Tag: Record

Sean Payton moved to Denver and still owns the NFC South

Sean Payton swept the NFC South, proving nothing’s changed but his address. Unfortunately, his dominance now includes the Saints:

The Atlanta Falcons were painfully reminded of something that has been true for nearly 20 years. Sean Payton has partial ownership in the Atlanta Falcons. Maybe they hoped things changed since Payton was no longer leading the New Orleans Saints.

However, when the Falcons visited the Denver Broncos, Payton showed the new emblem on the hat doesn’t lessen his dominance over the Falcons. Payton improved his record to 22-9 against the Falcons with a dominating 38-6 victory.

Atlanta wasn’t the only team to get this reminder. Payton swept the NFC South this year and showed them why they all felt relieved by his temporary retirement. This included Payton’s first career victory over the Saints.

The games haven’t been too close either. The Carolina Panthers kept it the closest, and they lost by 14 points. At the end of that game, Payton flat out said Carolina isn’t a good team. Maybe that was the jolt Carolina needed because they haven’t lost a game since those comments.

During his 16-year run with New Orleans, Payton had a winning record against every team in the division. As the coach of the Denver Broncos, he’s undefeated against his former division.

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Broncos QB Bo Nix continues making NFL history

Bo Nix continues to break many Broncos franchise records and he’s breaking several NFL records along the way.

Denver Broncos rookie quarterback Bo Nix made history again in the team’s 38-6 win over the Atlanta Falcons in Week 11.

Nix became only the second rookie quarterback in NFL history to record at least 200 passing yards and two touchdown passes in four straight home games. The other quarterback to accomplish such a feat? Hall of Famer Peyton Manning, who did so with the Indianapolis Colts in 1998.

In his last four home games against the Las Vegas Raiders, Los Angeles Chargers, Carolina Panthers and Falcons, Nix has thrown for a combined 1,013 yards and 11 passing touchdowns against just one interception. He has also rushed for two scores in those contests.

After going 28-of-33 passing for 307 yards with four touchdowns and no interceptions (145.0 rating) against the Falcons, Nix joined C.J. Stroud (Houston Texans in 2023) as one of just two rookie QBs in NFL history with at least 300 passing yards, four passing touchdowns and a passer rating of at least 140 in a single game.

Nix’s 84.4% completion rate is the third-best by a rookie QB in NFL history (minimum 30 attempts) and the second-best by a quarterback (of any experience) in Broncos history.

Nix became the first rookie QB in NFL history to complete at least 80% of his passes while totaling at least 300 yards and four passing touchdowns in a game.

Nix now has 14 touchdown passes this fall, which ties Marlin Briscoe (1968) for the most touchdown passes by a rookie QB in franchise history. That record will undoubtedly belong to Nix soon.

Nix leads all rookie quarterbacks this year with 18 total touchdowns (14 passing, four rushing) and is second in passing yards (2,275).

Nix has already set multiple franchise and NFL historical marks this fall. He’ll look to continue his impressive rookie campaign when Denver goes on the road to face the Las Vegas Raiders (2-8) in Week 12.

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Taysom Hill’s stat line vs. Browns is the first of its kind since 1951

Taysom Hill’s stat line against the Browns is the first of its kind since 1951. You just don’t see many players with his skill set in this day and age:

How’s this for an old-school stat line? Taysom Hill leapt out early against the Cleveland Browns with a pass completion, rushing touchdown, and a kickoff return in Week 11’s New Orleans Saints game — before he threw an ill-advised interception down the middle of the field. You don’t see many players involved that often on both offense and special teams.

As noted by statistician and Saints fan Jeff Asher, Hill is the first player to check each of those boxes since Joe Geri did it back in 1951. A two-time Pro Bowler with the Pittsburgh Steelers who closed out his pro football career with the then-Chicago Cardinals in 1952, Geri played in a different era that Hill’s set of skills throws back to. He’s one of five different players who met these qualifiers from 1946 to 1951.

It feels like only a matter of time until the Saints get Hill involved defensively; former head coach Dennis Allen had said he’d consider playing Hill at linebacker, but it’s probably a long-shot to see Hill get in on all three phases regardless of who’s running the defense. He’s got a full plate as it is.

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Tyrann Mathieu hints at how many years he plans on playing pro football

Tyrann Mathieu hinted at how many years he plans on playing pro football, at which point he’ll trade in his cleats and, hopefully, coach his LSU Tigers:

Tyrann Mathieu isn’t about to retire from pro football and hang up his cleats, but the New Orleans Saints does have a plan in mind for what’s next. He was as frustrated by his LSU Tigers’ loss to their longtime rival Florida Gators as any other fan on Saturday night, and that got Mathieu to drop some hints about his future.

In a couple of since-deleted tweets on Twitter, Mathieu said he “cannot wait to get to Baton Rouge & coach,” and that he’s eager to “trade in my cleats for turf shoes.” But he has some unfinished business with the Saints to deal with first. Mathieu added he wants to “play at least 2 more years” before making that transition.

Patience has worn thin with much-hyped LSU head coach Brian Kelly, who was seen arguing back and forth with players on the game’s broadcast. The proud program had lost four or more games in only seven seasons dating back to 2000, but Kelly has done that twice in his first three years on the job. He isn’t meeting high standards, and famous alumni (with ambitions of  coaching themselves) like Mathieu are taking notice.

Hopefully Mathieu’s retirement is still on schedule and a couple of years away. He’s been the most consistent playmaker in the Saints secondary since he came back to town, and they don’t have a long-term replacement lined up to take his spot. But when the time comes, Mathieu has clearly put in the work to continue on to the next stage in his football life.

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Saints schedule: Calendar change is the good news for New Orleans

Bleacher Report says October sank the Saints’ season. Calendar change is the good news for New Orleans:

We’re at the halfway point of the season. The New Orleans Saints have played 10 games, but other teams with a bye week just hit nine games last week.

Bleacher Report’s Brad Gagnon has isolated a single stat from every team’s season that defines how their season has transpired. For New Orleans, he used 58-136. That’s the Saints scoring margin in October, a month Gagnon believes ruined the season.

When you go on a seven-game losing streak it’s difficult to just point to one month as a season killer. Seven weeks is nearly two months, and technically, the streak went from the end of September to the beginning of November. October is the only month the Saints didn’t win a game.

He compares that stretch to the other six games of the season. The Saints went 3-3 and had a scoring margin of 169-110. That number is exaggerated by blowout victories to start the season.

The Saints have been in close games, but they lost all of their matchups in October by double digits. Comparatively, every other loss has been by three points or less. No team is happier to move into a new month — and get a fresh start — than they are.

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NFL assigns one of the most penalty-happy referees to Saints vs. Browns

The NFL has assigned one of the most penalty-happy refereeing crews to officiate Sunday’s matchup between the New Orleans Saints and the Cleveland Browns:

The NFL has assigned Alex Kemp and his crew to officiate for the upcoming matchup between the New Orleans Saints and the Cleveland Browns.

Kemp is one of the most penalty-happy referees in the NFL, behind only Ron Torbert, Clete Blakeman and Adrian Hill. Over nine games so far this season, Kemp has thrown 162 total flags, 25 of which were dismissed. That’s an average of 15.22 penalty flags thrown per game, for an average of 126.89 yards.

Among those, 60 of them were on the home team, with 77 of those coming against the away team.

The last time the Browns played a game under Kemp and company was on Dec. 28, 2023, when Cleveland recorded a 30-27 victory over the visiting New York Jets. In that game, Kemp’s crew threw 12 flags on the Jets for 74 yards.

Four flags were thrown on the Browns for 26 yards.

The Saints last saw Kemp when they shut out the New England Patriots on the road with a 34-0 victory in Gillette Stadium on Oct. 8, 2023.

12 penalties were thrown on the Saints for 86 yards, with five penalties thrown on the Patriots for 30 yards.

Overall, the Saints have had decent success under Kemp with a 4-2 record when he is the referee. The Browns haven’t exactly been lucky or unlucky with a 2-2 record under Kemp in the same position.

It will be interesting to see how things shake out this time around with New Orleans and Cleveland set to kick off at Noon CT/1 p.m. ET on Sunday from the Caesars Superdome.

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Tyrann Mathieu and Drew Brees probably wouldn’t agree on his favorite INT

Tyrann Mathieu and Drew Brees probably wouldn’t agree on his favorite INT. Mathieu’s takeaway in his 2013 homecoming stands the test of time:

It’s no secret that Tyrann Mathieu is a special talent. The New Orleans Saints safety returned home to close out his illustrious NFL career, and while Mathieu’s 2024 season hast had more low moments than he’s comfortable with, the highlights stand up with the best plays throughout his career.

He’s still making history. Mathieu is tied with his old college teammate Patrick Peterson for the most interceptions among all active NFL players (36). So which one was his favorite?

“I hate to say it but it’d have to be my rookie season, playing against Drew Brees in the Superdome,” Mathieu grinned. “And we got beat bad that day  but I had a good game. And I got to walk l away with one of the most prized possessions of anybody’s life, and that’s a Drew Brees football. So I always remember that one.”

Mathieu played the Saints just three games into his pro career back in 2013, and while his Arizona Cardinals fell 31-7, he did finish the day with 10 tackles (9 solo), on top of that interception. That was a season-high for his rookie year, and clearly a memorable game in his NFL story.

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A legendary Saints quarterback reached out to Darren Rizzi after Falcons win

A legendary Saints QB congratulated Darren Rizzi on beating the Falcons, but he initially thought it was Archie Manning’s famous grandson, not ‘the big dog’ himself:

A legendary former New Orleans Saints quarterback congratulated Darren Rizzi on beating the Falcons, but he initially thought it was Archie Manning’s famous grandson, not Archie himself, texting him on Monday. Rizzi shared the story and his family’s surprising connection with the Mannings when reflecting on his first career win as an NFL head coach.

Plenty of well-wishers reached out after Rizzi ended the Saints’ seven-game losing streak, but he says the message he received from the elder Manning stands out most.

“I got a lot, my favorite one so far is from Archie Manning,” Rizzi grinned. “Archie reached out. And little side story to that, my son Christian who is at the University of Texas, he and Arch are good friends. When I glanced at my phone I thought it was Arch. And then I realized, ‘Oh no, this is from the big dog, this is Archie.’ And so we had a nice correspondence. I really, really appreciated that, that was pretty cool. He was the one who started it all, right?”

Christian Rizzi is a deep snapper for the Longhorns, which isn’t much of a surprise given his father’s history coaching special teams. But their family has crossed paths with the Mannings before, and at times competed in high school football games.

“His grandsons and my sons played against each other, so that was pretty cool,” Rizzi continued.  “I’ve talked to Archie before here at practice and everything. That was pretty nice, a pretty neat text to get.”

It sounds like Manning will be watching when Rizzi leads the Saints into their next game with the Cleveland Browns. Getting out of a 3-7 skid is no small task, but that’s exactly what Rizzi must do to salvage this season. Who knows? Maybe the Saints will be in position to draft the younger Manning in a year or two once he turns pro.

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Saints interim coach has one goal for the team’s home crowd

The Caesars Superdome hasn’t held the same magical homefield advantage as of late. Interim Saints head coach Darren Rizzi is on a mission to change that:

Darren Rizzi has a major goal as New Orleans Saints interim head coach that goes beyond wins and losses. He wants to restore a “domefield” advantage in New Orleans.

There was once a time where the Caesars Superdome was on the list of places opposing teams didn’t want to go. That magic had faded away. The Saints haven’t had a winning record at home since Drew Brees retired, going 2-5 at the Superdome in 2021 (not counting a “home” win in Jacksonville due to Hurricane Ida), 4-4 in 2022 (discounting their “home” loss in London), and 5-3 in 2023, with a 2-3 start to this season’s home slate. That’s a 13-15 home record altogether.

After knocking off the Atlanta Falcons, Rizzi declared, “We are going to get this dome back to where it used to be and that was just the start.” Part of restoring the aura has to do with winning games. The Saints hadn’t been doing that at home or on the road lately, so Rizzi was concerned if the fans were going to be bought in. He clearly underestimated how much the coaching change reinvigorated the fanbase.

That mistake won’t be made again. Rizzi complimented the home crowd by saying, “our fans were incredible today.” He credited the fans’ engagement for forcing the visiting Falcons into some errors, such as jumping offsides.

He knows this city wants a winner and the team wants to give them that just as badly. This is just one win, but that’s how every winning streak starts.

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CeeDee Lamb sets Cowboys record for fastest player to this milestone

The Cowboys wideout has been a reception machine ever since coming into the league and set a furious pace over the last few seasons. | From @KDDrummondNFL

Sunday’s game against the Philadelphia Eagles hasn’t gotten off to the best start for the Dallas Cowboys. An early fumble on a pistol-formation snap to Cooper Rush gave the bad guys the ball deep in Cowboys’ territory and the Eagles took advantage. Jalen Hurts scored on a Tush Push to put Philadelphia up 7-0.

That didn’t dissaude the Cowboys from making some history on their next drive however. After a strong return by Kavontae Turpin, Dallas found themselves in 3rd-and-2 from their own 48. That’s when Rush found WR CeeDee Lamb for a six-yard gain and a new set of downs. The reception was Lamb’s second of the game, giving him 450 for his career. He’s the fastest player in Cowboys history to reach that mark, and by a pretty wide margin.

Lamb was able to make his 450th career catch in his fifth season and just his 75th career game. The next fastest in Dallas history was Jason Witten, who made the mark in his 100th career game during his seventh season.

Below is a list of every Cowboys player with at least 450 regular season receptions.

Player Total Receptions Season Reached 450 Games to 450
Emmitt Smith 486 11 167
Jaosn Witten 1215 7 100
Michael Irvin 750 8 102
Dez Bryant 531 7 109
Drew Pearson 489 11 144
Tony Hill 479 10 130
CeeDee Lamb 450+ 5 75

Lamb entered the contest with 53 receptions for 660 receiving yards, putting him on pace for his third consecutive season with at least 100 receptions for 1,000 yards.