Saints win the Super Bowl--Who 'da figured dat?

In a tightly wound and tensely contested Super Bowl, the New Orleans Saints beat the Indianapolis Colts 31-17 with a similar recipe that they cooked up against the Minnesota Vikings in the NFC Championship. They did not get to Peyton Manning and try to knock him out of the game like they did to Brett Favre two weeks ago, but like Favre, Manning made the late interception that cost his team a chance to send the game to overtime and ultimately win the game. And that interception was made by the same player--Tracy Porter, who this time returned it 74 yards for a touchdown with 3:12 remaining to salt the game away.

Porter's pick six was the only turnover in a game that seesawed from an early Colts 10-0 lead to a 24-17 Saints lead in the fourth quarter with Manning and the Colts marching. Manning, who was 31 for 45 and 333 yards and a touchdown, looked to be going in for another one when he made his only mistake of the game--and it cost him dearly.

Saints quarterback Drew Brees was even better, completing 32 (tying a Super Bowl record held by Tom Brady) for 39, 288 yards and two touchdowns. He took deep drops and had plenty of time to find receivers all day long, and the Saints held on early and worked their way back into the game.

The game seemed to be teetering on the edge for the Saints near the end of the first half when New Orleans head coach Sean Payton went for it on fourth and goal from the two yard line and his team trailing 10-3. The Colts defense held, and momentum momentarily switched back to Indy. But the Colts went three and out and then got the ball back and the three points they gave up only seconds earlier.
Buoyed by that near dispiriting turn of events, Payton started the second half with an onside kick that, after potentially the longest scrum in NFL history, the Saints recovered and turned it into a huge touchdown.

The Colts answered with a Joseph Addai 4-yard TD run, but the Saints quickly came back with another Garrett Hartley field goal (the first kicker to ever hit three 40-yard plus field goals in a Super Bowl) and pulled within one at the end of the third quarter.

The Saints put together a strong drive capped by 2-yard Jeremy Shockey touchdown reception and a two point conversion (that needed a booth ruling to be good) and took the lead that they never relinquished. Manning looked like he was going to send the game to the first overtime in Super Bowl history, until Porter, the hero two games in a row, put the final nail in Indy's coffin and started the celebration on Bourbon Street.

Where the Vikings gave the ball back to the Saints five times two weeks ago and still took the game to overtime, the Colts gave it up just one and got beat--and that can only leave Vikings fans wondering what could have been. But the Saints deserve all the credit for two games in a row refusing to give up when things looked bad for them. It appeared that early on they were waiting for Manning and the Colts to put the game away. But the Colts offense got little time on the field in the first half after their scores and the Saints worked their way back into the game. Aggressive decision-making and play led the Saints to their first Super Bowl victory in the team's first appearance in the big game. Hats off to them for continuing to play the game despite early adversity and come out as Super Bowl champions. It's time to celebrate in the Big Easy, thanks to Super Bowl MVP Drew Brees and the World Champion New Orleans Saints. Who 'da figured dat? New Orleans, dat's who. They knew all along.