Superbowl XLIV, New Orleans Saints 31, Indianapolis Colts 17

In a game far more exciting than the final score would indicate, the New Orleans Saints defeated the mighty Indianapolis Colts 31-17 to claim Superbowl XLIV.

The underdog Saints looked the part in the first quarter as the Colts marched up and down the field to take a 10-0 lead. However, Saints QB Drew Brees found his rhythm in the second quarter and incredibly ended up completing 29 of his next 32 throws (he finished 32 of 39 for the game). The Saints held the ball for all but 6 plays in the second quarter and scored 2 field goals to make the halftime score 10-6.

Coming out of the half, Saints’ coach Sean Payton made possibly the gutsiest call in Superbowl history as he went for the onsides kick. After careening off Hank Baskett, the ball nestled into the hands of a Saints player and Brees led them to a touchdown (on a weaving catch and run by Pierre Thomas) and a 13-10 lead. The Colts responded with a 76 yard touchdown drive of their own to retake the lead 17-13. Brees led another drive and the Saints kicked a field goal to draw within 17-16 at the end of the third quarter.

Manning led a drive that ended in a missed 51-yard field goal and the Saints responded with a short 59 yard drive for the go ahead TD (on a pass to former Miami Hurricane Jeremy Shockey) followed by a two-pointer conversion to lead 24-17. And this is where it got interesting. With 5:42 left in the game, Manning had the ball and a chance to tie. He negotiated the ball down to the New Orleans 31 and it looked like the first overtime in Superbowl history was imminent. For Manning and Colts, it was not to be as his next pass was intercepted by Tracy Porter of the Saints and returned 74 yards for the insurance TD that put Superbowl XLIV in the history books.
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After this win and his spectacular performance, Superbowl MVP Drew Brees must now be mentioned with the “elite” quarterbacks in the NFL. As for Manning, how does this devastating loss affect his legacy? He is certainly one of the great quarterbacks to ever play the game, but he has only a single title to show for it (of course, Dan Marino and Dan Fouts have zero). To some extent he should probably be considered a modern day parallel to John Elway. Elway led what were clearly subpar teams to the Superbowl largely on the basis of his tremendous talent alone. The Broncos of the 80’s had an slightly above average defense, but no running game or spectacular receivers. The latter Colts fall into this category (especially as Reggie Wayne’s skills diminish). What would the Colts’ record be if Manning were not under center? Would they have even made the playoffs, let alone appeared in the Superbowl? Are players like Wayne, Pierre Garcon, Dallas Clark, and Austin Collie great players or does Manning make them look great? Look how easily they plugged Garcon and Collie in this year and how productive they were. The Colts finished last in the NFL in rushing. As always, given two weeks to prepare, an NFL coaching staff will find a way to take a one dimensional team and neutralize that dimension (see Marino, Dan, Superbowl XIX and Brady, Tom, Superbowl XLI). After getting a taste of the Colts’ offense in the first quarter, the Saints’ defense allowed only 7 more points the rest of the way.

So the New Orleans Saints are the NFL champions for 2009. Hopefully, they will have recovered from what is sure to be an epic celebration in time for the start of the 2010 season.

Click on the image for a larger version. Pencil on Strathmore sketch paper.