RB Reggie Bush

Saints Stumped in TB, 31-14
Bucs jump on Saints for 28-0 lead in third quarter

posted September 16, 2007 - print me!
neworleansprofootball.com
by neworleanssaints.com

Under a blazing mid September sky, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were the ones with a hot-hand and defeated the New Orleans Saints, 31-14. The Saints, who opened on the road with two consecutive road games for the second consecutive season, never got on track and trailed throughout the NFC South tilt.

“It was obviously very disappointing to come in here and play like that,” said Saints Head Coach Sean Payton. “We’ve been inconsistent and we’ve had a lot of mistakes here and need to get this cleaned up right away. But I am disappointed.”

“We beat a very good football team,” Bucs Head Coach Jon Gruden countered. “It feels good to get this win.”

If there was any good news for the Saints on this day, it was that the Saints remain just a game behind the division leaders (Tampa and Carolina, both now with 1-1). The Saints and Atlanta Falcons, another team that started the season with two straight road games, both stand at 0-2 two weeks into the 16-week schedule.

"I'm not worried as much as I am disappointed," said LB Scott Fujita. "We need to get back to the proverbial drawing board and get this turned around."

Despite the fact the Saints scored two late touchdowns, via a Mike Karney one-yard run and a four-yard reception from Marques Colston, the Buccaneers’ 21-0 first half lead proved too much for the Saints to overcome.

The game started off with both the Saints and Bucs trading possessions, before the Saints began a drive at their own 44 yard line and seemingly in good position to take an early lead. However it was not meant to be, as Deuce McAllister, who had bulled his way for a six-yard gain and a first down, fumbled the ball and it was recovered by the Bucs at the Tampa 43.

The play originally was blown dead and the ball remained in possession of the Saints, however Bucs Head Coach Jon Gruden challenged the officials ruling, stating that McAllister fumbled the ball and the Bucs recovered. After an excessively long video replay, referee Gerald Austin overturned the ruling on the field and the Bucs took over at their own 43 with 10:01 left in the first quarter.

The Bucs wasted little time in taking the ball deep into Saints’ territory, as QB Jeff Garcia hit TE Alex Smith for a 33-yard gain on firsts down, taking the ball from the Bucs’ 43 to the Saints’ 24. Two plays later, Garcia dumped a pass off to Michael Pittman for an 11-yard gain and a first down at the Saints’ 12 yard line.

On a third-and-six from the Saints’ 8-yard line, Garcia scrambled for a 7-yard gain before being stopped.

“I thought that was the biggest play of the game,” said Gruden of the scramble.

Two plays later RB Cadillac Williams, playing with sore ribs, darted off of the left side for a 1-yard TD run.

Early in the second quarter and with the prospect of facing a third-and-eleven from their own 31 yard line, Garcia fired a pass over the middle for Galloway, who picked up a key block from WR Michael Clayton and dashed unmolested the remainder of the way for the score.

The Saints drove to the Tampa Bay 21 midway through the second quarter, picking up 14 yards on a third down pass from Drew Brees to Marques Colston, a 16-yard run by Deuce McAllister and a 10-yard run by Mike Karney. But the Saints were unable to convert the plays into a scoring drive, as Olindo Mare’s 39-yard field goal sailed left of the uprights.

Late in the first half, the Buccaneers capitalized on a 41-yard pass from Garcia to WR Ike Hilliard and on the next play, Garcia connected with Galloway for a 24-yard TD completion that put the Bucs ahead 21-0.

The Saints started the second half by halting the Bucs’ opening drive near midfield, in large part due to the run stuffing efforts of Charles Grant and Hollis Thomas, who stuffed Williams for a yard loss on a third-and-one, which forced the Bucs to punt.

The Saints began the drive at their own 10 yard line and drove to near midfield but were thwarted when newcomer Cato June, who earned a championship ring last season with the Colts, intercepted Drew Brees at the Bucs’ 46 on a pass intended for WR David Patten.

The Bucs then scored their second touchdown of the day and fourth of the game, on the ensuing possession as they used a 41-completion from Garcia to Galloway to set up Williams’ second touchdown run of the day on a one-yard dive with 4:26 left in the third quarter.

The Saints finally broke through with a big play of their own after Brees and Patten hooked up for a 58-yard completion down to the Tampa Bay 11 with just over three minutes left in the third quarter. Patten’s reception came on a third-and-long and Patten made a stretching reception and didn’t break stride until he was forced out of bounds at the 11.

Two short completions to Marques Colston took the Saints down to the Bucs’ 2 yard line, which brought up a third-and-one and Brees picked up a first down with a keeper behind Jeff Faine to the one. Two plays later, FB Mike Karney smashed over right guard for the Saints’ first offensive touchdown of the season.

New Orleans stopped the Bucs’ offense and forced the Pewter and Red to punt and the saints began at their own 22 and were only able to manage five yards on three plays, which brought up a fourth-and-five with 12:32 remaining in the game. Brees scrambled for a seven yard gain after the Bucs dropped a bevy of defenders deep into coverage.

The Saints once again faced a fourth down nearly a minute later, but Brees and Patten were unable to hook up on a timing route into the flat, giving the Bucs the ball at the Saints’ 34 with 11:41 remaining in the game. The Bucs turned the turnover on downs into a 27-yard field goal by Matt Bryant a few plays later, upping their lead to 31-7.

Marques Colston score on a four-yard reception with 2:50 left in the game and closed the scoring to 31-14. Colston was credited with a run because he caught the ball behind the line of scrimmage before scampering into the end zone. The Saints’ scoring drive covered 78 yards in 11 plays in 4:40.

"We have a long week of preparation to get ready for Tennessee," said Colston. "We need to get right back to work, correct the mistakes, particularly the turnovers, and get on the right track."

McAllister and Reggie Bush each ended with 10 carries on the day, with McAllister picking up 49 yards to Bush’s 27 yards. QB Drew Brees threw for 260 yards on 44 attempts with 26 completions, and Colston had 70 yards receiving on eight receptions, while Bush added 43 yards receiving.

For the Bucs, Jeff Garcia was highly efficient, passing for 243 yards on 10 completions and 16 attempts. Williams collected 61 yards on 24 carries, but it was the combination of Garcia and Galloway and that combined for 135 yards on four receptions and two scores.

Defensively, the Saints allowed 330 yards of total offense, while the Bucs surrendered 343 yards. The Saints finished the game with the advantage in time of possession, 33:08 to 26:52.

“We aren’t taking 0-2 lightly,” said T Jon Stinchcomb. “We still have lofty goals that we are determined to achieve but it is going to take hard work and we need to stick together and I am confident that we’ll do that.”

Home  Back