense with a nearly flawless passing performance. The Saints signal-caller hit on 30 of 39 passes for 312 yards and a touchdown.
Slicing Atlanta’s defense with an array of zone-beating darts, Brees hooked up with Benjamin Watson time and time again in the short passing game. Watson hauled in Brees’ only touchdown pass, which extended the signal-caller’s streak of consecutive games with a scoring pass to 41.
The offensive line provided solid pass protection, for the most part, although the group struggled to create running room for the Saints backs in the ground game. New Orleans totaled just 81 rushing yards on 32 carries.
Ingram ran with great intensity anyway, though, and he crossed the goal line twice with tough, physical runs.
The injury bug bit the Saints up front, as left tackle Andrus Peat went down with an injury and was replaced by Tony Hills. Peat, a first-round draft pick, was filling in for regular starter Terron Armstead. The Saints also made do without left guard Tim Lelito, who was replaced by Senio Kelemete.
Defense
After struggling to generate pressure for the better part of the season, New Orleans brought a ferocious pass rush to the Superdome Thursday night.
The Saints finished with five sacks of Matt Ryan, with three of them coming courtesy of Cam Jordan. The former first-round pick accounted for four of New Orleans’ eight hits on Ryan.
Defensive coordinator Rob Ryan employed a successful strategy on obvious passing downs, allowing outside ‘backer Kasim Edebali to rush the passer from an inside tackle position. The shake-up worked, as both Edebali and Hau’oli Kikaha dropped Ryan for sacks.
Dannell Ellerbe enjoyed a monster game at linebacker, racking up 14 tackles, including 13 solo stops.
In the secondary, Delvin Breaux continued his rapid development as a starting NFL cover corner with a fine performance against Julio Jones. The star Falcons wideout finished with six catches for 93 yards, but Breaux held his own numerous times and won some battles against Jones, who’s widely considered one of the game’s elite receivers.
Special Teams
The blocked punt and ensuing touchdown by Michael Mauti brought the Superdome crowd noise to another level, and it also stretched the Saints’ first-quarter lead to 14 points.
If there was a negative to the Saints’ outing, it was the performance of kicker Zach Hocker, who went 0-of-2 on field goals. Granted, the two attempts were from 51 and 47 yards, but the kicks were certainly makeable.
Saints Cut Down on Penalties
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New Orleans has dealt with excessive penalties all season, but that wasn’t the case Thursday night, as the Saints drew just three flags for 15 yards.
Such a clean game from New Orleans was undoubtedly refreshing for Sean Payton and his coaching staff, and the head man deserves credit for having his club focused, sharp and intense throughout the game.
Meanwhile, the Falcons were penalized seven times in the contest for 41 yards, as Quinn’s squad had a rough time managing the deafening roar of the Superdome crowd.
Drew Brees, on His Connection with Benjamin Watson
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Drew Brees had an obvious connection with Benjamin Watson Thursday night, and the veteran tight end was clearly his go-to target for the entirety of the contest.
After the game, Brees said the following about Watson, per NewOrleansSaints.com: “It just happened to be that either his number was called or he was just getting open. He was receiving some opportunities that he made the most of.”
The 34-year-old Watson has played in 153 games in his NFL career, and yet his 10 catches and 127 yards were both career highs. In the five previous games this season, the 12-year veteran had totaled just 15 catches for 139 yards, which makes his prolific outing even more remarkable.
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Cam Jordan, on the Saints' Defensive Performance
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Saints defensive end Cam Jordan had an outstanding game, finishing with three sacks and four hits on quarterback Matt Ryan. He spoke about the Saints defense after the game, per the team website: “I think that we came in with a great game plan. The young guys stepped up today. It really was a tribute to our defense.”
That Saints defense came into the game ranked dead last in the NFL.
Jordan and Co. allowed the Atlanta offense to roll up 413 yards, but that doesn’t tell the full story. The Saints made key stops to get off the field all game, as the Falcons went just 3-of-12 on third downs.
The New Orleans defense also tallied three takeaways in the game. All three came on fumbles, two of which occurred inside the red zone.
Michael Mauti, on His Punt Block and Touchdown
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Linebacker Michael Mauti’s punt block and touchdown was eerily similar to Steve Gleason’s play against the Falcons nine years ago in the same building.
Mauti spoke on the significance of the scoring play during the postgame press conference: “I do not think it’s hit me yet. I was in the stands when Steve Gleason blocked that punt against Atlanta (in 2006). It was a special feeling. That’s what I’ve been dreaming about since I was sitting in that seat up there. To live that out is something special. I’m enjoying it.”
Mauti, the son of former Saints special teams player Rich Mauti, is a former seventh-round pick of the Minnesota Vikings. After he spent two seasons in Minnesota, the Vikings released him this past September, and the Saints claimed him off waivers the very next day.
Heading into Thursday’s game, he had just two tackles on the season.
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