Drew Brees May Be Hurt, but Saints Remain a Force in the NFC Thanks to Defense

The New Orleans Saints were supposed to be dead. After their 12-10 victory over the Dallas Cowboys, they look very spritely for a dead team.

When quarterback Drew Brees went down with a thumb injury, many across the league questioned whether his team could handle his absence. You can't blame them. After all, it's Drew Freaking Brees. 

But something strange happened Sunday night against a Cowboys team that ranks as one of the league's best. The Saints relied on their defense, and that was enough. They shut down previously unbeaten Dallas.

No, the Saints defense isn't Chicago's. It's not transformational. But it is good. Fast, aggressive and smart.

During their two-point victory, the Saints did something that seemed almost impossible. They nullified the formidable trio of Dak Prescott, Ezekiel Elliott and Amari Cooper.

The Cowboys have obliterated defenses all season. They were averaging 32.3 points per game coming in, but they scored just 10 against New Orleans. They were rushing for 179 yards per game, but they had only 45. They were averaging 481.3 yards of total offense, but they had only 257—and it was only 223 as late as the final two minutes.

The last series of the game was representative of how the Saints pummeled the Dallas offense. They sacked Prescott on first down. Later, Prescott had his arm hit, causing an incomplete pass. Then Cooper, looking frustrated, was called for his second offensive pass interference penalty.

On the last deep pass to Cooper, Prescott was swamped by four Saints defenders. Then, on the final play of the game, the Saints sent a blitz off the corner, pressuring him into throwing the ball sooner than he wanted as he tried a Hail Mary.

The Cowboys just couldn't get anything going on offense. That's not something you'll often hear.

They had just three points at the half, and tight end Jason Witten and Elliott were both forced into fumbles (the team had zero fumbles in the first three games). And Elliott was a non-factor. He had just 35 yards rushing—the third-fewest of his career.

We haven't seen the 21st-century triplets shut down like this in a long time.

The Saints defense presented multiple challenges. One of the biggest was defensive back Marshon Lattimore, who shadowed Cooper extensively and held him to 48 yards over five catches and eight targets. The defensive line was absolutely vicious and jammed all the running lanes.

Can New Orleans keep up this type of football? Can defense carry the Saints until Brees returns in a month? Probably not. 

Many teams fall apart when they lose a starting quarterback. The Saints haven't so far, though they did struggle on offense. The lack of smoothness was palpable. Quarterback Teddy Bridgewater's passes were often noticeably out of place, or the timing was off. He missed on passes Brees would have easily completed.

This was the first time in the Sean Payton era the Saints haven't scored a touchdown at home. If they keep struggling offensively, it will put a strain on this defense it won't be able to handle.

That is, unless Bridgewater improves significantly, which he might. He can take pressure off the defense.

But for the moment, this defense—not Bridgewater, the slippery Alvin Kamara, superstar playmaker Michael Thomas or the brilliant Payton—is the true star of a Saints team that looks like it's still an NFC contender despite the Brees injury.

"No one said it had to be pretty," Bridgewater said on NBC after the game.

Defense is beautiful, Teddy. Don't hate.

It's the reason your team is 2-0 at home for the first time since 2014.

Mike Freeman covers the NFL for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter: @mikefreemanNFL.