Saints grind out 14-9 win over Vikings in opener
Football Betting Lines
09/10/2010 -
NEW ORLEANS (AP) - The New Orleans Saints opened their title defense by winning with defense.
Jonathan Vilma intercepted Brett Favre, and the Saints allowed the Minnesota Vikings only two first downs and no points in the second half of a hard-fought 14-9 victory in the NFL's regular season opener on Thursday night.
How unusual was that kind of result for New Orleans?
In Sean Payton's first four seasons as head coach, the Saints led the NFL in offense three times and had never won when scoring fewer than 19 points.
With Favre being held to 171 yards passing, the Vikings relied heavily on Adrian Peterson, who had 122 yards rushing and three touchdowns when these teams last met in the 2009 NFC title game. In the rematch, he managed only 87 yards on 19 carries and did not score.
``To hold a team like that with a damn good quarterback and probably the best running back in the league and a really good offensive line, we did some special things,'' said Saints defensive end Alex Brown, who joined the team as a free agent after their Super Bowl win. ``It's going to take a hell of a team to beat us. We're just 1-0, but we are a really good team here.''
Drew Brees completed 27 of 36 passes for 237 yards and one touchdown, a 29-yarder to Devery Henderson. That was far from Brees' best, but good enough.
``We're not used to 14-9 victories, but we're used to winning,'' said Brees, the reigning Super Bowl MVP. ``So we like the W.''
Pierre Thomas added a 1-yard TD early in the second half that put the Saints ahead for good.
Payton said he ``was proud of the way we came through and made enough plays to start the season 1-0.''
``Defensively we did a very good job of holding against the run and still taking some of the downfield throws away,'' the coach said.
This latest meeting of the Vikings and Saints was far different from the turnover-filled, back-and-forth overtime thriller that the Saints pulled out, 31-28, for the NFC title last January.
There wasn't nearly as much at stake this time, and while the game was competitive, the energy on the field and in the stadium wasn't the same - perhaps because fans were tired from a day filled with festivities that included a concert in the French Quarter, a parade and the unfurling of the 2009 Super Bowl championship banner before kickoff.
The only turnover of the game came on Favre's interception - the result of a ball thrown under duress on Roman Harper's safety blitz.
Also unlike their previous meeting, the Saints owned most of the statistical advantages, outgaining Minnesota 308 yards to 253.
New Orleans might have won more easily if not for two missed field goals by Garrett Hartley, who kicked the game-winning field goal in the last meeting and was one of the Saints' playoff heroes.
Still, New Orleans was able to kneel on the ball to run out most of the last two minutes after Thomas capped a 71-yard performance with a 10-yard, first-down run right after the 2-minute warning.
The 40-year-old Favre, who decided to return for a 20th season after an ankle operation, looked out of synch or inaccurate at times. The fact that Minnesota was without star receiver Sidney Rice may have had something to do with that, although Favre said, ``I just missed on some throws I should have made.''
Favre's best sequence came on Minnesota's only touchdown drive late in the first half, when he found Vinsanthe Shiancoe on precision down-the-middle completions of 33 and 20 yards, the second for the Vikings' only TD.
That gave Minnesota a 9-7 halftime lead.
``We were right where we wanted to be at halftime, then it was three-and-out, three-and-out,'' Vikings coach Brad Childress said. ``There were not a lot of throws to be made downfield. They were going to hold us down and make us bleed slowly.''Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
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Online Sportsbook Football Betting
Colts give the ‘D’ its due
The Indianapolis Colts know that winning the Super Bowl last season put a huge target on their backs, and they expect opponents to go all-out to knock them from the top of the mountain.
They’ll get their first test from the New Orleans Saints this Thursday night. The defending champs had nothing but good things to say about the New Orleans defense this past week, praising their opponents’ pass rush and run-stopping abilities.
"They play very aggressively," head coach Tony Dungy told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "They play a lot of man-to-man coverage, and they come after you. They have good pass rushers, and they're going to try to pressure us, I'm sure."
Both center Jeff Saturday and quarterback Peyton Manning gave New Orleans’ front four props, admitting keeping guys like Will Smithand Charles Grant contained would be a tall task for the offensive line.
New Orleans ranked second in total defense during the preseason at a sportsbook, allowing just under 233 yards per game. Last season, the defense finished 11th in the league after giving up 307.3 yards and 20.1 points per contest.
Not so sound on the ground
If Indianapolis' efficient offense has a weakness it has to be its running attack. The Colts one-two-punch of Dominic Rhodes and Joseph Addai is no longer, leaving the bulk of the carries to Addai, the second-year back out of LSU.
Former Saskatchewan Roughrider Kenton Keith was named Addai’s backup this week after beating out DeDe Dorsey for the second-string position. Indy has only three backs on the roster right now, including fullback Luke Lawton, and coach Dungy is aware of the thinness of his ground game. Sports Betting lines on the game can be found at BettingExpress.com
“We’ll continue to look. Luke Lawton’s done a good job for us too. So probably getting a third true tailback is something that we’d like to do,” Dungy told the Indiana Tribune-Star.
Last season, Addai rushed for over 1,000 yards in his rookie campaign and scored seven touchdowns on the ground.
Brees says bring it on
Opening the season on the road against the defending Super Bowl champions is not the way most teams would like to kick off their year – unless you’re the New Orleans Saints or their quarterback Drew Brees. This internet Sportsbooks had the Saints as the favorites.
Brees told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that he is excited to get the regular season started and the Colts are a great challenge for him and his teammates. The 28-year-old QB, entering his second season with the Saints, is expecting a wild environment in the RCA Dome this Thursday when the franchise celebrates its 2007-2007 championship.
Brees said he sees the opening game scheduling as an honor and a testament to how well New Orleans did last season. The Saints missed facing the Colts in the Super Bowl by one game, losing to the Chicago Bearsin the NFC Championship game.
"I mean, people think we can hang with these guys," Brees told reporters. "Even if they didn't, it wouldn't matter what they thought because as a team we're very confident. We know what we can do. We're not satisfied where we finished the season last year. And we've been looking forward to this opportunity for a long time."
SportsBooks ready for a shootout
Oddsmakers are preparing for some fireworks this Thursday when the NFL season kicks off. online Sportsbooks have Thursday’s total set at a whopping 52 points, accounting for two of the league’s most explosive offenses.
“This is like must-see TV,” Saints cornerback and former Colt Jason David told the Baton Rouge Advocate. “It’s two exciting offenses with great players. You’ve got a lot of star power on offense. At any given time a big play can happen. If I was a fan, I wouldn’t miss a snap.”
New Orleans, who ranked No.1 in total offense last season, can go blow-for-blow with the Colts’ attack. Head coach Sean Payton’s offensive schemes will get even better production out of Drew Brees, Reggie Bush and receiver Marques Colston now that they’ve each had a season of playing together under their belts.
The Saints and Colts were the top two passing teams in the NFL last year, but while Indianapolis managed to put up almost 27 points per game, New Orleans struggled to capitalize on their efforts. The Saints ranked fifth in points per game.
“Yards are great,” running backDeuce McAllister told reporters, “but to be able to score more touchdowns would be important for us.”
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