By A.j. Reed
Western Herald
In what felt like a home field environment, the New Orleans Saints pulled off the upset, winning Super Bowl XLIV.
The Saints, hoping to get off to a quick start, ended up going three and out and were forced to punt on their first drive.
The Colts, however, were able to capitalize on their opening drive with Payton Manning going 6-for-8 and Matt Stover hitting a 38-yard field goal, giving the Colts an early three point lead.
Whereas the first drive for the Colts focused around Payton Manning, the second involved the sure feet of Joseph Addai to march down the field. The drive was capped off with a 19-yard TD pass to Pierre Garcon in the back of end zone. This drive tied the record for the longest drive in Super Bowl history.
The first quarter ended with the Colts winning 10-0.
On the Saints opening drive of the second quarter, after driving the ball down to the Colts 23-yard line, Dwight Freeney of the Colts, who many thought wouldn’t be able to play due to an ankle injury suffered in the AFC championship game against the New York Jets, sacked Drew Brees for a 7-yard loss, forcing a fourth down. Garrett Hartley was able to make the 46-yard field goal attempt, bringing the deficit back to seven.
After forcing the Colts to punt on their next drive, the Saints were able to drive all the way down to the Colts 1-yard line, only to be stopped on the fourth down touchdown attempt.
The Colts were forced to three and out, allowing the Saints to get the ball back and end the first half with a Garrett Hartley 44-yard field goal
The first half score ended 6-10 in favor of the Colts.
The Saints decided to stick with their “no risk, no reward” strategy by kicking and recovering an onside kick to start the second half. They then scored off a screen pass to Pierre Thomas making the score 13-10 Saints.
The Colts weren’t to be denied though and quickly responded with a 10 play, 76-yard drive that ended with a 6-yard TD run by Addai.
With 2:01 left in the third quarter, Hartley hit a 47 yard field goal making it his third 40 plus-yard field goal in the game (a Super Bowl record).
The third quarter ended with the score 17-16 Colts.
A missed 51-yard field goal by Matt Stover gave the Saints good field position to start their fourth quarter drive. They capitalized with a 2-yard Breez TD pass to Jeremy Shockey. The Saints made the two-point conversion, making the score 24-17 Saints.
To seal the game, Tracy Porter of the Saints made a 70-yard interception return for a TD giving them a 14-point lead with 2:30 left in the game. The Colts didn’t have enough time to recover, making the final score 31-17 Saints.
