The Saints were down 14-10 at the half yesterday before they turned up the heat on the Lions and won the game going away.  Drew Brees completed 33 of 43 passes for 466 yards with 3 TD passes and 0 INTs.  Pierre Thomas led the way on the ground for the Saints yesterday with 66 yards rushing on 8 carries (8.3 ypc) with 1 TD run.  He also caught 6 passes for 55 yards (9.2 avg).  Darren Sproles also had a good game with 10 carries for 51 yards (5.1 ypc) with 2 TD runs and he also caught 4 passes for 34 yards (8.5 avg).  Chris Ivory pitched in with 13 carries for 47 yards (3.6 ypc) in this game.  Marques Colston (7 rec, 120 yards), Robert Meachem (4 rec, 111 yards, TD) and Jimmy Graham (7 rec, 55 yards, TD) led the way for the Saints in this game.  WR Devery Henderson also pitched in with 2 rec, 64 yards, TD in this game.  The Saints finished up with 167 yards rushing on 36 carries (4.6 ypc) and they also completed 33 of 43 passes (76.7%) for 459 yards as they had possession of the ball for 37:36.

The Saints were lucky that they were ballhogs offensively because the Lions were moving the ball at will on their defense.  Safety Roman Harper (7 tackles) and CB Jabari Greer (7 tackles, 4 passes defensed and 2 interceptions) led the way for the Saints on D yesterday.  Safety Roman Harper pitched in with 6 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss and 1 pass defensed) also pitched in yesterday.  The Lions finished up with 32 yards rushing on 10 carries (3.2 ypc) and they also completed 28 of 43 passes (65.1%) for 380 yards.  The Saints will advance to the second round of the playoffs and they will visit the 49ers next weekend.

The Saints are rolling into the playoffs on a 8-game winning streak, while the Lions have three of their last four games to make the playoffs for the first time since the 1999 season.  The Saints were an incredible 8-0 at home this year where they outscored teams by an average of 41.1 – 17.9!  The Saints beat the Lions 31-17 in New Orleans just five weeks ago.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Saints have the ball:  The Saints are going to come out throwing the ball as usual in this game.  The Lions had 41 sacks and 21 interceptions this year, so Brees will likely have to get rid of the ball quickly while making good decisions with the football…..which he almost always does.  Brees won’t have WR Lance Moore in this game due to a hamstring injury.  That will be o.k. though as he still has TE Jimmy Graham and WRs Marques Colston, Devery Henderson and Robert Meachem to throw the ball to.  The Saints are not a passing only team though, so they are going to run the ball some against a Lions’ D that is giving up 128.1 yards rushing per game and 5.0 yards per carry so far this year.  Darren Sproles, Chris Ivory and Pierre Thomas will likely share the carries in the running game.  Sproles is also going to test the Lions’ linebackers out of the backfield on a few pass plays.

When the Lions have the ball:  The Lions are going to try to fight fire with fire tomorrow.  The Saints are going to have to get pressure on Matt Stafford, because he also has an outstanding set of WRs and TEs to throw to.  The Saints will likely double cover WR Calvin Johnson, and it still might not stop him as he has been awesome so far this year.  Nate Burleson, Titus Young, Brandon Pettigrew and Tony Scheffler give Stafford more targets to throw to if the Saints are giving to much attention towards stopping Calvin Johnson.  The Lions’ secret weapon is RB Kevin Smith.

PREDICTION:  SAINTS 37, LIONS 27

32-year old Drew Brees led the Saints to a 13-3 record in 2011 and a return trip to the playoffs.  He also threw for 5,476 yards last year, smashing Dan Marino’s all-time record of 5,084 yards passing in a season, which stood for 27 years!  Brees played in 16 games (all starts) for the Saints this year and he completed 468 of 657 passes (71.2%) for 5,476 yards with 46 TD passes and 14 INTs (110.6 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 21 times for 86 yards (4.1 ypc) with 1 TD run this year.  Brees has now played in 154 games (153 starts) in his NFL career and he has completed 3,613 of 5,479 passes (65.9%) for 40,742 yards with 281 TD passes and 146 INTs (94.0 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 283 times for 565 yards (2.0 ypc) with 8 TD runs so far in his career.  Brees is now 92-61 (60.1%) as a starting QB during the regular season in his NFL career.

25-year old Chase Daniel continues to hold the clipboard and the ball on field goal and extra points.  Daniel played in 16 games (0 starts) for the Saints this year and he has completed 4 of 5 passes (80%) for 29 yards without a TD pass or INT (90.8 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 3 times for -3 yards (-1.0 ypc) so far this year.  Daniel has now played in 29 games (0 starts) so far in is NFL career and he has completed 6 of 8 passes (75%) for 45 yards without a TD pass or INT (88.0 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 5 times for 13 yards (2.6 ypc) so far in his NFL career.

UPDATE:  (2/5/2012) – Drew Brees has been named the 2011 NFL Offensive Player of the Year.

UPDATE II:  (3/3/2012) – The Saints have used the exclusive rights franchise tag on Drew Brees, keeping him with the Saints for at least the 2012 season.

The Saints have placed 28-year old LB Will Herring on the Injured Reserve List, ending his season due to an undisclosed injury.  Herring played in 11 games for the Saints this year and he had 9 tackles, 1 interception and 1 pass defensed.  He has now played in 65 games in his first five years in the NFL and he has 118 tackles, 1 sack, 7 tackles for a loss, 2 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery, 4 passes defensed and 2 interceptions.

The Saints totally destroyed the Panthers last Sunday.  Drew Brees was incedible, as usual, as he completed 28 of 35 passes for 389 yards with 5 TD passes and 1 INT.  He also carried the ball 1 time for 5 yards.  Chase Daniel finished up this game at QB for the Saints as he completed 3 of 3 passes for 20 yards without a TD pass or INT.  Chris Ivory led the way on the ground for the Saints in this game with 127 yards rushing on 19 carries (6.7 ypc) with 1 TD run.  Darren Sproles rushed for 40 yards on 6 carries (6.7 ypc) and he also caught 5 passes for 29 yards (5.8 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Pierre Thomas pitched in with 5 carries for 30 yards (6.0 ypc) and 3 receptions for 36 yards (12.0 avg).  WR Marques Colston led the way through the air for the Saints in this game with 7 grabs for 145 yards (20.7 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  TE Jimmy Graham (8 rec, 97 yards, TD) and FB Jed Collins (2 rec, 3 yards, TD) also pitched in for the Saints in this game.  The Saints finished up with 208 yards rushing on 35 carries (5.9 ypc) and they also completed 31 of 38 passes (81.6%) for 409 yards as they had possession of the ball for 34:34.

The defense didn’t play good against the run, but it didn’t matter in this game.  LB Jo-Lonn Dunbar led the way for the Saints in this game with 6 tackles.  CBs Tracy Porter (4 tackles and 1 fumble recovery) and Patrick Robinson (4 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 1 pass defensed and 1 interception) also had solid games for the Saints.  The Panthers gave up 164 yards rushing on 24 carries (6.8 ypc) and they also completed 15 of 25 passes (60%) for 137 yards.  The Saints are now 13-3 on the year.

22-year old rookie RB Mark Ingram will miss the rest of the season as he is going to undergo toe surgery this Wednesday.  Ingram played in 10 games (4 starts) this year for the Saints and he carried the ball 122 times for 474 yards (3.9 ypc) with 5 TD runs.  He also caught 11 passes for 46 yards (4.2 avg) this year.  With Chris Ivory back healthy, the Saints should be o.k. without Ingram in the playoffs.

The Saints have re-signed 28-year old TE Tory Humphrey.  Humphrey played in 6 games for the Saints last year and he caught 1 pass for 12 yards.  He has now played in 23 games in his first three years in the NFL and he has caught 13 passes for 181 yards (13.9 avg).  Don’t expect Humphrey to get a lot of P.T. going forward unless something happens to Jimmy Graham.

The New Orleans Saints have won 7 games in a row as they are rolling right now.  They need to win against the Panthers and get a Rams win over the 49ers to secure the #2 seed in the NFC.  So the Saints will be watching the scoreboard, and they will likely pull most of their starters out of the game if the Niners are blowing out the Rams.  The Panthers have won two games in a row and four of their last five games.  They have won their last two games by a combined score of 76-29!   The Saints won the first matchup, 30-27 in Carolina earlier this year.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Saints have the ball:  The Saints aren’t going to change the offense this weekend.  The Panthers are giving up 236.0 yards passing per game so far this year so look for Drew Brees and Chase Daniel to pass a lot this weekend.  Marques Colston, Lance Moore and Jimmy Graham will also likely have short days in this game.  Robert Meachem and Devery Henderson could be in line for big games for the Saints this weekend.  The Saints will also likely give a quick hook to WRs Darren Sproles and Pierre Thomas…..with Chris Ivory shouldering a heavy workload this Sunday.

When the Panthers have the ball:  The Panthers are going to want to win this game in the worst way.  They have the weapons to give the Saints’ defense fits, especially if they rest some regulars.  Look for the Panthers to be pretty balanced in this game as the run and throw the ball very well.  DeAngelo Williams, Cam Newton and Jonathan Stewart are going to keep the Saints’ front seven really busy this Sunday.  The Saints are going to have to get after Cam Newton, or he’s going to have a big game throwing the ball.  WRs Steve Smith, Brandon LaFell and TEs Jeremy Shockey and Greg Olsen are going to give the Saints’ secondary fits in this game.

PREDICTION:  PANTHERS 31, SAINTS 23

The New Orleans Saints are sending five offensive players to the Pro Bowl.  It all starts with record setting 32-year old QB Drew Brees.  Brees has played in 15 games for the Saints so far this year and he has completed 440 of 622 passes (70.7%) for 5,087 yards with 41 TD passes and 13 INTs (108.4 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 20 times for 81 yards (4.1 ypc) with 1 TD grab so far this year.  25-year old TE Jimmy Graham will likely get to play some catch with Drew Brees in Hawaii in the Pro Bowl.  Graham has played in 15 games for the Saints so far this year and he has caught 91 passes for 1,213 yards (13.3 avg) with 10 TD grabs.  28-year old Jahri Evans and 26-year old Carl Nicks will be the starting guards in the Pro Bowl for the NFC.  27-year old OT Jermon Bushrod has also made it to the Pro Bowl as a reserve.  Evans, Nicks and Bushrod have all started all 15 games for the Saints so far this year.

The Saints blasted the Falcons last night while Drew Brees’ made NFL history.  Brees completed 23 of 39 passes for 307 yards with 4 TD passes and 2 INTs.  On his last pass of the night, Brees passed Dan Marino as the NFL’s all-time leading passer in a season.  Brees now has 5,087 yards passing as he broke Marino’s record of 5,084 yards, which stood for 27 years.  But, Brees is only 190 yards ahead of Tom Brady, and he has something to play for next weekend.  Darren Sproles was a beast as usual as he carried the ball 5 times for 67 yards (13.4 ypc) and he also caught 2 passes for 22 yards (11.0 avg) with 1 TD grab.  He also returned 4 kickoffs for 147 yards (36.8 avg) including one return that went for 92 yards.  Pierre Thomas also had a solid game with 9 carries for 53 yards (5.9 ypc) with 1 TD run and he also caught 2 passes for 4 yards.  Chris Ivory pitched in with 8 carries for 35 yards (4.4 ypc) in this game.  WR Marques Colston (7 rec, 81 yards, TD), Robert Meachem (3 rec, 75 yards, TD), Lance Moore (2 rec, 53 yards) and TE Jimmy Graham (4 rec, 42 yards, TD) led the way in the passing game for the Saints last night.  The Saints finished up with 164 yards rushing on 23 carries (7.1 ypc) and he also completed 23 of 39 passes (59%) for 299 yards as they had possession of the ball for 26:41.

The Saints gave up a lot of passing yards last night, but they made their fare share of good plays too.  CB Jabari Greer (10 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss and 1 pass defensed), LB Scott Shanle (7 tackles and 1 pass defensed) and LB Jonathan Vilma (7 tackles) led the way for the Saints’ on D in this game.  Safety Malcolm Jenkins recovered a fumble that he returned 30 yards for a TD.  The Falcons finished up with 35 yards rushing on 14 carries (2.5 ypc) and they also completed 40 of 61 passes (65.6%) for 434 yards.  The Saints are now 12-3 on the season.