Dominated. That’s exactly what the New York Giants were Monday evening, and the team’s once bright playoff hopes are quickly fading away.

The New Orleans Saints crushed the Giants 49-24 on Monday. A full game recap and box score can be found here.

The game changed: When two moments cost the Giants what could have been two game-defining touchdowns. After thwarting the Saints on a fake field goal attempt, New York drove right down the field and into the New Orleans red zone. Eli Manning(notes) looked for tight end Jake Ballard(notes) in the end zone, but Will Herring(notes) made an impressive play to intercept the pass. Manning could have thrown a better ball in that scenario, and Ballard probably should have been a bit more physical in trying to prevent the interception. Herring’s highlight reel play kept the game scoreless, and also provided quite the momentum shift.

The Giants drove down the field again during the second quarter, this time trailing 7-0. A silly false start penalty inside the New Orleans 30-yard line slowed down New York’s drive, however, and the Giants were forced to settle for three points. Failing to find the end zone on those two occasions prevented the Giants from ever obtaining a grip on the game, and the Saints, as any championship contender would, made Big Blue pay.

The game was over: When New York CB Corey Webster(notes) misplayed a Drew Brees(notes) pass near the end of the first half. Webster’s minor misstep allowed Marques Colston(notes) to make a 50-yard jaunt down the left sideline, one that eventually resulted in the Saints’ third touchdown of the game. New Orleans took a 21-3 lead into halftime, and New York would never again get within ten points of the Saints.

Corey Webster was quietly having a Pro Bowl year heading into the month of November. He, along with several other members of the team’s defense, just hasn’t been good enough over the past few weeks. Webster was burned several times in New York’s loss to Philadelphia, and the same happened Monday night. Without a real pass rush, Webster and others have failed to make plays in the secondary, and it’s one big reason the Giants have lost three straight.

Zero: Zero sacks. The Giants finished Monday’s game with zero sacks. Quarterback Drew Brees had all day to find open wide receivers time and time again Monday night, as New York’s often-discussed pass rush was practically non-existent against the Saints. Mathias Kiwanuka(notes), Jason Pierre-Paul(notes) and Osi Umenyiora(notes) found their way into the New Orleans backfield only a few times. Justin Tuck’s(notes) most memorable moments came when the ESPN camera crew focused in on his pregame stretching routine. The Giants are now consistently giving up an average of over 250+ yards per game through the air. As of the writing of this sentence, New York has the worst pass defense in the NFC East.

Overall: Here we go again. The once 6-2 New York Giants have lost three straight heading into December, and the undefeated and seemingly unbeatable Green Bay Packers are coming to town this Sunday. New York’s defense is currently in shambles, and the Giants have the worst rushing attack in all of pro football. The Giants team that took the field Monday night will be lucky to finish the 2011 NFL regular season at 8-8.

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Drew Brees threw four touchdown passes and ran for another to spark the New Orleans Saints to a 49-24 rout of the New York Giants in a game of National Football League contenders.

Brees, the 32-year-old quarterback who led the Saints to a 2010 Super Bowl title, completed 24 of 38 passes for 363 yards, giving him 3,689 passing yards this year, keeping him on pace for the NFL‘s most prolific passing season.

“I’m not allowing it to become a distraction,” Brees said of his record bid. “As long as we win ball games, we invite all those records. You want to put your best performance on the field every week.”

The Saints produced 577 total offensive yards, the second-most ever conceded by the Giants since their 1925 creation — Giants’ defenders surrendered 682 yards in a 1943 game.

“I can’t say enough about our team,” Brees said. “We won tonight in every aspect.”

The Saints (8-3) stayed one game in front of the Atlanta Falcons atop the NFC South division heading into next Sunday’s home game against Detroit (7-4) while New York (6-5) fell one game behind first-place Dallas in the NFC East.

The Giants suffered their third loss in a row ahead of Sunday’s home game against reigning Super Bowl champion Green Bay, this season’s only unbeaten NFL squad at 11-0.

“We can’t sit here and feel sorry for ourselves,” Giants defensive end Justin Tuck said. “We have to go back out there and keep swinging.”

Brees threw for 265 yards and three touchdowns in the first half, marching the Saints on three scoring drives of 80 yards or more, and both ran and threw for touchdowns in the third quarter to frustrate the Giants.

Asked how the Saints could top such a stellar effort, Brees laughed.

“You can always get better,” he said. “There is always something to prove.”

New York quarterback Eli Manning, who lived in New Orleans when his father Archie was the Saints’ quarterback, had his homecoming spoiled by a Saints’ defense that muffled his side’s run attack and kept him under pressure.

“It was a big win for us,” Saints coach Sean Payton said. “Like any game it wasn’t perfect. But I was pleased with the win.”

Brees opened the scoring eight seconds into the second quarter on a four-yard touchdown pass to Lance Moore, flipped a five-yard touchdown pass to Jimmy Graham with 2:21 remaining in the period and tossed a 10-yard touchdown pass to Moore only 1:46 later to give New Orleans a 21-3 half-time lead.

“He made some fantastic throws,” Payton said. “There’s a confidence players have around him. He has thrown the ball with good rhythm and balance.”

Moore had five catches for 54 yards in the first half while Graham caught four passes for 55 yards. Marques Colston caught three passes for 78 yards, all on the Saints’ final first-half scoring drive, which took only 34 seconds.

The Giants, whose only first-half points came on a 42-yard Lawrence Tynes field goal, trimmed the New Orleans lead to 21-10 on an eight-yard Brandon Jacobs touchdown run only 4:17 into the third quarter.

But the Saints answered with a 73-yard touchdown drive that was capped when Brees ran eight yards for a touchdown after 9:12 of the third quarter. It was the first rushing touchdown of the season for Brees.

Just 95 seconds later, Brees connected with Graham on a 29-yard touchdown pass, boosting the Saints’ lead to 35-10.

Manning cracked the New Orleans defense in the fourth quarter, hooking up with Victor Cruz on touchdowns of 4 and 72 yards.

Brees guided a nine-play, 80-yard drive that ended on a 12-yard Pierre Thomas touchdown run and Mark Ingram added a 35-yard touchdown run with 62 seconds remaining.

Manning completed his first 21 passes of the second half, one shy of the NFL single-game consecutive completions record held by Mark Brunell and David Carr.

New Orleans Saints

Since 2009, the New Orleans Saints are undefeated in November. That, along with the fact that the Saints were coming off their bye, figured to make life difficult for the visiting New York Giants. Since Tom Coughlin became their head coach, the Giants entered New Orleans with a 24-34 record in the second half of their seasons. The Saints are still undefeated in November since ’09 and the Giants are still struggling after New Orleans crushed New York 49-24.

New Orleans Saints vs. New York Giants

One of the matchups that I was looking forward to watching was seeing if the Giants anemic rushing attack would come to life against the Saints. Although the Giants are last in rushing in the NFL, I thought they would still try to force the issue against the Saints, who have struggled stopping the run. However, there is one remedy that will stop even the best of rushing attacks. And that is a big lead.

In the first quarter, I was worried that the Saints failed fake field goal attempt would spark the Giants. But the lifeless Giants looked like they were still recovering from too much Thanksgiving turkey. Drew Brees(notes) and the Saints didn’t stay down for long. Jimmy Graham’s(notes) TD reception in the second quarter was one of the easiest TD plays I have ever seen in the NFL. By halftime, the Saints led the sleepwalking Giants 21-3.

The Giants must have gotten an earful from Coughlin at the half because they scored a TD on their opening drive. However, Brandon Jacobs(notes) definitely should have been called for taunting after his impressive TD run for the Giants. Then, as he so often does, Brees answered with a TD of his own. From his amazing scramble to his TD run, I could have sworn it was Tim Tebow(notes) playing QB for the Saints.

One of my favorite things about watching the Saints on Monday Night Football is that ESPN analyst Jon Gruden doesn’t even try to hide his admiration of Drew Brees. During the aforementioned scramble, Gruden admitted he sounds like a cheerleader when it comes to Brees. The Giants went back to sleep late in the third quarter as the Saints coasted to a 49-24 win.

Looking ahead

The Saints will play their second straight prime time game Sunday night against the Detroit Lions. Reportedly, Ndamukong Suh(notes) will be facing a suspension for his actions on Thanksgiving. Whether the Lions have Suh or not, I like the Saints chances against Detroit. The Saints will be motivated to keep playing well because the Atlanta Falcons have an easy schedule. Don’t be surprised if the Saints run the table and match their 13-3 record of 2009.

Patrick Michael was born and raised in New Orleans and currently resides in the Big Easy. As such, he is a lifelong, diehard New Orleans Saints fan. His highlight as a Saints fan was experiencing the magical Super Bowl season of 2009.

Sources

ESPN broadcast of the Saints vs. Giants game

More from this contributor

Game summary of Super Bowl 48

Top 6 Monday Night Football teams since 2006

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Quick notes for tonight’s New York Giants at New Orleans Saints game.

• The Giants lost, 17-10, at home to the Eagles last Sunday and have now dropped two straight games for the first time this season. If the playoffs started today, New York (1-2 in the division) would be on the outside looking in despite having a share of the NFC East lead with the Cowboys (2-1 in the division).
• John Kasay kicked a 26-yard field goal in overtime and the Saints beat the Falcons, 26-23, in Week 10 to maintain their lead in the NFC South. New Orleans has won two straight following a bye week, improving to 10-12 after the week off all-time.
• The Saints defeated the Giants, 48-27, in the two clubs’ last meeting (2009) — their second straight and third win in the last four games against New York overall. New Orleans and New York have played 25 games all-time, with the Giants holding a 14-11 series advantage.
• Victor Cruz caught six passes for 128 yards and a touchdown last Sunday, giving him exactly 800 receiving yards overall in 2011 — fifth best in the NFC. The last Giants’ player to have more receiving yards in the team’s first 10 games of the season was Plaxico Burress (819) in 2005.
• Drew Brees threw for 322 yards in Week 10 and now has 51 career 300-yard passing games overall — tied with Dan Fouts for fifth most all-time (Kurt Warner is fourth with 52). Brees also had two touchdown passes versus the Falcons marking his 37th consecutive contest with at least one TD throw (second-longest streak all-time behind Johnny Unitas’ 47).
• New York was held to just 29 yards on the ground by the Eagles in Week 11 — its lowest rushing output since a 25-yard performance against Jacksonville on November 20, 2006. The Giants are averaging an NFC-low 83.2 rush yards per game in 2011.

Whether a two-game skid and a tough upcoming schedule could combine to spell doom for the New York Giants is a question Eli Manning sees little point in addressing right now.

“It’s not about who our next opponent is or what the standings are in the division,” Manning said as the Giants (6-4) prepared for their matchup with the Saints (7-3) in New Orleans on Monday night.

“When you start looking ahead or trying to calculate other teams that teams in our division are playing, and wins and losses, or how many games you have to win to get in the playoffs, that’s when you lose focus.”

Giants coach Tom Coughlin is in no mood to dwell on whether the Giants’ season is on the brink, either.

“It’s interesting that after a couple of seven-point losses we are going to talk about that,” Coughlin said this week when asked about the potential for a late-season swoon. “It’s difficult for me to understand why there’s nothing more prevalent to talk about than that.”

While consecutive close loses to San Francisco and Philadelphia could hardly be considered shocking, the timing of New York’s slide could not be much worse.

The Dallas Cowboys’ recent surge has vaulted them to a half-game lead in the NFC East, meaning the Giants must now try to keep pace by winning in New Orleans, where the Saints are 4-0 this season.

If the Giants’ difficulties persist in the Big Easy, they’ll face the prospect of a four-game losing streak when they host unbeaten Green Bay the following week.

New Orleans also has tough games coming up, but that’s a more comfortable topic of discussion for the Saints, who’ve won two straight and enter Week 12 with a one-game lead over Atlanta in the NFC South.

Following its meeting with a desperate Giants squad that only a few weeks ago played well enough to knock off the Patriots in New England, New Orleans will then host Detroit.

“We have a couple of conference games coming up that could affect playoff positioning, which I know we aspire to be there, as do the two teams we’re playing coming up,” Saints quarterback Drew Brees said. “It’s very much strategic. These games mean that much more because of that.”

If the Giants want to reverse their fortunes, they’ll likely have to find a way to slow down Brees, whose 3,326 yards passing led the league through last week’s games and represented the most yards passing through 10 games in NFL history.

Coughlin hopes New York can manage that with pressure from a defensive line as formidable as any in the league. Defensive ends Jason Pierre-Paul and Osi Umenyiora have combined for 17 1/2 sacks.

“You have to have a little bit of the approach that the Rams used,” Coughlin said, referring to the six-sack performance of St. Louis’ defense in a shocking upset of the Saints in Week 8. “They played very well against New Orleans and seemed to get to the quarterback.”

Brees figures he’ll have to get rid of the ball as quickly and accurately as he has all season.

“What I see is a defense that does a great job of getting after the quarterback, that does a great job taking the ball away and taking advantage of those opportunities when they have it,” Brees said. “You have to play extremely smart against them. You can’t be one dimensional. You have to be able to run the ball as well as throw it.”

New Orleans has demonstrated this season that it can run the ball well, though not always consistently. The Saints do have their top four running backs — Darren Sproles, Pierre Thomas, Mark Ingram and Chris Ivory — all healthy coming out of their bye week, though it remains to be seen whether all four will be active.

“Running the football has been a point of emphasis,” Saints coach Sean Payton said. “Certainly we have a lot of confidence in Drew Brees in the pocket and outside of the pocket. I also know and recognize the ally that a running attack provides the quarterback and the importance of that.”

The Saints’ running game ranks in the top half of the league, 13th overall.

Surprisingly, the Giants, who’ve run the ball well in recent seasons, rank second-to-last in rushing with 83.2 yards per game. Still, Payton warned it would be foolish to underestimate New York’s ground game.

“Although their statistics haven’t been as strong as in years past, I don’t think their commitment has changed at all,” Payton said. “I would expect that to be something they’ll work very hard at and try to correct.”

That’s not the only thing the Giants want to fix.

Defensive back Antrel Rolle said his team needs to summon and sustain more emotion on the field. That, he said, might have made the difference in their last loss to the Eagles, and could be vital in New Orleans.

“We are too calm out there and football is not a game for you to be calm,” Rolle said. “It is a game of attitude. It is a game of emotion.”