The Saints and 49ers are no strangers to facing each other in big games
Whatever happens Sunday inside a revved up Mercedes-Benz Superdome — win, lose or draw — it will not be the end of the world for the New Orleans Saints and San Francisco 49ers.
Oh, it might feel as if the sky has fallen for the losing side for a day or two.
But both teams will play again next week and twice more this month before tallying up the wins and losses in preparation for the postseason.
Make no mistake, this game is BIG (noon, Fox). It’s bigger than BIG. It’s HUMONGOUS! Two outstanding 10-2 teams ... chasing after coveted NFC homefield advantage throughout the playoffs ... in the 14th week of the regular season. It just doesn’t get any better than this.
Be still my beating heart.
In fact, the last time these two proud franchises met with so much riding on the outcome happened nearly eight years ago in the divisional round of the NFC playoffs at historic Candlestick Park.
On that sun-splashed afternoon Jan. 14, 2012, in an epic tug-of-war, Jim Harbaugh’s 49ers pulled off a brazen heist in broad daylight. With 1:33 remaining and only one timeout in hand, 49ers quarterback Alex Smith engineered a seven-play, 85-yard drive for the go-ahead touchdown with nine seconds left to win 36-32 and advance to the NFC Championship.
Some say that 2011 Saints team is the best from top to bottom in franchise history, even better than the one that captured Super Bowl XLIV to cap the 2009 season.
I won’t argue the merits of that case here. Suffice to say, had the Saints preserved their lead against the 49ers they would have hosted — and been roundly favored — to beat the No. 4-seed New York Giants for the right to play in Super Bowl XLVI.
That was then and this is now.
The Saints opened as 3-point favorites against the 49ers, who flew to Bradenton, Florida, following last Sunday’s 20-17 loss at Baltimore to conduct week-long preparations at IMG Academy. The line now reads Saints at minus-2 1/2 in most sports betting houses indicating a late money push on the visiting 49ers.
For the Saints to prevail, their defense must contain the 49ers’ potent ground attack and make quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo try to win the game from the pocket. Jimmy G has proven to be a successful game manager, producing a gaudy 18-4 record and drawing kind words from fellow Eastern Illinois alum, Sean Payton.
“He’s clearly a winner,’‘ Payton said of Garoppolo, now playing in year two of a six-year, $137.5 million contract.
But Jimmy G can also be his own worst enemy at times, offsetting 21 TD passes and a solid 101.2 passer rating with 10 interceptions and five lost fumbles this season.
In other words, the match-up to watch is the Saints’ No. 3-ranked rushing defense against the 49ers’ No. 2-ranked rushing offense, a strategy that puts the onus squarely on Jimmy G and his passing game to move the chains, score points and control the clock.
The Saints are yielding 88.6 yards rushing per game and have not allowed a 100-yard rusher in 38 consecutive contests (34 regular season, 4 postseason). The 49ers are averaging 148.0 yards rushing per game and boast four capable running backs — Matt Breida (542 yards, 1 TD), Raheem Mostert (539, 3 TDs), Tevin Coleman (454, 6TDs) and Jeffrey Wilson (105 yards, 4 TDs).
Against Baltimore, Mostert proved invaluable in a driving rainstorm with a career-high 146 yards rushing and one touchdown on 19 carries. Breida is back after missing the past three games with a bum ankle and Coleman is a home-run threat running and catching the ball.
That’s the task facing Saints defensive coordinator Dennis Allen’s defense Sunday. Stop the run, make the 49ers one dimensional and turn defensive end Cam Jordan (13.5 sacks) and friends loose on Garoppolo.
That’s only one aspect of the Saints game plan. It will take all three phases and penalty-free football for 60 minutes and possibly beyond to get the job done.
Whatever it takes for the Saints to emerge victorious, they must take full advantage of what promises to be a fever pitch inside the Superdome in order to secure the all-important NFC home-field advantage throughout the postseason.
Isn’t that what the 16-game regular season is all about?
