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Saints Lose to Broncos,32-34
09/21/08 - 10:33 PM
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DENVER (AP) - No gutsy 2-point call this week. Just a
gut-wrenching close call.
Martin Gramatica’s 43-yard field goal try with 1:55 remaining
was wide right, and the Denver Broncos escaped with a 34-32 win
over the New Orleans Saints on Sunday.
The Broncos improved to 3-0 for the first time in five years
despite allowing Drew Brees to complete 39 of 48 passes for 421
yards and a touchdown and Reggie Bush to pile up 178 all-purpose
yards and two TDs.
The Saints (1-2) never led, but they made a game of it after
falling behind 21-3 early in the second quarter.
Leading 34-32 late in the fourth quarter, the Broncos were going
in for the touchdown when tight end Tony Scheffler fumbled away a
reception at the New Orleans 5-yard line as he was hit by
linebacker Scott Shanle.
Cornerback Jason David scooped it up, giving Brees the ball at
the Saints’ 25-yard line with 5:33 remaining.
The Saints’ drive stalled at the 25, and Gramatica, who was
8-for-8 as a member of the Saints before missing in the first half,
barely missed this one to the right.
The Broncos punted the ball back to the Saints in the waning
seconds but Bush was corralled by Niko Koutouvides at the New
Orleans’ 20-yard line with eight seconds left, and Brees was out of
miracles.
Appropriately, his final play was a short toss to Bush, who
caught 11 passes for 75 yards and a touchdown and rushed 18 times
for 73 yards and a TD. He also returned two punts for 30 yards.
Jay Cutler wasn’t as sharp as he was in his first two games, but
he still completed 21 of 34 passes for 262 yards and two TDs with
one interception. He has eight TD passes and two interceptions so
far.
Brandon Marshall led the Broncos with six receptions for 155
yards.
For the second straight week, the Broncos needed every ounce of
offense they could muster, and for the second straight week they
jumped out to a 21-3 lead only to be sweating it out at the end.
Last week, they converted a 2-pointer in the final seconds to
beat San Diego 39-38.
This time, they denied the Saints a 2-point conversion that
would have tied it in the fourth quarter.
The Saints went on a 15-play, 76-yard drive that ate up about 7½
minutes, the payoff coming on a 10-yard TD run by Pierre Thomas.
The 2-point conversion, however, failed when Brees overthrew
Bush, leaving the Saints trailing 34-32 with 10 minutes left.
Denver took a 24-19 lead at the end of a wild first half in
which they stuffed Thomas on fourth-and-inches in the waning
seconds, preserving their touchdown lead only to see their offense
goof up and give the hard-earned momentum right back to the Saints.
Instead of running a quarterback sneak, Cutler handed off to
Andre Hall, who was smothered by linemen Charles Grant and Sedrick
Ellis for the safety.
Brett Kern then punted the free kick out of bounds, giving the
Saints the ball at midfield with 23 seconds left, but Gramatica’s
51-yard field goal try was wide right as the wild first half came
to a close.





(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press.  All Rights Reserved.)

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