Playoff history of the New Orleans Saints

The New Orleans Saints have appeared in 16 different postseason games and have compiled a record of 7-9 (as of January, 2014). This is a brief history of the playoff appearances of the Saints.

Wild Card Playoffs

January 3, 1988

Minnesota Vikings 44, New Orleans Saints 10

1 2 3 4 Total
Vikings 10 21 3 10 44
Saints 7 3 0 0 10

at Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana

In the Saints' first playoff game in history, the Vikings dominated the game by recording 2 sacks, forcing 4 turnovers, and allowing only 149 yards. New Orleans scored first after Vikings quarterback Tommy Kramer's fumble on a bad snap led to Saints running back Dalton Hilliard ran 10-yards for the touchdown. Kramer then had to leave the game midway through the first quarter after reaggravating a pinched nerve in his neck that bothered him throughout the entire season. However, Minnesota took control of the contest from that point on. Backup quarterback Wade Wilson threw two touchdown passes, running back D. J. Dozier rushed for an 18-yard touchdown, and kicker Chuck Nelson made 3 field goals. Wide receiver Anthony Carter recorded an NFL playoff record 84-yard punt return for a touchdown, and finished the game with a postseason record 143 total punt return yards. Carter also scored a touchdown on a 10-yard halfback option pass from Allen Rice. New Orleans' only other score in the game was a 40-yard field goal by Morten Andersen. Wilson finished the game with 11 of 20 completions for 189 yards and 2 touchdown.

January 6, 1991

Chicago Bears 16, New Orleans Saints 6

1 2 3 4 Total
Saints 0 3 0 3 6
Bears 3 7 3 3 16

at Soldier Field, Chicago

The Bears defense held the Saints to 65 rushing yards, 6 first downs, and two field goals. Chicago also recorded 365 yards of total offense. Bears running back Neal Anderson compiled 166 rushing yards, 42 receiving yards, and threw a 22-yard halfback option pass. Chicago kicker Kevin Butler made 3 field goals, and quarterback Mike Tomczak completed an 18-yard touchdown pass to tight end James Thornton. New Orleans' only scores were two field goals by kicker Morten Andersen.

December 28, 1991

Atlanta Falcons 27, New Orleans Saints 20

1 2 3 4 Total
Falcons 0 10 7 10 27
Saints 7 6 0 7 20

at Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana

Falcons quarterback Chris Miller completed the game-winning 61-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Michael Haynes with 2:41 left in the contest. Miller completed 18 out of 30 passes for 291 yards and 3 touchdowns. The Saints jumped to a 10-0 with quarterback Bobby Hebert's 26-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Floyd Turner and kicker Morten Andersen's 45-yard field goal. But the Atlanta tied the game with wide receiver Andre Rison's 24-yard touchdown reception from Miller and a 44-yard field goal by Norm Johnson. The score was later tied 20-20 late in the final period as the teams traded scores: Andersen and Johnson each added another field goal, Miller threw a 20-yard touchdown to Haynes, and New Orleans running back Dalton Hilliard rushed for a 1-yard touchdown. After Haynes scored the winning touchdown for the Falcons, the Saints reached the Atlanta 35-yard line before Hebert threw an interception to Falcons defensive back Tim McKyer to clinch the victory.

January 3, 1993

Philadelphia Eagles 36, New Orleans Saints 20

1 2 3 4 Total
Eagles 7 0 3 26 36
Saints 7 10 3 0 20

at Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana

The Eagles overcame a 20-7 Saints lead late in the third quarter by scoring 26 points in the final period. New Orleans scored first on running back Craig Heyward's 1-yard touchdown run, but it was countered with Philadelphia quarterback Randall Cunningham's 57-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Fred Barnett. The Saints then went ahead 17-7 before halftime with kicker Morten Andersen's 35-yard field goal and wide receiver Quinn Early's 7-yard touchdown reception from quarterback Bobby Hebert. The two teams exchanged field goals in the third quarter, and the score was 20-10, New Orleans, going into the final period.

With less than 11 minutes left in the game, Cunningham connected with wide receiver Fred Barnett for a 35-yard touchdown completion. Then on the first play of the Saints' next possession, Eagles linebacker Seth Joyner intercepted a pass to set up running back Heath Sherman's 6-yard touchdown, giving Philadelphia the lead, 24-20. After New Orleans got the ball back, Eagles defensive lineman Reggie White sacked Hebert in the end zone for a safety. Philadelphia kicker Roger Ruzek then added a 39-yard field goal, and 19 seconds later, defensive back Eric Allen intercepted Hebert and returned it 18 yards for a touchdown.

December 30, 2000

New Orleans Saints 31, St. Louis Rams 28

1 2 3 4 Total
Rams 7 0 0 21 28
Saints 0 10 7 14 31

at Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana

The Saints won their first playoff game in their 34-year history with quarterback Aaron Brooks' 266 passing yards and four touchdowns, and by holding off the defending champion Rams, who scored three touchdowns in the final quarter. Rams quarterback Kurt Warner lost four turnovers (three interceptions and a fumble), while running back Marshall Faulk, who shredded the Saints with 220 rushing yards when they played against them in the regular season, was held to a season low of 24 yards on the ground.

St. Louis scored on their first drive, marching 68 yards in 11 plays to take a 7-0 lead with Warner's 17-yard touchdown pass to Isaac Bruce. But New Orleans then scored 31 unanswered points, beginning with Brooks' 12-yard touchdown pass to Robert Wilson on their ensuing possession. Sammy Knight's 52-yard interception return to the Rams 20-yard line set up kicker Doug Brien's 33-yard field goal to give the Saints a 10-7 lead by halftime. Then early in the third quarter, Chris Oldham's interception gave New Orleans the ball at the Rams 45-yard line, setting up another score on a 10-yard catch by Willie Jackson and increasing their lead to 17-7. Early in the fourth quarter, the Saints drove 74 yards in 5 plays and scored with Brooks' 49-yard touchdown pass to Jackson. Then on the Rams ensuing drive, linebacker La'Roi Glover recovered a fumble from Warner on the Rams 16-yard line, and Brooks threw a 16-yard touchdown pass to Jackson on the next play, giving the Saints a 31-7 lead with 11:57 remaining.

But St. Louis stormed back. Warner completed two passes for Faulk for 55 yards before throwing a 17-yard touchdown pass to Ricky Proehl, cutting the deficit to 31-13 after a failed 2-point conversion. With 6:28 left in the game, St. Louis had the ball inside the New Orleans 10-yard line but Knight recorded his second interception to halt the drive. However, the Saints were forced to punt and the Rams marched 62 yards on just 3 plays to score on running back Marshall Faulk's 25-yard touchdown reception to cut the lead 31-20 with 3:52 left. The Rams' Dre' Bly recovered the ensuing onside kick. Two plays later on third down and 6, Warner completed a 38-yard pass to Az-Zahir Hakim at the Saints 5-yard line and then took the ball into the end zone himself with a 5-yard touchdown run. Faulk's reception on the two-point conversion cut the lead, 31-28, with 2:36 left. St. Louis failed to recover their second onside kick attempt but forced New Orleans to punt. However, the punt was muffed by Hakim, and the Saints' Brian Milne recovered the ball to seal the victory. Saints' broadcaster Jim Henderson's take on the fumble shows the true excitement of the franchise's first playoff victory after years of struggling in the first round. Jackson caught 6 passes for 142 yards and 3 touchdowns. Warner finished the game with 365 passing yards and 3 touchdowns, but was intercepted 3 times. Bruce caught 7 passes for 127 yards and a touchdown, while Faulk added 7 catches for 99 yards and a score.

January 8, 2011

Seattle Seahawks 41, New Orleans Saints 36

1 2 3 4 Total
Saints 10 10 0 16 36
Seahawks 7 17 10 7 41

at CenturyLink Field, Seattle

As Super Bowl defending champions, Saints entered the postseason as a wild card, hoping to go to a second consecutive Super Bowl.

Two early Seahawk miscues enabled the Saints to build a 10-point lead. First Olindo Mare kicked the opening kickoff out of bounds, giving New Orleans the ball at their 40-yard line. New Orleans then drove to the Seahawks' 8-yard line, but had to settle for a Garrett Hartley field goal after Reggie Bush dropped a pass on third down that could have kept the drive going. Then three plays into the Seahawks' drive, Matt Hasselbeck's pass went through the hands of receiver Benjamin Obomanu and into the arms of defensive back Jabari Greer, who returned the interception 10 yards to the Seattle 35. New Orleans subsequently drove 35 yards in nine plays, aided by a third down pass interference penalty on Walter Thurmond in the end zone, and scored with Drew Brees' 1-yard touchdown pass to fullback Heath Evans, giving them a 10–0 lead.

Seattle fullback Michael Robinson returned Hartley's short kickoff 18 yards to the 43-yard line, and the Seahawks struck back with a 57-yard drive that ended with Hasselbeck's 11-yard touchdown pass to tight end John Carlson. The Saints countered as Brees completed 4 of 5 passes for 53 yards on an 83-yard drive that ended with a 5-yard touchdown run by Julius Jones, who had been cut by Seattle early in the season, to again give the Saints a ten-point lead. But Hasselbeck led the Seahawks right back on a 70-yard scoring drive, featuring a 39-yard reception by tight end Cameron Morrah. On the next play, Hasselbeck threw his second touchdown pass to Carlson, cutting the score to 17–14. After an exchange of punts, Jones lost a fumble while being tackled by Raheem Brock that Seattle linebacker David Hawthorne recovered on the Saints' 18-yard line, setting up a 29-yard field goal by Mare to tie the game.

With 1:15 left in the second quarter, Hasselbeck launched a 45-yard touchdown pass to Brandon Stokley, giving Seattle their first lead of the game at 24–17. But a 40-yard reception by Devery Henderson helped the Saints drive to the Seattle 3-yard line where Hartley made his second field goal to cut the score to 24–20 as time expired in the half. This was only the second playoff game in which both teams scored at least 20 points in the first two quarters.

The Seahawks increased their lead to 31–20 on their opening drive of the second half, as Hasselbeck threw an 18-yard completion to Obomanu and finished the drive with a 38-yard touchdown pass to Mike Williams. Then after forcing a punt, Mare kicked a 39-yard field goal to make the score 34–20 with 9:54 left in the quarter. The Seahawks got a chance to build a three-score lead after stopping Jones for no gain on fourth down and 1 on the Saints' 37-yard line, but they could only gain a few yards with their next drive, and a delay of game penalty on fourth down pushed them out of field goal range.

New Orleans got the ball back at their 13-yard line following Jon Ryan's punt, and mounted an 83-yard drive that ended with Jones' second touchdown run of the game, making the score 34–27 with 13:11 left in regulation. Then they forced a three-and-out and got the ball back with good field position on their 44-yard line with Lance Moore's 8-yard punt return. On the second play of their ensuing drive, Brees threw a short pass to Jones, who took it 33 yards to the Seattle 23. But several plays later, Seattle's defense halted the drive at the 3-yard line, where the Saints settled for Hartley's third field goal to cut the score to 34–30.

After an exchange of punts, Seattle got the ball with 4:20 left in the game. On the first play of the drive, Lynch was stuffed for no gain. But on the next play, he took off for a 67-yard touchdown run in which he broke seven tackles en route to the end zone. the crowd in Seattle was so loud during the run that local seismographs recorded it as a small earthquake.[1] With 1:52 left, Brees struck back with a 6-yard touchdown pass to Henderson, but the 2-point conversion failed, keeping the score at 41–36. Then Carlson sealed the victory by recovering Hartley's onside kick attempt, enabling Seattle to run out the clock.

Brees finished with 39 of 60 completions for 404 yards and two touchdowns. His 39 completions set a postseason record. Jones, who became the first player ever to score a touchdown in the postseason against a team that had cut him in the regular season, rushed for 59 yards and two touchdowns while also catching 6 passes for 61 yards. Hasselbeck completed 22 of 35 passes for 271 yards and 4 touchdowns with 1 interception. Lynch added 131 rushing yards and a touchdown for Seattle, who had not had a 100-yard rusher in any of their regular season games.

January 7, 2012

New Orleans Saints 45, Detroit Lions 28

1 2 3 4 Total
Lions 7 7 7 7 28
Saints 0 10 14 21 45

at Mercedes-Benz Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana

New Orleans never punted the ball, gained a postseason record 626 yards, converted three fourth downs, and scored 35 points in the second half to defeat the Lions, who were playing their first playoff game in thirteen years.

Detroit quarterback Matthew Stafford completed 5 of 6 passes for 70 yards on the opening drive of the game, the last one a 10-yard touchdown pass to tight end Will Heller. Later on, a 31-yard burst by Saints running back Pierre Thomas set up Darren Sproles' 2-yard touchown run, tying the score at 7 early in the second quarter.

Detroit responded on their next drive, moving the ball 87 yards in nine plays and taking a 14–7 lead on Stafford's 13-yard touchdown pass to Calvin Johnson. With 21 seconds left in the half, New Orleans appeared to score the tying touchdown on a pass from Drew Brees to receiver Marques Colston, but the catch was overturned by official review, and the Saints ended up settling for a John Kasay field goal to cut the score to 14–10 at the end of the half.

The Saints dominated the second half, scoring touchdowns on five consecutive possessions before ending the game on their sixth. On the first play of the third quarter, Thomas rushed for 18 yards. Running back Chris Ivory then added a 19-yard run before Brees finished the drive with a 41-yard touchdown pass to Devery Henderson. Then after a Lions punt, New Orleans drove 92 yards, featuring a 40-yard completion from Brees to Henderson, and scored with his 3-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jimmy Graham.

This time Detroit stormed back, with Stafford completing two passes to Johnson for 63 yards before rushing the ball into the end zone himself on a 1-yard run, making the score 24–21. But their defense still could not stop Brees, who completed five passes for 52 yards on a 78-yard drive that ended with Sproles' second touchdown on a 17-yard run. Then on the first play of the Lions' next drive, Jabari Greer intercepted Stafford's pass at the New Orleans 39-yard line. Four plays later, Brees converted the turnover with a 56-yard touchdown pass to Robert Meachem. This time, Detroit managed to respond, with Johnson catching 3 passes for 38 yards on a 79-yard drive, the last one a 12-yard score. But New Orleans recovered Jason Hanson's onside kick attempt and stormed back for another touchdown, with Meachem's 41-yard reception setting it up for Thomas' 1-yard scoring run. Then the Saints sealed the victory with Greer's second interception from Stafford, enabling them to run out the rest of the clock.

Brees finished the game with 33 of 43 completions for a franchise postseason record 466 yards and three touchdowns. Meachem and Colston both recorded over 100 receiving yards each, while Thomas and Sproles combined for 264 all-purpose yards and three touchdowns between them.

Stafford threw for 380 yards and three touchdowns, with 2 interceptions, while Johnson set franchise playoff records with 12 receptions for 211 yards and two scores.

With the victory the Saints ran their home playoff winning streak to five dating back to their 2000 victory over the St. Louis Rams, which was also the first playoff win in their history. The Lions continued their streak of playoff futility, having only one playoff win – their divisional playoff win over the Dallas Cowboys in January 1992 – in their history since the NFL-AFL merger.

January 4, 2014

New Orleans Saints 26, Philadelphia Eagles 24

1 2 3 4 Total
Saints 0 6 14 6 26
Eagles 0 7 7 10 24

at Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia

Saints kicker Shayne Graham, who was signed by the team just a few weeks before this game, kicked four field goals, the last a game winner as time expired to give the team their first road playoff win in franchise history.

The first quarter of the game was scoreless. The farthest the Saints made it was to the Eagles 49-yard line, and that drive ended when Drew Brees was intercepted by defensive back Bradley Fletcher, who returned the ball 24 yards to the New Orleans 27-yard line. After the turnover, Philadelphia drove to the Saints 15-yard line, but New Orleans' defense made two key plays to prevent a score. First, Curtis Lofton tackled tight end Brent Celek on a screen pass for an 8-yard loss. Then defensive end Cameron Jordan sacked Nick Foles for an 11-yard loss, pushing the Eagles all the way back to the 34-yard line. Following a 4-yard gain on third down, Alex Henery missed a 48-yard field goal 34 seconds into the second quarter.

After the miss, New Orleans drove 43 yards to score on Shayne Graham's 36-yard field goal and take the lead, aided by a replay review that caused officials to overturn a lost fumble by tight end Jimmy Graham. New Orleans subsequently forced the Eagles to punt on their next drive, but then linebacker DeMeco Ryans intercepted Brees and returned the ball 23 yards to the Saints' 44-yard line. Philadelphia receiver Riley Cooper started off their possession with a 22-yard reception, and finished it with a 10-yard touchdown catch to give the Eagles a 7–3 lead. New Orleans responded with a 47-yard scoring drive, with Brees completing a 17-yard pass to Jimmy Graham and a 13-yarder to Kenny Stills on the way to a 46-yard field goal by Shayne Graham with less than two minutes left in the half, cutting the score to 7–6 going into halftime.

Philadelphia was forced to punt on their opening drive of the second half, and Darren Sproles returned the ball 12 yards to the Saints 47-yard line. Aided by Mark Ingram's 3 carries for 24 yards, New Orleans drove 53 yards to score their first touchdown on Brees' 24-yard pass to receiver Lance Moore, giving them a 13–7 lead. The next time New Orleans had the ball, they matched that feat with a 66-yard scoring drive. Tight end Benjamin Watson caught a 24-yard pass, while Ingram had 5 carries for 26 yards, the last a 4-yard touchdown run that put his team up 20–7. The Eagles managed to respond, with Foles' 40-yard completion to DeSean Jackson setting up a 1-yard touchdown run by LeSean McCoy, trimming their deficit to 20–14 with just over 30 seconds left in the third quarter.

New Orleans went three-and-out on their next drive, and Jackson's 29-yard punt return to the Saints' 40-yard line set up Henery's 30-yard field goal. But Brees' 40-yard completion to Robert Meachem helped move the Saints in range for another Shayne Graham field goal to put them back up by six points at 23–17. Taking the ball back with just over 8 minutes left in regulation, the Eagles managed to drive 77 yards to take the lead, aided by a 40-yard pass interference penalty on defensive back Corey White. Foles finished the drive with a 3-yard touchdown toss to tight end Zach Ertz, giving the Eagles a 24–23 lead at 4:54. However, the Saints would need to cover little ground for their game winning drive, as Sproles returned the ensuing kickoff 39 yards, with a horse-collar tackle penalty on Cary Williams adding on another 15. As a result, New Orleans got the ball on the Eagles' 48-yard line and needed just 34 yards to set up Shayne Graham's game-winning 32-yard field goal – as time expired – which they managed to space out over 10 plays to run the clock down to 3 seconds on the play.

Foles finished his first playoff game completing 23 of 33 passes for 195 yards and two touchdowns. Cooper was the top receiver of the game with 6 catches for 68 yards. Ryans had 10 tackles – 8 of which were solo tackles – and an interception. Brees threw for 250 yards and a touchdown, with two interceptions. Ingram was the game's top rusher with 18 carries for 97 yards and a touchdown, while also catching 3 passes for 17 yards.

This game was notable for featuring two starting quarterbacks who went to the same high school, Westlake High School in Austin, Texas; Brees graduated in 1997, while Foles graduated 10 years later in 2007.

Divisional playoffs

January 6, 2001

Minnesota Vikings 34, New Orleans Saints 16

1 2 3 4 Total
Saints 3 0 7 6 16
Vikings 10 7 10 7 34

at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, Minneapolis, Minnesota

Quarterback Daunte Culpepper led the Vikings to a victory with 305 passing yards and 3 touchdowns. Culpepper threw a 53-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Randy Moss on the game's third play from scrimmage. Culpepper then recorded a 17-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Cris Carter and a 68-yard pass to Moss. Robert Tate's interception in the third quarter set up Robert Smith's 2-yard touchdown run to seal the victory. Meanwhile, the Saints could only score a field goal and two touchdown passes from quarterback Aaron Brooks. Thirty-five-year-old Carter had the best postseason performance of his career, catching 8 passes for a career high 120 yards and a touchdown, while Moss recorded 121 yards and 2 touchdowns on just 2 receptions. Saints receiver Willie Jackson caught 9 passes for 124 yards and a touchdown in the final postseason game of his career. Receiver Chad Morton tied a playoff record with 13 receptions for 106 yards.

January 13, 2007

New Orleans Saints 27, Philadelphia Eagles 24

1 2 3 4 Total
Eagles 0 14 7 3 24
Saints 3 10 14 0 27

at Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana

The Saints gained 208 rushing yards and 435 total yards, both postseason franchise records, en route to a 27-24 victory over the Eagles, allowing them to advance to the conference championship game for the first time in the team's 40-year history.

In the first quarter, a 28-yard run from New Orleans' Deuce McAllister set up a 33-yard field goal from John Carney to open up the scoring. Later in the period, two big plays from the Saints, a 25-yard run by Reggie Bush and a 35-yard reception by Devery Henderson, set up Carney's second field goal 15 seconds into the second quarter, making the score 6-0.

Three plays after the kickoff, Eagles quarterback Jeff Garcia threw a 75-yard touchdown pass to Donté Stallworth to give his team a 7-6 lead. The Saints responded with a 78-yard drive, scoring on a 5-yard touchdown run by Reggie Bush to retake the lead at 13-7. However, the Eagles stormed right back, driving 80 yards in 11 plays. On third down and goal, running back Brian Westbrook took a handoff and jumped over top of the defensive line and fell into the end zone for a touchdown, giving them a 14-13 lead with 50 seconds left in the half. New Orleans returned the kickoff to their 47-yard line. With 2 seconds left, quarterback Drew Brees threw a Hail Mary pass to the end zone. Wide receiver Marques Colston initially caught the ball, but it squirted out of his arms as he fell to the ground, and was ruled an incompletion.

Philadelphia took the second-half kickoff and scored in just 3 plays with a 62-yard touchdown romp from Westbrook, increasing their lead to 21-13. However, the Saints responded with a 5-yard touchdown run by McAllister on their next drive. Then after forcing a punt, New Orleans drove to the Eagles' 29-yard line. After two penalties (a holding call against the Saints and an illegal contact call against the Eagles), McAllister rushed for 25 yards and followed it up with an 11-yard touchdown reception, giving the Saints a 27-21 lead.

With 11:08 remaining in the fourth quarter, Philadelphia scored on a 24-yard field goal from David Akers, cutting their deficit to 3 points. After an exchange of punts, the Saints drove from their 29 to the Eagles 35-yard line with 3:24 left in the game. New Orleans was in great position to take more time off the clock and increase their lead, but Bush fumbled a high pitch from Brees and Philadelphia's Darren Howard recovered the ball, giving his team a chance to drive for a tying field goal. However, the Eagles were unable to get a first down and chose to punt the ball back with 1:57 left. The Saints then clinched the victory by keeping possession of the ball for the rest of the game.

January 16, 2010

New Orleans Saints 45, Arizona Cardinals 14

1 2 3 4 Total
Cardinals 7 7 0 0 14
Saints 21 14 10 0 45

at Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana

Saints running back Reggie Bush accumulated 217 all-purpose yards, including an 83-yard punt return touchdown, the third longest in NFL postseason history, and a franchise playoff record 46-yard touchdown run, while quarterback Drew Brees added 247 passing yards and three touchdowns. Although Arizona scored first, New Orleans racked up a franchise playoff record 35 points in the first half on the way to a 45–14 win.

Arizona opened up a 7–0 lead just 19 seconds into the first quarter when Tim Hightower ran through a hole in the line, cut left, and took off down the field for a 70-yard touchdown run on the game's first play from scrimmage. New Orleans struck back with a 72-yard drive on the way to a 1-yard touchdown run by Lynell Hamilton to tie the score. Then defensive back Randall Gay stripped the ball from Cardinals wide receiver Jerheme Urban, forcing a fumble that Saints safety Darren Sharper returned 13 yards to the Arizona 37-yard line. Three plays later, Brees converted the turnover into points with a 17-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jeremy Shockey. Arizona was forced to punt on their next drive, and the Saints quickly scored again with a 46-yard touchdown run by Bush, increasing their lead to 21–7.

Just over five minutes into the second quarter, Arizona cut the score to 21–14 with a 4-yard touchdown run by Beanie Wells. But New Orleans again responded quickly, as Brees completed a 26-yard pass to Marques Colston and followed it up with a 44-yard touchdown pass to Devery Henderson on a flea flicker play. Then Saints defensive lineman Will Smith intercepted a pass from Kurt Warner (who was injured on the play) and returned it 5 yards to the Cardinals 27, setting up Brees' 2-yard touchdown pass to Colston to give the Saints a 35–14 lead. The Cardinals, now led by Matt Leinart, responded with a drive to the Saints 33-yard line, but Neil Rackers missed a 50-yard field goal as time expired in the half. The combined 49 points scored by both teams in the first half was an NFL postseason record.

In the second half, the Saints added 10 more points to their lead with a Garrett Hartley field goal and Bush's 83-yard punt return touchdown. Meanwhile, Arizona only managed one drive inside Saints territory which ended in a turnover on downs on the 10-yard line.

January 14, 2012

San Francisco 49ers 36, New Orleans Saints 32

1 2 3 4 Total
Saints 0 14 0 18 32
49ers 14 3 3 16 36

at Candlestick Park, San Francisco

Alex Smith's 14-yard touchdown pass to tight end Vernon Davis with 9 seconds left gave San Francisco their first playoff win since 2002 at the end of a wild, back and forth final quarter which featured four lead changes in a span of 3:53.

New Orleans started off the game with a 78-yard drive to the 49ers 2-yard line, but came up empty when defensive back Donte Whitner forced a fumble from Pierre Thomas that was recovered by linebacker Patrick Willis. Thomas was injured on the play and did not return. Later on, San Francisco opened up the scoring with Smith's 49-yard touchdown pass to Davis. A few plays into the next drive, Dashon Goldson intercepted a pass from Saints quarterback Drew Brees and returned it 41 yards to the 4-yard line, setting up Smith's touchdown completion to Michael Crabtree and giving the 49ers a 14–0 lead. Then Courtney Roby lost a fumble on the kickoff that San Francisco linebacker Blake Costanzo recovered on the Saints 13-yard line. This time New Orleans managed to keep them out of the end zone, but David Akers kicked a field goal to give the 49ers a 17–0 lead less than a minute into the second quarter.

Brees led the Saints back, completing 7 consecutive passes for 65 yards and rushing for 5 on an 80-yard drive that ended with his 14-yard scoring pass to tight end Jimmy Graham. Then after a punt, he threw a 25-yard touchdown completion to Marques Colston, cutting the deficit to three points. Later on, Brees threw his second interception, this one to Tarell Brown, but San Francisco could not convert and the score remained 17–14 at the end of the second quarter, despite three Saints turnovers.

Early in the second half, Costanzo forced a fumble from Darren Sproles on a punt return and Colin Jones recovered it, leading to Akers' second field goal. In the fourth quarter, the Saints managed to close the gap back to three points with a franchise postseason record 48-yard field goal from John Kasay. But a 42-yard run from San Francisco's Frank Gore helped put the margin back up to six on Akers' third field goal of the day.

With 4:02 left in the game, New Orleans took their first lead of the game at 24–23 with Brees' 44-yard touchdown pass to Sproles. But it lasted less than 2 minutes before San Francisco took it back, with Smith hitting Davis for a 37-yard gain before taking the ball into the end zone himself on his career long 28-yard run, making the score 29–24 after the two-point conversion failed. Not to be outdone, Brees matched the score with his fourth touchdown pass of the day, a 66-yard completion to Graham, and then threw the ball to Sproles for a successful 2-point conversion, giving the Saints a 32–29 lead.

San Francisco got the ball back on their own 15-yard line with 1:37 left in the game. Smith started the drive with two completions to Gore for 18 yards. Then after an incompletion, he connected on a 47-yard pass to Davis, advancing the ball to the Saints 20-yard line. A 6-yard completion to Gore then moved the ball to the 14, where Smith spiked the ball to stop the clock. On the next play, he threw a 14-yard touchdown pass to Davis with 9 seconds left, earning San Francisco their first conference championship game since 1997.

Smith threw for 299 yards and three touchdowns without an interception, while adding 28 yards and a touchdown on the ground. He was the first quarterback in NFL playoff history to lead two go-ahead touchdowns in the final three minutes of a game.[2] Davis caught 7 passes for 180 yards and two touchdowns, breaking Kellen Winslow's NFL postseason record for receiving yards (166) by a tight end.[3] Gore rushed for 89 yards and caught 7 passes for 38. For the Saints, Brees completed 40 of 63 passes for 462 yards and four touchdowns, with 2 interceptions. His top target was Sproles, who caught 15 passes for 119 yards and a touchdown, while adding 59 more yards on rushing and special teams returns. Graham caught 5 passes for 103 yards and two touchdowns, while Colston caught 9 passes for 136 yards and one score.

Davis' game winning touchdown catch occurred four days after the 30th anniversary of The Catch – Joe Montana's touchdown pass to Dwight Clark – known as the most famous play in San Francisco 49ers history. The 49ers had another famous playoff win in the 1998 season on a last second touchdown pass from Steve Young to Terrell Owens known as The Catch II. Sports writers and 49ers fans have taken to referring Davis' catch as The Catch III.[4]

January 11, 2014

Seattle Seahawks 23, New Orleans Saints 15

1 2 3 4 Total
Saints 0 0 0 15 15
Seahawks 6 10 0 7 23

at CenturyLink Field, Seattle

The last time these two teams met in the playoffs, Seattle running back Marshawn Lynch rushed for 131 yards and a touchdown in a winning effort. This time, Lynch rushed for 140 yards and two scores to help the Seahawks advance to their first NFC Championship Game – despite quarterback Russell Wilson only completing 9 of 18 passes for 108 yards – since 2005. The win was the Seahawks' fifth consecutive home playoff win, as they have not lost at home in the playoffs since being defeated by the St. Louis Rams in 2004.

The Seahawks dominated the first half, jumping to a 16–0 lead while holding Saints quarterback Drew Brees – who passed for over 5,000 yards during the season – to just 34 yards. New Orleans was forced to punt on their opening drive, and punter Thomas Morstead bobbled the rain-soaked ball at the snap before shanking a 16-yard kick that gave Seattle a first down on the Saints' 40-yard line. The Seahawks then drove 20 yards, aided by a penalty for unnecessary roughness on safety Rafael Bush, and took a 3–0 lead on Steven Hauschka's 38-yard field goal. New Orleans responded with a drive to the Seattle 27-yard line, but Shayne Graham missed a 47-yard field goal attempt. Seattle then drove 34 yards and increased their lead to 6–0 with Hauschka's second field goal, this one from 49 yards out with 37 seconds left in the first quarter.

On the first play of the second quarter, defensive end Michael Bennett forced and recovered a fumble from New Orleans running back Mark Ingram on the Saints' 24-yard line. Following a 9-yard run by Percy Harvin, Lynch scored on a 15-yard touchdown carry to increase Seattle's lead to 13–0. Later on, the Saints got a scoring opportunity when Jon Ryan's 24-yard punt gave them a first down on the Seahawks' 48-yard line. But they could only progress to the 29-yard line, and on 4th down and 4, linebacker Bobby Wagner ended the drive by breaking up Brees' pass. On the Seahawks' ensuing drive, Lynch broke off an 18-yard run, while Wilson completed a 16-yard pass to Harvin and rushed for 25 yards himself as the team drove 68 yards to take a 16–0 first half lead on Hauschka's third field goal.

On the Saints' first drive of the second half, they managed to reach the Seahawks 34-yard line. But once again they failed to score as Bennett and Cliff Avril sacked Brees for a 10-yard loss on third down, pushing New Orleans out of field goal range. The Saints built some momentum towards the end of the quarter, on Brees' 23-yard completion to reserve tight end Josh Hill. On the next play, Brees' 25-yard completion to Marques Colston gave the team a first down on the Seattle 14-yard line, and they eventually scored with Khiry Robinson's 1-yard touchdown run. Ingram ran for a successful 2-point conversion, cutting their deficit to 16–8 early in the fourth quarter. New Orleans then forced a punt and seemed primed to score again when Brees completed a 30-yard pass to Kenny Stills from the Saints' 42-yard line; the play was negated by holding from tackle Zach Strief, forcing a punt. By the time they got the ball back again, only 5:31 remained. They subsequently drove to the Seattle 30-yard line, but Shayne Graham missed a 48-yard field goal, giving the ball back to the Seahawks with 3:51 to go.

Faced with 3rd down and 3 after their first two plays, Wilson managed to complete a 24-yard pass to Doug Baldwin for a first down. On the next play, Lynch took off for a 31-yard touchdown run, giving the Seahawks a 23–8 lead. Brees completed 6 of 8 passes as he led his team down the field eighty yards in nine plays, the last coming on fourth down and 6 from the Seahawks' nine-yard line when he found Colston in the end zone for a touchdown. Shayne Graham kicked the extra point to put New Orleans within eight with twenty-six seconds remaining. On the subsequent kickoff, Graham's onside kick was bobbled by Seattle receiver Golden Tate at the Saints' 42 yard line, allowing Colston to recover for New Orleans, at the 41-yard line. On the first play of the drive, Brees found tight end Jimmy Graham for eight yards, then spiked the ball to stop the clock.

On the next play, Brees found Colston along the sideline at the Seattle 38 yard line. Instead of running out of bounds to stop the clock and give the Saints one more chance, Colston turned back toward the field of play and attempted to keep the play going by relaying the ball across the field to teammate Darren Sproles. However, the throw by Colston to Sproles was forward – therefore not qualifying as a lateral – resulting in an illegal-forward-pass penalty which included a game-ending runoff; thus, the Seahawks won, 23–15. Brees finished the game with 309 passing yards and a touchdown. Colston caught 11 passes for 144 yards and a score. Bennett had 6 tackles, half a sack, two forced fumbles, and a fumble recovery.

Conference championships

January 21, 2007

Chicago Bears 39, New Orleans Saints 14

1 2 3 4 Total
Saints 0 7 7 0 14
Bears 3 13 2 21 39

at Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois

Although the Saints outgained the Bears in total yards, 375-335, their four turnovers (three fumbles and one interception) contributed to a Bears victory.

On the opening drive of the game, Saints receiver Devery Henderson caught a 40-yard pass at the Bears' 32-yard line. But three plays later, Bears lineman Israel Idonije sacked quarterback Drew Brees on the 36-yard line, and the Saints decided to punt rather than attempt a 54-yard field goal.

With 5:28 remaining in the first quarter, Bears defensive back Nathan Vasher recovered a fumble from Marques Colston and returned it 14 yards to the Saints' 36-yard line. Several plays later, Robbie Gould kicked a 19-yard field goal to give the Bears a 3-0 lead. Then, Chicago's Danieal Manning recovered a fumble from Michael Lewis on the ensuing kickoff, setting up Gould's second field goal to increase the lead to 6-0. New Orleans was forced to punt on their next possession, and Devin Hester gave his team good field position with a 10-yard return to the Saints' 49-yard line. Two plays later, tight end Desmond Clark's 30-yard reception moved the ball to the 19. Once again, New Orleans kept Chicago's offense out of the end zone, but Gould kicked his third field goal to give the Bears a 9-0 lead. Then, after forcing another punt, Chicago stormed down the field on a drive in which running back Thomas Jones carried the ball on eight consecutive plays, gaining 69 yards and finishing it off with a 2-yard touchdown run. This time, New Orleans managed to respond, with Brees completing 5 passes for 73 yards on their ensuing possession, the last one a 13-yard touchdown pass to Colston, to cut their deficit to 16-7 by halftime.

Two plays after forcing a punt from Chicago on the opening drive of the second half, running back Reggie Bush caught a pass from Brees and took it 88 yards for a touchdown to cut the deficit to two points. Then after forcing another punt, New Orleans drove to the Bears' 29-yard line. But this time, they failed to score, as Brees threw three incompletions and Billy Cundiff missed a 47-yard field goal attempt.

After the ensuing kickoff, Brad Maynard's 51-yard punt gave the Saints the ball at their own 5-yard line. Two plays later, Brees committed an intentional grounding penalty in the end zone, resulting in a safety. Two possessions later, Chicago stormed 85 yards in five plays, with quarterback Rex Grossman completing four consecutive passes for 73 yards, the last one a 33-yard touchdown pass to Bernard Berrian, increasing their lead to 25-14.

The next time the Bears had the ball, they scored another touchdown with a 12-yard run by Cedric Benson on a drive that was set up after Brees lost a fumble while being sacked by Adewale Ogunleye. Then, on New Orleans' next drive, Brees was intercepted by defensive back Nathan Vasher. After the ensuing possession, Maynard's 46-yard punt pinned the Saints at their own 8-yard line, and the Saints could only reach their own 30 before turning the ball over on downs. Five plays later, Jones closed out the scoring with a 15-yard touchdown run, making the final score 39-14.

In addition, Reggie Bush became the fifth Heisman Trophy winner to play in a conference championship game the year after winning the trophy. Mike Garrett, who also went to the University of Southern California, did so with the Chiefs in 1966 (technically it was the AFL title game since the league didn't merge until 1970), Tony Dorsett did with the Cowboys in 1977, Earl Campbell did with the Houston Oilers in 1978 and Ron Dayne did with the Giants in 2000. Campbell and Bush are the only two of those to not advance to the Super Bowl in that season.

January 24, 2010

New Orleans Saints 31, Minnesota Vikings 28

1 2 3 4OT Total
Vikings 14 0 7 70 28
Saints 7 7 7 73 31

at Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana

Super Bowl

February 7, 2010

Main article: Super Bowl XLIV

Super Bowl 44

New Orleans Saints 31, Indianapolis Colts 17

1 2 3 4 Total
Saints 0 6 10 15 31
Colts 10 0 7 0 17

at Sun Life Stadium, Miami, Florida

References

  1. ↑ Collier, Jeff (2011-01-09). "Marshawn Lynch's Playoff Clinching Run Registered a Minor Earthquake". SB Nation Seattle. Retrieved 2011-01-10.
  2. ↑ Brown, Daniel (January 21, 2012). "49ers' magic run had beginnings at Camp Alex". San Jose Mercury News. Archived from the original on January 22, 2012.
  3. ↑ Hoffman, Ben (January 17, 2012). "Davis's Performance Recalls Winslow's 'Epic' Day". The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 20, 2012.
  4. ↑ Ortiz, Jorge L. (January 15, 2012). "TD could become 'The Catch III' in 49ers lore". USA Today. David Hunke; Gannett Company. Retrieved January 16, 2012.

See also

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