METAIRIE (AP) — After going winless in
September, the New Orleans Saints have clawed back to within one victory
of a .500
record, and what looked like a lost season without suspended coach
Sean Payton has turned into something with more promise.
If the Saints win at struggling Oakland on Sunday, they will be 5-5 and one game out of the final wild card spot in the NFC.
A huge 31-27 win against previously unbeaten Atlanta has left them in position to at least make a run at the playoffs.
"It was such a hole, and now that we're
starting to dig our way out of it, we're starting to see some light,"
Saints cornerback
Jabari Greer said. "When we were 0-4, it was doomsday. Nobody
believed that we had what it took to be a good team. Everybody
had written us off."
Greer's performance against the Falcons
symbolized the arc of the season for the Saints. Burned earlier for two
big gains
by Atlanta's receivers, he dove in the end zone to break up a
fourth-and-goal pass to Roddy White in the final two minutes.
Beaten in a variety of ways through their
first four games, the Saints have won four of their last five by making
plays confident
teams make in critical situations.
"This win that we had yesterday was a direct
result of how hard this team has worked from Day 1, when I wasn't
here," said
interim coach Joe Vitt, who improved to 2-1 since coming off his
own six-game bounty-related suspension. "This team has weathered
the storm, stuck together and not pointed fingers, and they are
trying to get better every day."
Running and stopping the run have been the largest improvements.
The Saints still are on pace to give up more
yards than any team in NFL history, but they limited Michael Turner to
15 yards
on 13 carries while shutting down the Falcons' running game. Their
first eight opponents had rushed for more than 100 yards.
Atlanta finished with 46.
"The fits were right, and the resolve was there," defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo said. "Our guys swarmed. They had
an eagerness about them. I'd like to see that more often. It was a real good display of run defense there, which is great
to see."
They still rank in the bottom five of the
league in rushing, but they ran for 148 yards against Atlanta,
complementing Drew
Brees and the prolific passing attack. Chris Ivory gained 10 more
yards on his 56-yard touchdown jaunt in the first quarter
than the Falcons had for the day.
After not playing in the first seven games,
Ivory has 120 yards on 17 carries (7.1 average) in the last two. His
long score
against Atlanta came on his first attempt, and he ran 22 yards for
a score on his second carry against Philadelphia on Nov.
5.
Those big plays appeared to energize the offensive line and fellow running back Mark Ingram, who has gained more than five
yards a pop on 23 carries the past two weeks after averaging less than three yards before then.
"We're playing more together," left tackle
Jermon Bushrod said. "We're just fighting to play more consistent up
front. At
the end of the day, the first few weeks, we weren't getting the
job done. We had too many breakdowns. If we continue to get
this running game going, we can open up our playbook a little bit
more."
Atlanta's defense had no answer for the balanced offense. After Brees threw an interception on his first pass, New Orleans
scored touchdowns on four of its next six possessions. The Falcons gave up 30 or more points for the first time this year
as the Saints looked nothing like the team that lost at home to Washington and Kansas City in September.
"It's not a good feeling when you come into
the locker room week-in and week-out and you don't win a game and you
can't be
joyful with your teammates the way you know how to be," Bushrod
said. "When we got that first win it was like, 'We have got
to get back here because it feels too good to win.' All that hard
work you put in, you just want to see your team be successful."
With their poor start, the Saints could have given up on the season. They had the built-in excuse of Payton's unprecedented,
yearlong absence because of his bounty-related suspension.
Instead, they have guaranteed themselves meaningful games in November, possibly December and maybe even longer.
"We know we're a good team," Greer said. "We know we have talent and good leadership. We are starting to develop our identity.
We are looking forward to the opportunity we have."
Notes: Saints players have said the Falcons
taunted linebacker Curtis Lofton during pre-game warm-ups Sunday, and
Greer said
he was not surprised. Lofton, the Saints' leading tackler, played
his first four years in Atlanta before signing with New
Orleans as a free agent in the offseason. Said Greer: "This is a
hot-tempered game. We realize they weren't going to give
him flowers and buttercups.". Vitt refused to specify the leg
injury rookie cornerback Corey White had against the Falcons.
League policy allows the Saints to wait until Wednesday to provide
injury updates. White was hurt two series after making
his first career interception.