What a difference a month can make for a football team. In the case of the New Orleans Saints case, it has made a lot of difference. Saints quarterback Drew Brees threw for 445 yards and 3 touchdowns and cornerback Mike McKenzie intercepted a pass and returned it 75 yards for a score as the Saints won their 4th straight contest, 41-24 over the Jacksonville Jaguars.
The Saints appeared to be running on all cylinders this Sunday; Brees was 35-for-49, and running back Reggie Bush did pretty well for himself, gaining 115 total yards. This would be the 3rd time in 4 games that Bush has eclipsed the 100-yard mark. After New Orleans placekicker Olindo Mare made a 46-yard field goal – he missed 2 other chances, the Saints caught Jacksonville off-guard, as they recovered an onside kick. Bush would score on a 1-yard run for a Saints 10-0 lead before 7 minutes had elapsed.
Jacksonville QB Quinn Gray’s long pass play to WR Reggie Williams made the score 10-7 New Orleans, but more New Orleans’ defensive errors allowed the Jaguars to tie the game; the Saints’ McKenzie first dropped an possible interception, then was flagged for a 15-yard facemask penalty which set up Jaguars kicker John Carney’s 30-yard FG. But the interception for a score by McKenzie turned the tide for the Saints, giving the Saints what would be an unsurmountable 31-17 lead.
The aforementioned Brees led the Saints with 445 yards in the air along with 3 TD’s, with Bush adding 72 rushing yards (including 43 yards in receptions) with WR Marques Colston adding 159 yards in receiving yards and WR David Patten adding 81 receiving yards and a TD. Jacksonville was led by Gray who had a career best 354 yards with 2 TD’s and 3 INT’s; WR Reggie Williams led all Jaguars receivers with 6 catches for 128 yards and a TD. The resurgent Saints (4-4) next host the St. Louis Rams on Sunday, while the Jaguars (5-3) travel north to face the Tennessee Titans in an important AFC South divisional matchup next Sunday.