Not to worry. Saints quarterback Drew Brees, who had set a season record for passing yards, was not about to let anything bad happen this time. And neither were the rest of the Saints as they overwhelmed the Lions in the fourth quarter en route to a 45-28 victory that produced a playoff record-tying combined total of 1,038 yards.
The Saints will now travel to San Francisco for Saturday’s NFC divisional showdown with the 49ers.
“If you were watching the game, it was a tale of two halves,’’ said Saints coach Sean Payton. “That’s a really good win for us, especially in the second half.’’
Brees was 33 of 43 for a postseason career-high 466 yards and three touchdowns. And he got plenty of help from his running game, which produced 167 yards. Pierre Thomas had 66 yards on eight carries and Darren Sproles had 51 yards and two touchdowns.
The anticipation for this game was heightened by the fact that Brees and the Lions’ Matthew Stafford combined for more than 10,000 passing yards this season.
Stafford was nearly as impressive as Brees last night, going 28 of 43 for 380 yards and three touchdowns, but he had two interceptions.
Stafford and the Lions wasted little time in establishing their presence, moving 80 yards in eight plays on the opening drive and capping it with a 10-yard TD pass to tight end Will Heller for a 7-0 lead. The drive quieted the crowd.
On the ensuing drive, the Saints started from the 19-yard line and Brees did his job quickly, taking the Saints to the Lions’ 31 in five plays. But on a routine slant pass to Marques Colston, the wide receiver fumbled and the Lions recovered at their 18.
It took the Saints almost a full quarter to get on the scoreboard and they did it mostly on the ground. A 31-yard run by Thomas was the key to an 89-yard scoring drive.
Sproles, the dangerous running back and returner, capped the march with a 2-yard sprint around the right side to tie the game at 7-7 at 14:01 of the second period.
The score seemed to awaken the party/playoff atmosphere in the Superdome.
