NEW ORLEANS (AP) – Joe Flacco and Drew Brees each threw for a touchdown, and the Baltimore Ravens and New Orleans Saints were tied at 7 through the first quarter Monday night.
Flacco hit Steve Smith for a 15-yard touchdown, and Smith added a 40-yard reception late in the quarter to put Baltimore inside the New Orleans 10 as the quarter ended. But the Ravens fumbled the ball away, ending the promising drive.
Brees had a tying 10-yard TD pass to tight end Jimmy Graham.
Joe Morgan, who struggled to crack New Orleans’ lineup earlier this season and then was suspended two games for undisclosed team violations, broke loose for two plays longer than 60 yards the first two times he touched the ball.
He gained 67 yards on a running play on New Orleans’ opening drive, and then caught a 62-yard pass on the Saints’ third series, setting up Graham’s TD.
The Saints were in position to take an early lead after Morgan’s long gain on an end-around. It took defensive back Lardarius Webb’s horse-collar tackle at the 2 to prevent Morgan from scoring.
The play gave New Orleans first-and-goal on the 1, but the Ravens stopped two runs by Mark Ingram and a scramble by Brees before stuffing Ingram again – this time for a loss of 2 yards – on fourth-and-goal.
Taking over at its 3, Baltimore needed just one play to break out of the shadow of its own end zone. Justin Forsett burst through the middle of the line and scampered 38 yards to the 41. Then it was time for Smith, a long-time Saints nemesis from his 13 seasons with Carolina, to torment Saints fans a little more.
He had a clutch third-down catch to sustain the drive, which culminated with his touchdown catch as he crashed down backward at the left edge of the end zone.
That gave Smith 11 career touchdown catches against New Orleans, more than he has against any other team.
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