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| ARI at CIN | CAR at GB | CHI at SEA | CLE at BAL | KC at IND | MIA at PHI | NE at BUF | NO at HOU |
| NYG at DET | OAK at MIN | PIT at NYJ | SD at JAX | STL at SF | TB at ATL | TEN at DEN | WAS at DAL |
Week 11 Game Recap: New Orleans Saints 10, Houston Texans 23
What you need to know
| New Orleans Saints |
The Saints were unable to overcome missed scoring opportunities and a strong defensive effort by the Texans, and lost the game as a result. Two of their turnovers prevented them from scoring, as Reggie Bush lost a fumble inches from the end zone and Eric Johnson dropped a pass just outside the red zone that would have been for a first down with the resulting ricochet being intercepted. Although the Saints attempted to run Bush between the tackles on almost every running play they ran, they were unsuccessful in generating much in the way of positive yards. Bush ran hard and took on defenders head-on rather than try to evade them, but he was stopped at or just behind the line of scrimmage just about every time he ran the ball. Conversely, he looked to use his elusiveness and speed more on plays where he was thrown the ball on the outside. Bush averaged just two yards per carry and did not come close to gaining significant yards on running plays.
New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees was victimized by several dropped passes, including two by tight end Eric Johnson that were intercepted after the ball ricocheted off his hands. Brees seemed to be more comfortable in the first half distributing the ball to nine different receivers and moving his team down the field, although the turnovers prevented them from having more points at halftime. In addition to turnovers contributing to missed scoring opportunities, Marques Colston was tackled as he was attempting to make a catch in the end zone on a deep pass play, and was unable to hang on to the potential touchdown as a result. In the second half Brees locked on to Colston and Bush, targeting them a combined 19 times out of 25 passes in that half. He used them primarily on short and intermediate routes, and did not attempt any deep passes to anyone in the second half, in large part due to a strong pass rush from Houston. The lack of a running game also hindered some of Brees' ability to make plays off of play action, thus reducing his effectiveness.
New Orleans only attempted six plays in the red zone, and ran the ball three times, including an end around by wide receiver Lance Moore that did not gain any yardage. The other two running plays were handled by Bush. Brees' red zone passes were to three different receivers, including Bush and Devery Henderson, who caught a short pass for a touchdown. When in the red zone they were fairly efficient, scoring the touchdown and getting to the one foot line where Bush was ruled as having fumbled the ball, although there was some controversy as to whether he actually did.
| Houston Texans |
The Texans were very efficient on offense. They began the game aggressively with Matt Schaub connecting deep with Andre Johnson for a touchdown. Schaub continued passing the ball very efficiently in the first half, throwing to seven different receivers on a variety of routes, which kept New Orleans' offense off balance. Schaub led his team to a seven point lead in the first half mostly on the strength of his accurate passing, and then relied more on his running game to help preserve the lead.
Ron Dayne ran hard and with power throughout the game, and eventually wore the Saints' defenders down late in the game, as he broke several tackles in the fourth quarter. As a result of his determined powerful running, Dayne was able to help control the clock and help his team secure the win. Most of his yards came in the second half.
Houston's passing game was very efficient. Schaub returned to the lineup and appeared very much at ease running the offense. He was in sync with Andre Johnson, who was returning from injury, on short, intermediate and deep passes, but did not try to force feed him the ball. Schaub did an excellent job of identifying which receiver was his best option and usually connected with that receiver. In addition to being in sync with Johnson, Schaub had a similar rapport with tight end Owen Daniels. He and Daniels connected on several timing routes that were intermediate in distance during the first half. Schaub could have posted even better numbers if not for five accurate passes being deflected at the last minute by Saints defenders.
The Texans had three possessions in the red zone, and came away with one touchdown and two field goals. One of those possessions came with 12 seconds remaining in the first half, and they elected to kick a field goal instead of running a play first. On the other two possessions, Houston ran five plays, with three being rushing attempts by Dayne -- both in goal to go situations -- and the other two pass attempts. Schaub connected with backup tight end Joel Dreessen for a touchdown and was forced to scramble out of the pocket and try to gain positive yardage on the other red zone pass attempt. No other passes were attempted in the end zone from any part of the field.
What you ought to know
| QB Drew Brees, Pass: 33 - 49 - 290 - 1 TD / 2 INT, Rush: 1 - 6 - 0 |
Brees was fairly sharp in the first half and seemed determined to not let the inadvertent interception prevent him from leading his team to scores, but was ultimately undone by more turnovers and an inability to generate many big plays during the second half. He was able to move the ball well in the first half, involving a variety of receivers and making good decisions as to who to throw to. However the Saints were unable to generate an effective running game, which made it more difficult for Brees in the second half. As a result he utilized short passes almost exclusively in the second half, hoping his receivers would break free for significant yards after the reception, but was unsuccessful. Brees threw the vast majority of his passes in the second half to Marques Colston and Reggie Bush.
| RB Reggie Bush, Rush: 15 - 34 - 0, Rec: 12 - 70 - 0 (15 targets) |
Bush played with great determination, taking on defenders routinely instead of trying to run around them when he carried the ball. When he caught the ball in the passing game, he showed more of an inclination to attempt to use his speed, with moderate success, as he was funneled back inside to additional defenders when he attempted to break free on the outside. Although he gave a strong and determined effort on every play, he did not come close to breaking free for any major gains in either the running or passing game.
| RB Aaron Stecker, Rec: 2 - 9 - 0 (3 targets) |
Stecker was used as the relief running back, and made a minimal contribution.
| RB Mike Karney, Rush: 1 - 1 - 0, Rec: 1 - 11 - 0 (1 targets) |
Karney's contributions were mostly as a fullback.
| RB Pierre Thomas, Rush: 1 - 6 - 0 |
Thomas was used mostly as a kickoff returner.
| WR Marques Colston, Rec: 9 - 118 - 0 (16 targets) |
Colston took advantage of being targeted frequently to post very good numbers, although he did not get into the end zone. He was utilized mostly on intermediate routes and proved adept at picking up yards after securing the pass, making defenders miss and taking them on as he was being tackled in an effort to pick up an extra yard or two. Colston used his size effectively to keep defenders away from him, which combined with his good route running and Brees' affinity for targeting him, contributed to his solid numbers, which could have been even bigger had it not been for plays where he was tackled in the end zone as the ball arrived, causing him to drop the ball, and being called for offensive pass interference on a play where he had gained enough yardage for a first down.
| WR David Patten, Rec: 2 - 29 - 0 (3 targets) |
Patten showed good hands as well as an ability to run in traffic. However the ball he did not catch came on a crucial fourth down play late in the game when his defender hit him as the ball arrived.
| WR Terrance Copper, Rec: 1 - 5 - 0 (1 targets) |
Copper did not contribute much in this game.
| WR Devery Henderson, Rec: 1 - 6 - 1 (1 targets) |
Henderson was not involved much in the game. He made the most of his only target, catching the pass for a touchdown.
| WR Lance Moore, Rush: 1 - 0 - 0 (1 targets) |
Moore dropped the only ball thrown to him, and his only other involvement came on an end around play that did not gain any yards.
| TE Billy Miller, Rec: 3 - 25 - 0 (3 targets) |
Miller displayed sure hands while being used on shorter routes.
| TE Eric Johnson, Rec: 2 - 17 - 0 (4 targets) |
Johnson had a game he would like to forget. The two targets he did not catch ricocheted off his hands and were intercepted. Although one of the passes was a little behind him, it was a catchable pass. He was not targeted after the second interception.
| PK Olindo Mare 1 - 1 FG, 1 - 1 XP, 4 points |
Mare made his only point after attempt and his lone field goal attempt, which was from 52 yards.
| NO Rush Defense |
New Orleans' run defense wore down over the course of the game. They were able to prevent Ron Dayne from gaining many yards past the line of scrimmage for most of his rushing attempts in the first three quarters. However they were unable to wrap him up late in the game when the Texans were trying to eat up the clock, and as a result their defensive backs became involved in tackling Dayne.
| NO Pass Defense |
The Saints' pass defense was unable to generate much pressure on Schaub, and as a result gave up significant passing yards and two passing touchdowns. Their defensive line missed Charles Grant, who did not play due to injury, and their defensive backs were unable to keep Houston's receivers from getting open. This resulted in the Texans' receivers gaining a significant amount of yards, mostly in the first half.
| QB Matt Schaub, Pass: 21 - 33 - 293 - 2 TD / 0 INT, Rush: 2 - 7 - 0 |
Schaub played with excellent poise, and looked very comfortable executing the Texan's offense. He did not appear rusty after missing games due to injury. Fifteen of his 33 passes were of the intermediate or longer variety, as he looked to gain as many yards as he could when he threw the ball. Schaub made most of his plays in the pocket, and did not appear very comfortable throwing on the rare occasions he was flushed from the pocket. The focus on the running game to preserve their lead kept his passing numbers from being even greater.
| RB Ron Dayne, Rush: 21 - 89 - 0, Rec: 3 - 26 - 0 (4 targets) |
Dayne ran hard and with power on most of his carries, which benefited him late in the game as he was able to break several tackles and help his team salt the game away by using up the game clock. He came up short on a fourth down play where he needed less than a yard and was stopped before he could gain the first down, but apart from that, was very effective both running the ball and catching screen passes and gaining yardage.
| RB Joe Echemandu, Rush: 1 - 2 - 0 |
Echemandu lost a fumble on his only carry of the game.
| RB Vonta Leach, Rec: 1 - 2 - 0 (2 targets) |
Leach's involvement in the game was mostly as a blocking fullback.
| WR Andre Johnson, Rec: 6 - 120 - 1 (7 targets) |
Johnson returned triumphantly after missing the previous seven games to injury by scoring on a 73 yard pass play early. He was used mostly on shorter and intermediate routes afterwards, and used his size and strength to enhance his good route running and gain yards after the catch. Johnson played very well and made the most of the passes thrown his way, with the only target he did not catch being the result of a good play by a Saints defender.
| WR Kevin Walter, Rush: 1 - 5 - 0, Rec: 3 - 31 - 0 (6 targets) |
Walter returned to his role of possession receiver, and was used mostly on short routes. He also lined up as the only tailback on a third-down play and carried the ball for a first down.
| WR Andre Davis, Rec: 2 - 30 - 0 (5 targets) |
Davis was targeted deep on two of his five targets. He managed to get open but did not appear to see the ball and did not make an attempt to catch it although he was open, and had his other deep passing opportunity deflected by a defender.
| WR Jacoby Jones (1 targets) |
Jones was not involved much in the game.
| TE Owen Daniels, Rec: 5 - 74 - 0 (5 targets) |
Daniels overcame fumbling the ball on his first catch and posted very good numbers. He had a good rapport with Schaub, and was able to get open on several intermediate routes, then showed very good running after the catch abilities. He was not targeted in the second half.
| TE Joel Dreessen, Rec: 1 - 10 - 1 (1 targets) |
Dreessen's lone reception was a good catch in the end zone for a touchdown.
| PK Kris Brown 3 - 3 FG, 2 - 2 XP, 11 points |
Brown connected on both of his point after attempts, and made all three of his field goal attempts, which were from 36, 53 and 23 yards.
| HOU Rush Defense |
The Texans' rush defense was outstanding. Their defensive line did not allow themselves to be pushed off the line of scrimmage, and as a result they were able to stop the Saints from mounting any semblance of an effective running game. They kept Bush from getting past their first line of defenders and caused New Orleans to abandon the run for most of the second half even though they were not very far behind on points.
| HOU Pass Defense |
Houston's pass defense benefited from their run defense playing so well, as they were able to focus on stopping the pass. Although they gave up some yards to Drew Brees, they were able to apply significant pressure constantly in the second half and forced him to only attempt short passes. Houston was able to capitalize on dropped passes by intercepting two of them, and although they only recorded one sack, was constantly in the Saints' backfield.
