We’re on to the 16th meeting between the New Orleans Saints and the New England Patriots, a series that developed bit of a rivalry when both teams were led by Hall of Fame-bound quarterbacks — and the Saints are coming off their biggest over the Patriots in a decade, having dominated them at Gillette Stadium in a 28-13 upset back in 2021.
But that hardly leveled the scales. The Patriots have enjoyed a 10-5 lead in the all-time series against the Saints, with New Orleans only winning back-to-back games in a three-game sweep stretching from 1989 to 1995.
Now both teams are hitting the field with clouds hanging over them. Neither squad has maintained the high standards Drew Brees and Tom Brady established, and there are high stakes for each team in Sunday’s matchup. A third loss in a row would finish eroding the goodwill Dennis Allen gathered over an offseason of much-needed changes, highlighting the one personnel move he failed to make: upgrading offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael.
.At the same time, Bill Belichick’s follow-up of decades of success with a 1-4 start would be hardly acceptable for Patriots fans discovering how the over half has lived all this time. Hopefully the Saints can pull off a win on Sunday and put all this behind them.
