<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=0UFB2C_0vKmTEUf00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=0UFB2C_0vKmTEUf00" width="1126" height="749" ><figcaption>New Orleans Saints tight end Juwan Johnson (83) catches a pass in the end zone in front of Green Bay Packers strong safety Adrian Amos (31) for a touchdown during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 12, 2021, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack) ORG XMIT: OTKPKS141 AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack</figcaption></figure><p>The New Orleans Saints have had a strange relationship with season openers.</p><p>From 2014 to 2018, they lost their season opener for five consecutive years. They snapped the skid in 2019 with a dramatic 30-28 come-from-behind win against the Houston Texans and haven’t lost a season opener since. Their five-game winning streak in opening games is the longest in the NFL.</p><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=04kZOJ_0vKmTEUf00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=04kZOJ_0vKmTEUf00" width="1419" height="1460" ></figure><p>The Saints are abysmal 21-36 all-time in season openers. But they're a much more respectable 13-12 in Week 1 affairs since I began covering the team in 1999.</p><p>As the Saints prepare for their 2024 opener against the Carolina Panthers at the Caesars Superdome on Sunday, it seemed fitting to look back on the most memorable openers of my 25-year tenure covering the team.</p><p>That’s this week’s installment of my “25 for 25” series:</p><h2>No. 5: The Fitzmagic show: 48-40 loss vs. Bucs</h2><h2>Sept. 9, 2018</h2><p>The defense rested in this one. My head is still spinning from the wild, back-and-forth offensive shootout. Ryan Fitzpatrick and Drew Brees put on an aerial show for the ages, combining to pass for 858 yards and seven touchdowns in one of the wildest games I’ve covered. The game featured an astounding 15 plays of 20 or more yards, including seven of 35 or more yards. Fitzpatrick surprisingly outdueled Brees, passing for a career-high 417 yards and four touchdowns. The shocking performance revived his “Fitzmagic” nickname.</p><h2>No. 4: Brees bests Brady: 34-23 win vs. Bucs</h2><h2>Sept. 13, 2020</h2><p>The anticipation for this game was massive. Both teams were considered Super Bowl contenders, and the game was billed as a matchup of future Hall of Fame quarterbacks, Drew Brees and Tom Brady, who was making his highly anticipated Buccaneers debut. Fittingly, Fox Sports showcased the game in its prized Sunday afternoon time slot. When the game finally kicked off, the Saints dominated the proceedings. The Saints sacked Brady three times and intercepted him twice, including a 36-yard pick-six by Janoris Jenkins that brought down the house in the Superdome.</p><h2>No. 3: Fresh meat: 45-27 vs. Lions</h2><h2>Sept. 13, 2009</h2><p>The Saints rudely welcomed Matthew Stafford to the NFL with a rousing rout in the Superdome. Playing their first game for new coordinator Gregg Williams, the Saints made life miserable for the No. 1 overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft, holding him to a 16-for-37 (43%) passing day, while sacking him twice and intercepting him three times. Stafford’s 27.4 passer rating remains the lowest of his 15-year NFL career. The dominant defensive performance complemented a spectacular six-touchdown-pass day for Brees and portended a special season ahead. Five months later, the Saints won Super Bowl XLIV in Miami.</p><h2>No. 2: Drew's dramatics: 30-28 win vs. Texans</h2><h2>Sept. 9, 2019</h2><p>Talk about crazy finishes. This wild, see-saw affair featured three scores in the final minute of regulation. Wil Lutz’s 47-yard field goal had given the Saints a seemingly safe 27-21 lead with 55 seconds left. But DeShaun Watson stunned the sellout home crowd with back-to-back completions of 38 and 37 yards in a head-spinning 13-second span to put the Texans ahead 28-27. Brees then methodically drove the Saints 35 yards in 37 seconds to set up Lutz’s game-winning 58-yard field goal as time expired. No game better demonstrated Brees’ masterful execution in clutch situations than this one. And he did it on a national stage before a Monday Night Football audience.</p><h2>No. 1: Eating the cheese: 38-3 vs. Packers</h2><h2>Sept. 12, 2021</h2><p>No one saw this beatdown coming. Certainly not the Packers, who were 3½-point favorites and coming off a 13-3 season. The Saints dominated from start to finish. They held star quarterback Aaron Rodgers to 15-of-28 passing for 133 yards and intercepted him twice. The 36.8 passer efficiency rating was the third-lowest of his 19-year career. The 35-point margin of defeat was the largest of his career. The game was the first for the Saints in the non-Drew Brees era, and Jameis Winston enjoyed the best performance of his tenure in New Orleans, throwing five touchdown passes in a blowout that was so one-sided the Packers benched Rodgers in the fourth quarter. The game was memorable for one other reason: It was technically a Saints home game but it was played at TIAA Bank Field in Jacksonville, Florida, because of the impact of Hurricane Ida in New Orleans.</p><h2>Previous:</h2><p><b>July 16:</b> Series introduction</p><p><b>July 23:</b> Favorite training camp memories</p><p><b>July 30:</b> Most memorable confrontations</p><p><b>Aug. 6:</b> Best quotes</p><p><b>Aug. 13:</b> Favorite stories</p><p><b>Aug. 28:</b> Favorite headlines</p><h2>Upcoming:</h2><p><b>Sept. 11:</b> Most memorable road trips</p></div></body>

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Jeff Duncan: From a Brady bashing to a Pack pounding, a look at the Saints' best season openers

The New Orleans Saints have had a strange relationship with season openers. From 2014 to 2018, they lost their season opener for five consecutive years. They snapped the skid in 2019 with a dramatic 30-28 come-from-behind win against the Houston Texans and haven’t lost a season opener since. Their five-game winning streak in opening games is the longest in the NFL.

Jeff Duncan: From a Brady bashing to a Pack pounding, a look at the Saints' best season openers

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