Saints Defeat Falcons, Extend Win Streak

The win streak continues for the New Orleans Saints after a big win over an NFC South Division rival on Sunday.

The Saints ran their current win streak to seven games with a 24-9 victory over the Atlanta Falcons at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans.

Taysom Hill, filling in for the injured Drew Brees, ran for two touchdowns in the second half, while the New Orleans defense kept Atlanta out of the end zone, as the Saints maintained sole possession of first place in the NFC South.

Atlanta got on the scoreboard first, at the 11:26 mark of the first quarter when Younghoe Koo kicked through a 28-yard field goal, capping off a 7-play, 65-yard drive, which gave them a quick 3-0 lead.

New Orleans scored its first points of the game at the 2:50 mark of the first quarter when Wil Lutz made good on a 22-yard field goal, wrapping up a 9-play, 66-yard drive, which tied the game, 3-3.

The Falcons regained the lead at the 14:01 mark of the second quarter when Koo booted through a 51-yard field goal, ending a 10-play, 42-yard drive, giving them a 6-3 advantage.

Atlanta extended its lead at the 4:36 mark of the second frame when Koo was successful on his third field goal of the half, this one from 52 yards out, completing an 8-play, 36-yad drive, which widened the margin to 9-3.

The Saints took their first lead with 1:46 remaining in the first half when Alvin Kamara scored on a 3-yard touchdown run, putting the exclamation mark on a 7-play, 80-yard drive, which gave them a 10-9 advantage, a lead they would take with them not the halftime break.

New Orleans outgained Atlanta, in terms of total yards in the first half, 175-161, including a 60-37 advantage in rushing yards, while the Falcons held a 124-115 edge in passing yards.

Hill, starting his first career game at quarterback in the NFL, completed 9-of-13 passes for 127 yards in the first half for the Saints, while Kamara carried seven times for 28 yards and a touchdown.

For the Falcons in the first half, Matt Ryan completed 12-of-21 passes for 143 yards.

New Orleans scored the first points of the second half at the 9:11 mark of the third quarter when Hill capped off a 10-play, 80-yard drive with a 2-yard touchdown run, which extended its lead to 17-9.

The Saints basically put the game away at the 12:41 mark of the fourth quarter when Hill scored on his second rushing touchdown of the game, this one from 10 yards away, wrapping up a 6-play, 53-yard drive, which made it 24-9.

That would be all the Saints would need, as they went on to capture the 24-9 triumph.

New Orleans outgained Atlanta, in terms of total yards, 378-214, including a 210-196 advantage in passing yards, as well as a while the Falcons held a 168-52 edge in rushing yards.

Hill, who completed 9-of-10 passes for 106 yards in the second half, ended the game completing 18-of-23 passes for 233 yards for the Saints, to go along with 51 rushing yards and two touchdowns, while Michael Thomas compiled nine receptions for 104 yards.

In a losing cause for the Falcons, Ryan completed 19-of-37 passes for 232 yards, to go along with two interceptions.

View the game boxscore.

With the victory, New Orleans improved to 8-2 on the season, while Atlanta dropped to 3-7.

The Saints return to action next Sunday when they travel to Denver to take on the Broncos