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Using a dominant ball-control offense and a few gambles

in Judith Hildebrandt&Florian Stadler 15.11.2019 07:24
von zhangzk | 163 Beiträge | 326 Punkte

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — When the New Orleans Saints finally found their rhythm http://www.packersauthorizedshops.com/authentic-darnell-savage-jr.-jersey , they marched one step closer to the Super Bowl. that paid off, the Saints got two touchdown passes from Drew Brees and two interceptions from Marcus Lattimore in a 20-14 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles.Brees took the Saints on scoring drives of 92, 79 and 67 yards after falling behind 14-0. Lattimore clinched it when Nick Foles‘ pass from the Saints 27 deflected off usually sure-handed receiver Alshon Jeffery with about two minutes remaining. A couple dozen Saints players surged off the sideline toward the end zone in celebration, while Jeffery fell face-first to the turf in agony.Article continues below ...“We were real calm and poised and we knew we were going to get things done,” Brees said.New Orleans (14-3) will host the NFC title game next week against the Rams (13-4). Los Angeles, which fell 45-35 at the Superdome in November, will try again next week, with the winner going to the Super Bowl. The Saints’ win finished off a sweep of the divisional round by teams coming off byes.Wil Lutz added two field goals for the Saints, who last got this far in 2009, when they won the Super Bowl.Philadelphia (10-8) will not repeat as NFL champion; no team has done so since the 2004 Patriots.“We were going down to win, but I just felt like we beat ourselves, honestly,” Jeffery said. “Hats off to those guys.”Eagles coach Doug Pederson thought his team was on its way on that final drive to pulling off another stunning comeback win“It just felt like the momentum at that point was in our favor,” he said. “It’s been that way all season, and we felt like that sort of magic was going to continue.”This was really two games in one. Philly scored on its first two drives as the Saints could do virtually nothing right.“Listen, they got off to a fast start, they’re a great team,” Brees said. “Nick Foles has done a phenomenal job for them. We knew it was going to be different than last time.”After that opening period, it was all New Orleans, yet the resilient Eagles kept it close enough that when Lutz missed a 52-yard field goal with 2:58 remaining, they were only one-score behind.Foles, the hero of last year’s Super Bowl run, got them in position for yet another late winning score — just like last week at Chicago and last February against New England for the championship.Then Elgton Jenkins Jersey , Jeffery couldn’t handle a second-down pass, and it was over.“That’s a great championship team,” Saints coach Sean Payton said of the Eagles. “We remained confident.”Brees had 2-yard touchdown passes to rookie Keith Kirkwood and All-Pro wideout Michael Thomas, who had 12 receptions for a franchise playoff-record 171 yards.Thomas’ touchdown capped an 18-play, 92-yard drive in which the Saints actually covered more than 100 yards because of penalties. It lasted 11½ minutes.“What you saw from him today is what I see every day in practice,” Brees said of Thomas. “He’s a big-time player who wants to be the guy to make plays.”Philadelphia had the ball for more than nine minutes in the first quarter, after which the Eagles had the ball about 13 minutes and never scored.New Orleans, which routed Philadelphia 48-7 in November, gambled on its first play — and lost. Brees was a bit short on a deep pass to Ted Ginn Jr., and it was picked off by Cre’Von LeBlanc, one of several Eagles backups being used in the secondary due to injuries during the regular season.“I just think we had to find our rhythm,” Brees said. “I tried to take a shot on the first play. Unfortunately, that didn’t work.”After the first quarter, though, a lot worked for New Orleans.Foles completed all five throws on a 76-yard drive capped by Jordan Matthews‘ 37-yard TD catch . The Eagles, who quickly fell behind 17-0 in that previous Superdome loss, suddenly led 7-0.Not long after, a 75-yard drive highlighted by a 30-yard pass to Jeffery ended with Foles’ short leap over the goal line for a 14-0 edge.Indeed, the visitors were in control until Lattimore picked off Foles’ deep throw to Zach Ertz. The Saints showed plenty of moxie on their 79-yard march to a touchdown, faking a punt at their 30, with Taysom Hill running 4 yards for a first down. They also went on fourth-and-goal from the 2, and Philadelphia’s rapidly depleting defense surrendered Kirkwood’s 2-yard touchdown.“When you just get that in guys’ minds that we’re going to be aggressive, that we’re going to play to win http://www.packersauthorizedshops.com/authentic-jace-sternberger-jersey , it allows guys to relax and to cut loose,” Brees said.With Brees finding the range and his receivers finding loads of room to roam, New Orleans crept to 14-10 at halftime on Lutz’s 45-yard field goal.UGLY STARTMaybe the Saints were rusty after their wild-card bye, but they got two first downs, including one by penalty, gained 17 yards, and Brees threw an interception and had a fumble that was recovered by teammate Ryan Ramczyk in the opening period. Meanwhile, Philly gained 153 yards and scored two TDs, and Foles went 8 of 9 for 113.But Foles was intercepted by Lattimore early in the second quarter, and the Saints finally got going.NUMBERSBrees, who turns 40 Tuesday, finished 28 for 38 despite the awful start, throwing for 301 yards. Aside from Thomas, who was targeted 16 times — he led the NFL with 125 catches — no one caught more than four passes for New Orleans. Alvin Kamara had four for 35 yards and also rushed for 71 yards. Mark Ingram added 53 yards on the ground as the Saints outrushed the Eagles 137-49. New Orleans is 6-0 at home in the playoffs with Payton and Brees.Foles was 18 for 31 for 201 yards. Jeffery had five catches for a team-leading 63 yards before the game-sealing drop.INJURIESIn a span of three plays, two starters were hurt and needed to be carted off.First, Saints defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins went down midway in the first quarter, unable to put any weight on his left foot.Two plays later, Eagles right guard Brandon Brooks hurt his right leg and departed.Several Saints players said they would be playing for Rankins the rest of the way because his season was done.Philly also lost DB Rasul Douglas in the second quarter to an ankle injury, but he was back in the second half. DLs Fletcher Cox, an All-Pro, and Michael Bennett also were sidelined at times before returning. In the fourth quarter, left tackle Jason Peters left.UP NEXTThe Saints host the Rams in the early game next Sunday, with the winner going to the Super Bowl. Ezekiel Elliott won his second NFL rushing title in three seasons for a Dallas offense that has been defined by the ground game for several years now.Seattle takes the league’s No. 1 rushing offense into a wild-card playoff against the Cowboys on Saturday night Dexter Williams Jersey , led by Chris Carson, but with more help from others than your average pro backfield .While receiver Amari Cooper‘s impact on the Dallas passing game was dramatic following a midseason trade, and Seattle’s Russell Wilson again finished among the NFL leaders in touchdowns passing, both teams figure to try to control the second postseason meeting between these franchises with their running backs.“We have a formula here,” said Dallas right guard Zack Martin, who has made the Pro Bowl in all five of his seasons. “Usually if we win a game, we kind of stick to that formula. It’s always a tough game against those guys. It’s kind of a bone-on-bone game. We’ve got our work cut out for us.”Elliott finished with 1,434 yards while setting a club record for catches by a running back with 77, one more than Herschel Walker 32 years ago. His 2,001 yards from scrimmage were second to New York Giants rookie Saquon Barkley.The 23-year-old former Ohio State star had the first 40-touch game of his career, a 29-23 overtime win against defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia that all but wrapped up the NFC East for the Cowboys (10-6).With the fourth seed in the playoffs locked up, the Cowboys sat Elliott in the regular-season finale against the New York Giants. Dak Prescott showcased his passing game with a rally for a 36-35 win, but that’s unlikely to be the way Dallas advances in the postseason.“Knowing going into these playoffs I’m going to have probably the heaviest workload I’ve had all season,” Elliott said, “so great getting fresh and ready going into this last stretch of the season and ready for what they throw at me.”The Seahawks (10-6) will throw multiple backs at the Cowboys, starting with Carson. With 1,151 yards rushing, Carson became the club’s first 1,000-yard rusher since Marshawn Lynch on Seattle’s most recent Super Bowl qualifier in 2014.Throw in Mike Davis (514 yards), Rashaad Penny (419) and Wilson (376), and the Seahawks have the first backfield with a 1,000-yard rusher and three with at least 300 yards since the 2001 Pittsburgh Steelers.Seattle is averaging 160 yards rushing per game, while Dallas finished the regular season ranked 10th at 123.“The offensive line has just really come into their own �? No. 1 rush team in the NFL for us Max Scharping Jersey , which is something that we really wanted to do is to run the ball this year and also play-action and do our thing,” Wilson said. “Those guys have been a big, big thing for us.”Carson, a second-year back drafted in the seventh round, had his first 100-yard game with 102 yards on a career-high 32 carries in the first meeting with Dallas this season, a 24-13 Seattle victory in Week 3 after the Seahawks had started 0-2.While the Cowboys let Seattle control the game with its rushing attack, they still held Carson to 3.2 yards per carry, his lowest average of the season. Defense kept Dallas in the game despite one of the worst offensive showings of the season.“So much of this is about us and what we need to do to play good run defense,” Cowboys coach Jason Garrett said. “It’s about us being fundamentally sound and being physical and being in our gaps and setting edges and running to the ball and being a great tackling team regardless of who they hand it to or what kind of runs they use.”There isn’t much mystery in who will get the handoffs for the Cowboys. Elliott carried 304 times, 18 fewer than when he led the league in rushing as a rookie in 2016. Backup Rod Smith had just 44 rushes, 12 of those when Elliott sat against the Giants.Really, the No. 2 running option for Dallas is quarterback Dak Prescott, who has six rushing TDs in each of his three regular seasons. While the Cowboys have been at their best when Prescott shows the running threat, they will spend plenty of time trying to establish Elliott early.“The ball is in his hands most of the time,” Seattle coach Pete Carroll said. “I don’t know him at all, but I am sure he’s a great competitor, he just plays like it. It all matters to him and there’s an intensity about his play that has made him already a significant player in the league.”13<button class="view-gallery">View Gallery</button> Gallery:NFL Playoff Odds: Brees, Saints Favorites To Win Super BowlDerick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports | Derick E. Hingle

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