The Sports Xchange

NEW ORLEANS — When the New Orleans Saints traded All-Pro tight end Jimmy Graham to Seattle in the offseason, no one really knew who might emerge as quarterback Drew Brees’ go-to target, especially in the red zone.

On Thursday night, at least, Brees finally discovered who his go-to guy was — 12-year NFL veteran Benjamin Watson, a quiet, steady force during the Saints’ challenging early-season struggles.

Watson caught 10 passes for a career-high 127 yards, including a two-yard touchdown on a fourth-down gamble late in the third quarter, and the Saints (2-4) shut down the high-octane Atlanta Falcons offense for a 31-21 victory.

The Falcons were previously undefeated in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.

“He’s my guy,” Brees said of Watson. “He’s probably one of the greatest teammates you could ever ask for. He’s a phenomenal workers. He’s a great leader. He’s everything you’d want in a teammate.”

The Saints held the Atlanta offense 11 points under its average, forced two red-zone fumbles to take potential points off the board and blocked a punt for a touchdown, a 4-yard block and scoop by linebacker Michael Mauti that gave New Orleans a 14-0 lead late in the first quarter.

The Saints’ normally anemic pass rush got to Atlanta quarterback Matt Ryan five times, forcing three fumbles. Atlanta entered the game as one of the NFL’s best with a plus-5 takeaway-turnover margin.

New Orleans running back Mark Ingram scored twice on runs of 2 and 1 yards, and the Saints rolled up 207 yards of total offense and 17 points in the second half.

“We needed a win like this against a very good opponent,” Brees said. “The team played great tonight in all three phases. I can’t say enough about our defense. They did a phenomenal job. They got a bunch of takeaways, which is big time.”

What we learned about the Saints:

1. There was a eerie feeling of de ja vu when linebacker Michael Mauti broke through a gap in the middle of the line to block Matt Bosher’s punt inside the Falcons’ 5-yard line late in the first quarter. Just before the game, former Saints special team ace Steve Gleason, now battling Lou Gehrig’s disease, was honored for his role in blocking a punt against the Falcons in the Saints’ first game back at the refurbished Superdome in 2006 — one year after Hurricane Katrina.

“There is some significance in that it happened here against Atlanta,” Saints coach Sean Payton said. “That was a pretty important play, I think, early in the game.”

2. Delvin Breaux has been heavily flagged for pass interference early this season, but the former Canadian Football League star just may be the Saints’ best cornerback. New Orleans matched Breaux against Atlanta WR Julio Jones, and Breaux came up with several pass break-ups. Jones caught six passes for 93 yards but did not score.

“He played a lot of man coverage and really stayed on top of every route,” Payton said of Breaux. “Delvin Breaux was outstanding. It was a tough assignment.”

3. Defensive end Cameron Jordan, mostly a non-factor this season, exploded for three sacks and forced a Matt Ryan fumble. The Saints had a season-high five sacks.

“Defensively, we came up with some huge plays, including all those sacks, limiting their playmakers,” quarterback Drew Brees said. “For it all to come together like that and just give us a glimpse of what we can be is truly special.”

Etc.

–TE Benjamin Watson (10 catches, 127 yards, one touchdown) had a career night, consistently beating the Falcons linebackers and safeties. The performance could have been even better had QB Dres Brees not overthrown him late in the second half, which might have turned into a 32-yard TD. The Saints went on to miss a 51-yard field goal. “What you saw tonight was a really great feeling to kind of give some guys the fruits of their labor,” Watson said. “We understand that it’s one win, and we still have only two wins.”

–CB Delvin Breaux had two pass break-ups against Falcons WR Julio Jones, and he appears to be gaining confidence despite his early-season struggles with a physical style of play. Jones may not have been completely healthy, but the Saints had confidence in putting Breaux on Jones wherever he lined up. “Our goal was just to keep him to the side and keep a close eye on him,” Breaux said. “I think I did a pretty decent job. We were trying not to give up the big play.”

–DE Cameron Jordan had six tackles, including three sacks of Falcons QB Matt Ryan. He also had four QB hurries and forced a fumble.