Written by Mark Maske at Washington Post.com
It was easy to dismiss the New Orleans Saints two games into this 2017 NFL season. They had a record of 0-2, and their defense looked atrocious. It was not at all difficult to envision a fourth straight 7-9 season — or worse — ending with questions about whether the magic had run out for quarterback Drew Brees and Coach Sean Payton, and if the time to move on and start over had arrived.
That time indeed will come at some point. But it does not appear that it will arrive this season or immediately afterward. That can be credited in large part to a greatly improved defense and running game that could help Payton and Brees get back to the Super Bowl.
It was that running game and that defense that were the focal points here Sunday as the Saints gave a dominant performance in beating the Buffalo Bills, 47-10.
“When you look at our productivity in the running game, certainly the way the defense is playing and just how complementary we’ve been, I think a lot of things came together today,” Brees said. “We executed very well today. … All in all, I’d say it was a pretty good day.”
It was a lifetime ago, in NFL terms, that Brees and Payton led the Saints to a Super Bowl triumph after the 2009 season and earned a lifetime of adulation for their roles in the post-Hurricane Katrina restoration of pride and hope in New Orleans. The Saints have not experienced as much prosperity since then. Payton was suspended for the 2012 season for his role in the Bountygate scandal. He returned to lead the Saints to an 11-victory season in 2013, but that was followed by three straight seven-win disappointments in 2014, ’15 and ’16.
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