PHILADELPHIA — What awaits the Saints is going to be so challenging, their star tight end, Jimmy Graham, is making up words to make his point.
“They obviously gave it to us on the national stage about a month and a half ago, so it’s going to be another one where they will be highly favorited and it’s going to take every guy on this team giving a great effort for us to pull it off,’’ Graham said.
Yes, indeed, the Seahawks are “favorited’’ — by 8 ¹/₂ points — for a rematch this Saturday in Seattle that few foresaw, considering the Saints’ track-record of always finding a way to lose on the road in the playoffs. The scripts was ripped apart Saturday night with their last-second 26-24 come-from-ahead and then come-from-behind NFC wild-card victory over the Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field, ending the franchise’s 0-5 postseason history of failures — 0-3 with head coach Sean Payton calling the shots and quarterback Drew Brees triggering the offense.
“Well, as much as we hate hearing that talk, we kind of brought it upon ourselves,’’ said Brees, who shook off two first-half interceptions to beat the Eagles. “We lost the last three games on the road, really hadn’t played all that well.’’
All the talk of how less fearsome the dome-dwelling Saints are on the road was barely quieted before they packed up and left Philadelphia, as their return to New Orleans will only be a brief stay. They’ll have to prove they’ve cured their playoff road hex against the NFC’s No. 1 seed in a divisional playoff rematch of a Dec. 2 game that offers no evidence whatsoever the Saints can come close to upsetting the Seahawks, who are 8-0 at CenturyLink Field.
The “Monday Night Football’’ showdown turned into a one-sided rout immediately after the opening kickoff. The Seahawks breezed to a 17-0 lead after one quarter and coasted to a 34-7 victory.
“Obviously, we did not play our best football that night,’’ Brees said. “We got beat pretty soundly by those guys. There’s a reason they’re the one seed. There’s a reason that the road to the championship goes through Seattle, because they’re a heck of a football team.
“They know how to win, they know how to win at home. So we know the challenge that presents us to travel to Seattle and go there and play. We’re going to need our best effort to beat these guys, but if there’s a team that can do it, I believe that’s us.”
The Saints (12-5) certainly dispelled some doubts with the way they manhandled the Eagles. Instead of sticking to their familiar throw-first script, New Orleans took a look at the way the Eagles’ personnel on defense was clearly set to prevent big plays in the passing game and decided not to tempt fate. The Saints passed the ball 30 times and ran it 36 times en route to amassing 185 rushing yards, led by Mark Ingram (18 carries, 97 yards, one TD) in what the young running back said was probably the best game of his career.
Five weeks ago, the Saints weren’t able to run it at all (44 yards) against the Seahawks, who got a brilliant game from second-year quarterback Russell Wilson (22 of 30, 310 yards, three TDs). Even though the strength of the Saints is Brees airing it out — they were second in the league in pass offense — going in with a pass-happy mind-set might be foolhardy, as the Seahawks possess the NFL’s No 1 pass defense, allowing only 172 yards per game, along with a league-high 28 interceptions.
“We got our butts kicked,’’ receiver Lance Moore said of the loss in Seattle. “It was a wake-up call for us. It showed us what we needed to do and what level that we needed to play on to be successful. They will be ready for us, they will be rested up and ready to play. We have our work cut out for us and we’ll be ready to play.”
This is the game the Saints have been eyeing, and now it’s the one they’ve got.
“We got our wish,’’ Marques Colston said. “That first night against them was not us. We feel like we are a better team and we have to prove that.”