Head-to-head: Saints are NFL's better undefeated team

We enter NFL Week 9 with two unbeaten teams—the Indianapolis Colts and New Orleans Saints. This week, both teams are at home for division games; the Colts play host to the Texans, and the Panthers visit New Orleans. In preparation for the games, we posed the question the SN experts Clifton Brown and Vinnie Iyer: Which is the better team?

 

The margin between the Colts and Saints is slim. Peyton Manning(notes) and Drew Brees are both great quarterbacks. Both teams have showed they can win, even when not playing their best.

 

But I pick the Saints for two reasons: They have better offensive balance, and they are better at stopping the run.

 

Start with the Saints' offense. It's No. 1 in the NFL, averaging 39 points per game, with a chance to set an all-time scoring record. The Saints score more than Kobe Bryant. They have rung up at least 45 points four times.

 

What makes them so unstoppable this season is their balance. Brees could always kill teams through the air. Now the Saints also move it on the ground.

 

"In this offense, each week it could be somebody different," wide receiver Marques Colston(notes) said after the Saints' Week 2 victory against the Eagles.

 

Pierre Thomas(notes) and Mike Bell(notes) lead a rushing attack that is fourth best in the NFL. Compare that to the Colts' rushing attack, which is 30th. Manning can throw it, but he has to. The Saints move the ball almost at will—on the ground, and through the air.

 

Just like Manning, Brees has a variety of big-play targets to throw to—wide receivers Colston and Devery Henderson(notes), tight end Jeremy Shockey(notes), and running back Reggie Bush(notes). But Brees has something Manning does not have—a running game he can rely on. That is one reason the Saints have been dominant in the second half of games.

 

The Saints' consistent running game makes them better in the red zone, better on third down, better at protecting leads and better at controlling the clock.

 

"We're rushing the football better, and that is conducive to playing better in that fourth quarter," coach Sean Payton said.

 

On defense, the Saints are not dominant, but they are opportunistic. They lead the NFL with 16 interceptions, paced by safety Darren Sharper(notes), who has seven.

 

The Colts, led by defensive ends Dwight Freeney(notes) and Robert Mathis(notes), have a better pass rush than the Saints. And, statistically, the Colts have a better overall defense (No. 9) than the Saints (No. 15). The Colts have yielded 13 points per game, the fewest in the league.

 

But look deeper. The Colts have played the Titans (1-6) and the Rams (1-7). The Saints have played a stronger schedule. Meanwhile, the Colts have surrendered at least 90 yards to four backs—Ronnie Brown(notes) (136), Steven Jackson (134), Maurice Jones-Drew(notes) (97) and Frank Gore(notes) (91). Teams will continue to test the Colts on the ground, which could be a problem for them.

 

Maybe the Saints and Colts will settle this argument at the Super Bowl, and if they meet, it would be a terrific matchup. We will see about that in February. But for now, I give the edge to the Saints.