RB/PR Reggie Bush is playing the best football of his NFL career in the playoffs as he is looking like a man possessed.  Bush has carried the ball 12 times for 92 yards (7.7 ypc) with a TD run and he has also caught 6 passes for 57 yards (9.5 avg) with a TD grab.  Bush can go the distance on any play and that will cause the Colts to have to play honest against the run.  Bush has also been lethal in the return game for the Saints in the playoffs as he has returned 4 punts for 109 yards (27.3 avg) with a TD.  The Colts will have to account for Bush everytime he is on the field or he will make them pay.

The Saints couldn’t muster any offense against the stout Dolphins’ D last night.  Mark Brunell completed 3 of 5 passes for 66 yards with a interception.  Joey Harrington finished up the game by completing 13 of 19 passes for 115 yards.  He also carried the ball 2 times for 10 yards.  Lynell Hamilton was very busy in this game as he carried the ball 9 times for 34 yards (3.8 ypc).  He also caught 6 passes for 88 yards (14.7 avg) in this game.  WR Rod Harper had a good game for the Saints catching 2 passes for 29 yards (14.5 avg) and returning a punt 55 yards for the Saints’ only TD.  The Saints finished up with 234 total yards in this game (89 rushing, 145 passing). 

Linebacker Jo-Lonn Dunbar led the Saints’ D with 13 tackles, a sack and a fumble recovery.  The Dolphins finished up with 285 total yards in this game (139 rushing, 146 passing).  The Saints finished up with a 3-1 record in the pre-season.

The Saints completely destroyed the Raiders at the Black Hole on Saturday Night.  Drew Brees was incredible completing 14 of 17 passes for 179 yards with 2 TD passes.  Mark Brunell looked pretty awful in this game following Brees as he completed 4 of 13 passes for 86 yards with 2 interceptions.  Joey Harrington finished up the game in solid form completing 4 of 6 passes for 46 yards with 1 TD pass.  RB Lynell Hamilton led the way on the ground for the Saints in this game with 95 yards rushing on 16 carries (5.9 ypc).  He also added 2 catches for 16 yards (8.0 avg) on Saturday.  Undrafted rookie RB P.J. Hill had another outstanding game with 83 yards rushing on 12 carries (6.9 ypc) with 2 TD runs.  WR Robert Meachem only caught 1 pass in this game but it went for 71 yards.  Devery Henderson was also outstanding in this game with 3 catches for 69 yards (23.0 avg) with 1 TD.  Lance Moore was busy too in this game catching 4 passes for 29 yards (7.3 avg) with a TD.  The Saints controlled the clock for a stunning 39:27 of this game rolling up 536 total yards on offense (232 rushing, 304 passing). 

The defense was led by LBs Troy Evans (5 tackles, sack) and Marvin Mitchell (5 tackles).  The Raiders finished up with only 289 total yards on offense (52 rushing, 237 passing) as they were dominated in all three phases of this game by the Saints.

The Saints simply dominated this football game from the opening kick until the final whistle.  Drew Brees started this game and he was 9 of 14 for 87 yards with 1 TD pass.  Mark Brunell followed Brees and he was razor sharp completing 5 of 6 passes for 96 yards.  Joey Harrington finished up this game by completing 8 of 15 passes for 69 yards.  RB Mike Bell was outstanding in this game as he rushed for 100 yards on only 10 carries (10.0 ypc).  One of Bell’s carries went for a 46-yard TD run.  Undrafted rookie RB P.J. Hill pitched in with 8 carries for 26 yards (3.3 ypc) with a TD.  WRs Adrian Arrington (3 rec, 77 yards) and Marques Colston (6 rec, 66 yards) led the way in the passing game for the Saints in this game.  The Saints finished up with 420 total yards on offense (173 rushing, 247 passing) in this game.

CBs Tracy Porter (7 tackles) and Randall Gay (5 tackles, interception) led the way for the Saints on defense in this game.  The Texans finished up with 325 yards of total offense in this game (70 rushing, 255 passing) but a lot of the passing yards came in garbage time.  The special teams also made a mark in this game for the Saints as WR Rod Harper returned a punt 79 yards for a TD.

The Saints looked good throwing the football in this game but the running game appears to need some work.  Drew Brees was solid as usual completing 6 of 9 passes for 88 yards with a TD pass.  Old timer Mark Brunell was even better than Brees completing 9 of 13 passes for 128 yards with 1 TD pass.  Joey Harrington finished up the game completing 1 of 3 passes for 14 yards.  Lynell Hamilton led the Saints in rushing in this game with 48 yards on 15 carries (3.2 ypc).  WR Robert Meachem (3 rec, 77 yards) and TE Jeremy Shockey (3 rec, 61 yards) each caught a TD pass.  The Saints finished up with 316 total yards on offense but they only averaged 2.9 yards per carry in the running game.

The Saints’ defense was in bend but don’t break mode as they allowed 379 total yards to the Bengals but only 7 points.  Linebacker Jo-Lonn Dunbar led the way for the Saints in this game with 8 tackles.  Safety Pierson Prioleau pitched in with six tackles.  The bottom line in this game is that the Saints won the game.

The Saints played a great game on defense last Thursday Night against the Dolphins.  Linebacker Jason Craft led the way for the Saints with 10 tackles against the Dolphins.  Fellow linebackers Marvin Mitchell (9 tackles, sack) and Jo-Lonn Dunbar (9 tackles) also had solid games against the Fins.  The Dolphins finished up this game with 102 yards rushing on 36 carries (2.8 ypc) and they also completed 20 of 26 passes for 167 yards.  The Saints held the Dolphins to 269 yards of offense despite the fact that the Fins had possession of the football for 35:10.

Mark Brunell was o.k. in this game as he completed 6 of 9 passes for 31 yards with a 2-yard TD pass to WR Lance Moore.  Tyler Palko finished up this game and he was pathetic completing only 4 of 14 passes for 36 yards and he lost a fumble.  Deuce McAllister was the leading rusher for the Saints in this game with 30 yards on 11 carries (2.7 ypc).  Lynell Hamilton pitched in with 27 yards rushing on 11 carries (2.5 ypc).  The Saints finished up this game with 74 yards rushing on 26 carries (2.8 ypc) and they also completed 10 of 23 passes for 25 yards.   The Saints finished the preseason with a 2-2 record but they looked good for the most part.

The Saints really played a good game last Saturday against the Bengals but they should have won by more points…but hey, that’s nitpicking.  Drew Brees was very sharp again as he completed 14 of 22 passes for 199 yards with 1 TD pass.  Mark Brunell followed him with a very brief appearance completing 2 of 4 passes for 19 yards.  Tyler Palko finished up the game completing 11 of 16 passes for 113 yards with 1 interception.  Pierre Thomas was very busy in this game for the Saints as he carried the ball 5 times for 46 yards (9.2 ypc) and he also caught 4 passes for 35 yards (8.8 avg).  All was not good with Thomas as he did lose a fumble in this game.  Lynell Hamilton also had a decent game with 33 yards rushing on 8 carries (4.1 ypc) and he also caught 2 passes for 19 yards (9.5 avg).  Aaron Stecker pitched in with 29 yards rushing on 6 carries (4.8 ypc).  Lance Moore led the Saints in receiving yards with 79 on 4 grabs (19.8 avg).  Robert Meachem also had a solid game with 4 receptions for 71 yards (17.8 avg).  He also carried the ball 1 time for 13 yards.  The Saints finished up with 145 yards rushing on 29 carries (5.0 ypc) in this game and they also completed 27 of 42 passes for 313 yards.

The Saints’ defense was dominating in this game against the Bengals as they really beat them up….breaking Carson Palmer’s nose.  Safety Kevin Kaesviharn led the way for the Saints with 4 tackles and 1.5 sacks in this game.  DE Bobby McCray was also very effective with 3 tackles and 1.5 sacks.  The Bengals finished up with only 38 yards rushing on 17 carries (2.2 ypc) and they also completed 21 of 32 passes for 127 yards.

The Saints’ offense was clicking on all cylinders in the game against the Texans but the defense let them down.  The Saints rolled up 331 yards on offense despite only having possession of the ball for 24:36!  Drew Brees was outstanding again completing 12 of 17 passes for 147 yards with 2 TD passes (Colston and Bush).  Mark Brunell was also very effective again for the Saints as he completed 5 of 8 passes for 84 yards including a 1-yard TD pass to fullback Kevin Dudley.  Tyler Palko finished up the game completing 2 of 5 passes for 16 yards.  Aaron Stecker led the Saints in rushing on Saturday Night with 29 yards rushing on 6 carries (4.8 ypc).  Reggie Bush also was busy with 7 carries for 24 yards (3.4 ypc) and he also caught 1 pass for 12 yards from Drew Brees and it was good for a TD.  Deuce McAllister pitched in with 16 yards rushing on 4 carries (4.0 ypc) in this game.  WR Lance Moore led the Saints in receiving in this game with 65 yards receiving on 3 grabs (21.7 avg).  Marques Colston was also busy with 4 catches for 22 yards (5.5 avg) with a 5-yard TD reception from Drew Brees.  The Saints finished up with 87 yards rushing in this game on 19 carries (4.6 ypc).  They also completed 19 of 30 passes for 244 yards.

DT Orien Harris and CB Tracy Porter led the Saints’ defense with 5 tackles apiece.  The Texans finished up with 116 yards rushing on 36 carries (3.2 ypc) in this game.  They also completed an amazing 21 of 25 passes for 289 yards.  The Saints hope the defense turns in a better effort next week.

The Saints really looked pretty sharp last night on both sides of the football.  Drew Brees was very sharp in limited action completing 6 of 7 passes for 40 yards with 1 TD pass (a 7-yarder to David Patten) and 0 interceptions.  Mark Brunell followed Brees in the game and he was also razor sharp completing 10 of 12 passes for 119 yards.  Tyler Palko finished up the game strong for the Saints completing 6 of 11 passes for 144 yards with a TD pass and 0 interceptions.  Aaron Stecker led the Saints in rushing with 39 yards on 7 carries (5.6 ypc) with a TD run.  Reggie Bush was also active with 7 carries for 22 yards (3.1 ypc) in Arizona.  2nd year WR Robert Meachem did not catch a pass last season but he was awesome last night as he caught 4 passes for 129 yards (32.3 avg) with a 60-yard TD reception from Tyler Palko where he did most of the work.  David Patten pitched in with 4 catches for 18 yards (4.5 ypc) with 1 TD grab.  The Saints finished up with 98 yards rushing on 35 carries (2.8 ypc) last night.  They also completed 22 of 30 passes for 285 yards last night.  The offense looked like a well oiled machine last night as they held onto the football for 34:11 which really helped keep the defense fresh.

The Saints defense looked pretty strong last night in Arizona.  CB Usama Young led the Saints last night with 6 tackles as he tries to get himself back in the good graces of Sean Payton.  DT Orien Harris also caught some eyes with 5 tackles and a sack.  The Cardinals finished with 63 yards rushing on 15 carries (4.2 ypc) last night.  The Cardinals also completed 21 of 32 passes for 165 yards.  This was a solid effort on both sides of the field for the Saints last night.

The Saints played a great game of defense and they had just enough offense to win last night.  Jamie Martin started the game last night and he completed 11 of 15 passes for 136 yards.  Rookie QB Tyler Palko completed 6 of 11 passes for 27 yards and he tossed an interception.  Undrafted rookie Pierre Thomas carried the football 16 times for 81 yards (5.1 ypc) and he also caught 2 passes for 47 yards (23.5 avg).  Rookie Antonio Pittman also worked hard carrying the football 21 times for 77 yards (3.7 ypc).  The Saints finished up with 167 yards rushing as a team on 44 carries (3.8 ypc) and they also completed 17 of 26 passes for 159 yards.

The defense was outstanding as they held the Dolphins to 62 yards rushing on 24 carries (2.6 ypc) and they only completed 11 of 22 passes for 59 yards.

http://scores.espn.go.com/nfl/boxscore?gameId=270830018