This Saturday, the explosive 14-3 New Orleans Saints will travel west to take on the well-rested (13-3) San Francisco 49ers, who are coming off a first round bye. These two teams exhibit extremely different offenses, making it easy to overlook the matchup between two talented quarterbacks, Drew Brees and Alex Smith. It’s the gunslinger versus the game manager, and their performances will be vital for the outcome of this game.
Brees, the leader of the unstoppable force that is the New Orleans Saints, led the NFL in passing TDs, passing yards and completions this season, and set NFL records in the last two categories. He broke Dan Marino’s 27-year-old single season passing yards record by throwing for 5,476 yards. During the regular season, the Saints were first overall in the entire league in total offense. They ranked 3rd in overall time of possession.
The Saints offense is both efficient and explosive. This past weekend against the Detroit Lions, Brees went 33-44 with 466 yards and 3 TDs. Brees started the game completing 14 of his first 15 passes. In the second half, Brees attempted 5 passes of 30 plus yards. He completed four of them for 178 yards and 2 TDs. Seemingly done with ease, the Saints scored on every single possession in the second half until the clock ran out on their final possession.
On the other hand, for the 49ers this season Smith threw for 3,144 yards, and 17 TDs on 212 less attempts than Brees. The 49ers ranked fourth best in the league in average time of possession. This team has a run-heavy offense that looks to wear down the Saints defense and ultimately control the clock. Smith must work hard to maintain possession of the ball, and complete passes to sustain long scoring drives.
In order for the 49ers to win this game, they can’t let the game turn into a shootout. Instead it will need to be a time-of-possession battle. The 49ers offense must assist their excellent defense by running down the clock and keeping the Saints offense on the sidelines as much as possible. By doing so, the 49ers defense can stay fresh and try to prevent the Saints O from getting into a rhythm.
In the end, the team whose quarterback can keep their offense on the field the longest, will put their team in the best position to win.
Drew Brees’ awesome Pre-Game Chant
