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 When Saints kicker Zach Hocker clanged what would have been a
game-winning 30-yard field goal off the left upright with 12 seconds
left in regulation -- a glorified extra point -- the Saints and
Cowboys headed to overtime tied at 20.
However, Saints quarterback Drew Brees had the perfect antidote to
Hocker's curse.
On the second play of overtime, Brees calmly connected with running
back C.J. Spiller on a wheel route down the right sideline, and
Spiller used his power to shake off a diving tackle attempt by
safety Barry Church and his speed to race 80 yards for the
game-winning touchdown and a 26-20 overtime victory.
New Orleans (1-3) snapped its three-game losing streak, while Dallas
(2-2) fell for the second week in a row.
The touchdown pass just 13 seconds into overtime -- Brees' second of
the game -- gave the veteran 400 touchdown passes for his career.
Spiller rushed over to Brees after the score and handed him the
ball.
"I told him, 'Brother, you deserve it,'" Spiller said. "He's
probably the best teammate I've ever played with -- just his
preparation. He deserves it."
Saints coach Sean Payton attributed the winning play to Brees' arm
and craftiness. After running back Khiry Robinson dropped a
first-down pass on the Saints' 20-yard line, Brees noticed that the
Cowboys' defense was slow to line up on second down.
"I believe they struggled getting aligned, and Drew was smart enough
to snap the ball," Payton said. "It was a vertical route, a play we
had run earlier. The tackle C.J. broke on the safety was huge. A
great play."
Brees said: "They were late getting lined up, and I felt like if we
caught them in man and they had some confusion, we could have a big
play. I tried to keep the safety in the middle (of the field). If
C.J. gets behind somebody, nobody's catching him."
Spiller, who missed most of training camp after undergoing
arthroscopic surgery on a small meniscus tear in his knee, said his
eyes lit up when the Cowboys lined up.
"I figured I had only one guy to make miss, and fortunately I was
able to do that," Spiller said. "I looked up at the Jumbotron (video
screen) and didn't see no one coming."
Because the Saints scored a touchdown on their first possession, the
Cowboys did not have a chance for an overtime possession.
Brees finished 33-for-41 for 359 yards with no interceptions.
Spiller caught five passes for 99 yards.
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Hocker's miss at the end of regulation blunted a furious 68-yard
drive by the Saints inside the final two minutes. Brees completed a
30-yard pass to wide receiver Brandon Coleman to the Dallas 17 with
20 seconds left, but regulation ended 20-20.
"It's funny, but as the ball was bounding off the left upright, I
said, 'This is not the way God intended for us to win the game. He's
got another plan,'" Brees said.
"Before I went out, I guess I was aware of (reaching 400), and I
made that part of my thought process. Right when the play call came
in for C.J., I said, 'This is it. This is going the distance.'"
Cowboys quarterback Brandon Weeden (16-for-26, 246 yards, one TD, no
interceptions) led Dallas to the tying touchdown late in the fourth
quarter, guiding the team 91 yards on eight plays.
On the drive, Weeden completed passes of 24 yards to wide receiver
Terrance Williams, 28 yards to tight end Jason Witten and 19 yards
to wide receiver Brice Butler before hitting Williams for a diving
17-yard score on fourth down with 1:51 left.
"It was a big-time throw from Brandon to T. Will for the touchdown,"
said Cowboys coach Jason Garrett. "We did a good job of surviving.
We got a great break that they missed the field goal. Obviously, in
overtime, we didn't get the job done."
Asked what happened on Spiller's game-winning catch, Garrett said
the Cowboys "didn't get the matchup the right way. They made the
play, and we didn't."
Robinson put the Saints up 20-13 with a 1-yard run midway through
the fourth quarter.
The victory snapped the Saints' six-game home losing streak and
extended Weeden's streak of consecutive losing starts to 10.
(Editing by Sudipto Ganguly)
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