A sour celebration for Saints

Football Betting Lines

12/20/2006 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New Orleans Saints clinched their first division title in six years on Sunday, but the newly-crowned NFC South champions were hardly in a jubilant mood.

The Saints sewed up a playoff home game despite a 16-10 loss to the seemingly non-threatening Washington Redskins at the Superdome, because fellow NFC South members Atlanta and Carolina were also beaten over the weekend. And while New Orleans can take great pride in its unforeseen and dramatic turnaround from last year's miserable three-win campaign, the club's inability to reward their long-suffering fans by claiming the division on the field was indeed disappointing.

"We wanted to play well today at home," said head coach Sean Payton. "You also have to credit Washington, but we looked sluggish. I thought we had a good week of practice. I thought we would play well today."

Perhaps the Saints were due for a letdown one week after they throttled the Dallas Cowboys in front of a national audience. And considering all that New Orleans has accomplished this season, the team has probably earned a mulligan.

However, Sunday's game does bring about a few questions. Was the loss simply a product of overconfidence produced by last week's lopsided win over Dallas? Or could this defeat be a foreshadowing of things to come during the postseason?

Payton hopes it's the former, but there's at least the possibility of the latter. Washington may just have discovered the blueprint for success against the Saints. The winning formula involved relentlessly pounding away at the New Orleans defense with a power back (Ladell Betts) to control the clock and keep the Saints' high-octane offense on the sidelines. On the other side, the Redskins neutralized New Orleans' finesse attack with speed and by getting in the face of star quarterback Drew Brees.

The Saints, who came into the game with the NFL's top-ranked offense, finished with season-lows in total yards (270) and points against a Washington stop unit that played up to its talent level for one of the few times this year.

"It is not anything that we didn't expect," said running back Deuce McAllister of the Redskins' scheme. "They put more pressure on Drew than most teams. I know we had a couple of penalties early in the game that slowed us down, but we just didn't make enough plays."

If there's a silver lining in Sunday's disappointment, it should serve as a wakeup call to a team that had reason to beat its chest after last week's eye- opening performance. The Redskins proved that the Saints are vulnerable, just like the Dallas game showed how dangerous New Orleans can be when firing on all cylinders.

"I am proud of our guys and we played well, but their defense played better than our defense and that's the bottom line," remarked linebacker Scott Fujita. "We have to get our standards up and move on as fast as possible."

UNFAMILIAR TERRITORY

The Saints won a division title for only the third time in their mostly- inglorious history, and will be making their sixth-ever postseason appearance. New Orleans also captured NFC West crowns in 1991 and 2000, the last time the club reached the playoffs. The Saints were Wild Card participants in 1987, 1990 and 1992.

New Orleans joined the newly-created NFC South when the NFL realigned its divisions in 2002.

NO BYE-BYE TO BYE

Chicago's overtime victory over Tampa Bay assured the Bears home field advantage throughout the upcoming NFC playoffs, but New Orleans remains in good position to claim the No. 2 seed and a first-round bye. The Saints and Dallas currently share the second-best record in the conference at 9-5, with New Orleans holding the upper hand over the Cowboys in a tiebreaker scenario. Sunday's loss was also only the second for the Saints against an NFC team, which will certainly help them out if seeding ends up being determined by conference records.

BUSH IN THE RECORD BOOKS

Although he only mustered 19 yards on his five catches on Sunday, Reggie Bush established a new NFL rookie record for receptions in a single season. The 2005 Heisman winner now has 84 grabs this year, one more than the previous mark set by San Francisco's Earl Cooper in 1980.

Bush set the record by hauling in an otherwise insignificant swing pass from Brees that resulted in a one-yard loss with under a minute to play.

The playmaking running back needs 11 catches over the final two regular-season contests to eclipse Joe Horn's franchise record of 94 receptions. Horn first set the mark in 2000 and matched it in 2004.

INJURY REPORT

Horn was inactive for the second consecutive week because of a groin strain, a nagging injury that has forced the veteran wide receiver to miss four of New Orleans' last seven games.

The Saints did have a familiar face in the starting lineup at strong safety, as 34-year-old Jay Bellamy replaced the injured Omar Stoutmire. Bellamy had started 67 consecutive games in New Orleans' defensive backfield before suffering a season-ending shoulder injury three games into the 2005 campaign. The 13-year pro was released just prior to this year's season opener, then re- signed in mid-October when rookie Roman Harper was placed on injured reserve.

Stoutmire and regular tight end Mark Campbell each sprained knees during the Dallas game and did not dress. Campbell was replaced by ex-Texan Billy Miller, who caught three passes for 26 yards on Sunday.

BACK TO THE SCENE OF THE CRIME

The Saints hit the road this Sunday to take on a desperate New York Giants team that has jeopardized its playoff chances by losing five of its last six games, the most recent being a 36-22 setback at home to rival Philadelphia.

The teams will be facing one another for the first time since the infamous "home game" for New Orleans that took place at the Meadowlands during Week 2 of last season. Because the Saints had been displaced just weeks before by Hurricane Katrina, the contest, originally scheduled to be played at the Superdome, was forced to be moved.

New Orleans certainly didn't feel at home that night, as the Saints committed six turnovers in a 27-10 loss to New York.

The Saints have lost four straight to the Giants at the Meadowlands, although they did earn a 21-19 victory over the Jets in Giants Stadium during Week 12 of last season.