2006 New Orleans Saints season The 2006 New Orleans Saints season began with the team trying to improve on their 3 - 13 record in 2005 . All of the team ' s 2006 regular season home games were played in the Louisiana Superdome , which had been damaged all of the previous season by Hurricane Katrina . At the time , it had been New Orleans ' most successful season , with the team reaching the NFC Championship for the first time in franchise history . Offseason . On January 17 , the Saints made their first step in the 2006 offseason by hiring Sean Payton , the former assistant head coach for the Dallas Cowboys , as their new head coach . On March 14 , 2006 , the Saints acquired former - Chargers QB Drew Brees through free agency , where he signed a six - year deal with them . In the 2006 NFL Draft , the Saints used their first pick on the 2005 Heisman Trophy winner ( since vacated in 2010 ) from USC , Reggie Bush , who was passed over by the Houston Texans , who instead selected North Carolina St . defensive end Mario Williams with the first overall pick . They then used their picks on Alabama Safety Roman Harper , Bloomsburg OT Jahri Evans , Purdue DE Rob Ninkovich , Oregon St . WR Mike Hass , Pittsburgh CB Josh " Bernard " Lay , Northwestern OT Zach Strief , and Hofstra WR Marques Colston . Return to New Orleans . The NFL announced on February 5 , 2006 , that the Superdome would reopen on September 24 when the Saints hosted the Atlanta Falcons . Sites for the team ' s 2006 preseason games were announced on March 23 . They are Shreveport , Louisiana , for an August 21 game against the Dallas Cowboys , and Jackson , Mississippi , for an August 26 game against the Indianapolis Colts . On April 6 the Saints released their 2006 schedule . All home games are scheduled to be played at the Superdome . The home opener against the Atlanta Falcons was moved from September 24 to September 25 and was shown on ESPN ' s Monday Night Football . Regular season . Week 1 : at Cleveland Browns . The Saints opened the regular season on the road against the Cleveland Browns on September 10 . In the first half , kicker John Carney provided all of the Saints ' first 9 points . He put up a 43 - yarder in the first , along with a 25 and a 21 - yarder in the second quarter . In the third quarter , the Browns offense finally got going as Cleveland QB Charlie Frye hooked up with TE Kellen Winslow on an 18 - yard TD pass . Fortunately , the Saints would respond with a 12 - yard TD pass from QB Drew Brees to WR Marques Colston . In the fourth quarter , the Browns came close with Frye getting a 1 - yard TD run . However , the Saints put the game away with Carney kicking a 20 - yard FG to give the Saints the win . Despite not scoring a TD , RB Reggie Bush had a sound NFL debut , as he ran 14 times for 61 yards , caught 8 passes for 58 yards , and returned three punts for 22 Yards . In total , he piled up 141 all - purpose yards . Week 2 : at Green Bay Packers . For Week 2 , the Saints traveled to Lambeau Field in Green Bay , Wisconsin to take on the Packers . The Saints trailed in the first quarter , as a 22 - yard TD pass to opposing WR Greg Jennings and two Dave Rayner field goals ( a 24 - yarder and a 36 - yarder ) . The Saints began their scoring in the second quarter , as RB Deuce McAllister got a 3 - yard TD run and QB Drew Brees threw a 26 - yard TD strike to WR Devery Henderson . In the third quarter , the punishing continued , as kicker John Carney kicked a 45 and a 47 - yard field goal to further New Orleans ' lead . In the fourth quarter , Green Bay tried to come back with QB Brett Favre throwing a 4 - yard pass to WR Robert Ferguson . The Saints managed to put the game away with a 25 - yard TD pass to WR Marques Colston and a 23 - yard run by McAllister . The Packers would get one more score , in the form of a 6 - yard TD pass to RB Noah Herron , but the damage had already been done . Week 3 : vs . Atlanta Falcons . Riding high from their two - straight road wins , the Saints returned home to the Louisiana Superdome for the first time since December 26 , 2004 for a special Monday Night game against their fellow NFC South division rival , the Atlanta Falcons , in front of a sell - out crowd of 70 , 003 and ESPN ' s largest - ever audience , with about 10 . 8 million households viewing , the second - largest cable audience in history ( behind the 1993 North American Free Trade Agreement ( NAFTA ) debate between Al Gore and Ross Perot on CNN ) . On just the fourth overall play of the game , Safety Steve Gleason blocked a punt and DB Curtis Deloatch managed to land on the ball in the end zone for the Saints first score of the game . Former Saints kicker Morten Andersen helped Atlanta get its only score of the game , from a 26 - yard field goal . From there , the Saints dominated the rest of the game . For the final score of the first quarter , WR Devery Henderson ran 11 yards for a touchdown on a reverse . Kicker John Carney would provide the scoring for the rest of the game , as he kicked two second quarter field goals ( a 37 - yarder and a 51 - yarder ) , and one third quarter field goal ( a 20 - yarder ) to essentially wrap up the game . From there , the Saints defense continued to put pressure on Falcons QB Michael Vick , as they sacked him five times , while limiting the running duo of Vick and Dunn to just a combined total of 101 rushing yards . With their dominating performance , the Saints would take the lead in the NFC South with a surprising 3 - 0 record . Green Day and U2 performed jointly on the field before the game , while the Goo Goo Dolls held a concert outside the Dome earlier in the evening . Week 4 : at Carolina Panthers . Following their dominant home game at the Louisiana Superdome , the Saints traveled to Bank of America Stadium for an NFC South battle with the Carolina Panthers . From the get - go , the Saints trailed early , as QB Jake Delhomme completed a 9 - yard TD pass to WR Steve Smith for the only score of the period . In the second quarter , the Saints managed to get a field goal , as kicker John Carney nailed one from 31 yards out . After a scoreless third quarter , RB Deuce McAllister managed to help New Orleans take the lead , as he got a 3 - yard TD run . Unfortunately , that would be the only time in the game that the Saints saw the lead , as the Panthers slashed away , with Delhomme completing a 4 - yard pass to WR Drew Carter and RB DeShaun Foster running 43 yards for a touchdown . New Orleans would try to come back , as QB Drew Brees completed an 86 - yard touchdown pass to WR Marques Colston , but that would be as close as they would get , as Carolina held on to win , while the Saints got their first loss of the year dropping to 3 - 1 . Week 5 : vs . Tampa Bay Buccaneers . The second game back in the Superdome was not marked by the media attention of the Saints ' home opener , but fans in attendance were not disappointed . The sold - out crowd was treated to a dramatic contest between the Saints and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers . Though Tampa Bay proved to be a formidable opponent despite their season - long losing streak , the Saints won 24 - 21 . The win was capped off by a fourth quarter punt return by Saints rookie Reggie Bush . Prior to the play , Bush roused the notoriously raucous New Orleans audience to their feet ; by the time the ball was snapped , the cheers had reached a tremendous level . The noise only increased as Bush raced past the Bucs ' special teams for 65 yards and scored the game - winning touchdown , his first as an NFL player . After the game , the traditional " Who Dat ? " cheer was punctuated by spontaneous chants of " Reggie , Reggie " as the Saints claimed their fourth win of the season while improving to 4 - 1 . Week 6 : vs . Philadelphia Eagles . Hoping to build on their win over Tampa Bay , the Saints stayed at home for a Week 6 fight with the Philadelphia Eagles . In the first quarter , New Orleans jumped out to an early lead with kicker John Carney kicking a 39 - yard field goal and QB Drew Brees completing a 14 - yard TD pass to WR Joe Horn . In the second quarter , Philadelphia would get on the board with kicker David Akers kicking a 47 - yard field goal . Fortunately , the Saints managed to further themselves , as Brees completed a 7 - yard TD pass to WR Marques Colston . However , in the third quarter , the Eagles started to get back into the game , as QB Donovan McNabb completed two touchdown passes ( a 60 - yarder to WR Reggie Brown and a 4 - yard to TE L . J . Smith ) . In the fourth quarter , Philadelphia took the lead on a 15 - yard TD run by Brown . Fortunately , after Brees completed a 48 - yard TD pass to Horn , Carney helped give New Orleans the win as he kicked a 31 - yard field goal as time ran out on the game . With the win , the Saints maintained their lead in the NFC South with a 5 - 1 record going into their bye week . Week 8 : vs . Baltimore Ravens . Coming off their bye week , the Saints stayed at home for their Week 8 fight with the visiting Baltimore Ravens . From the get - go , New Orleans trailed as QB Steve McNair got a 5 - yard TD run for the only score of the quarter . In the second quarter , things only got worse for the Saints , as McNair completed a 4 - yard TD pass to WR Clarence Moore , while rookie DB Ronnie Prude returned an interception 12 yards for a touchdown . New Orleans would get on the board , as QB Drew Brees completed a 32 - yard TD pass to WR Joe Horn , yet Baltimore would increase their lead with McNair completing a 6 - yard TD pass to TE Todd Heap . In the third quarter , the Ravens got another 12 - yard TD interception return with rookie Strong Safety Dawan Landry making the pick for the only score of the period . In the fourth quarter , the Saints tried to mount a comeback , as Brees completed a 47 - yard TD pass and a 25 - yard TD pass to rookie WR Marques Colston . However , the Saints comeback drive would end there , as New Orleans fell to 5 - 2 . Week 9 : at Tampa Bay Buccaneers . Hoping to rebound from their home loss to the Ravens , the Saints flew to Raymond James Stadium for an NFC South rematch with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers . In the first quarter , QB Drew Brees completed a 15 - yard TD pass to rookie WR Marques Colston and a 52 - yard TD pass to WR Devery Henderson . In the second quarter , kicker John Carney would complete a 46 - yard field goal to give New Orleans a 17 - 0 lead . Yet , the Bucs started to fight back , as QB Bruce Gradkowski completed two touchdown passes to WR Joey Galloway ( a 44 - yarder and a 17 - yarder ) . In the third quarter , the Saints would take over for the rest of the game , as RB Deuce McAllister completed a 3 - yard TD run , while Brees completed a 45 - yard TD pass to Henderson . After a scoreless fourth quarter , New Orleans would get the sweep over Tampa Bay and improve to 6 - 2 . Week 10 : at Pittsburgh Steelers . Coming off their sweeping win over the Bucs , the Saints flew to Heinz Field for a match - up with the defending Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers . In the first quarter , the Saints trailed early as QB Ben Roethlisberger completed a 37 - yard TD pass to WR Hines Ward and a 2 - yard TD pass to TE Heath Miller . Afterwards , New Orleans got on the board with QB Drew Brees completing a 3 - yard TD pass to WR Terrance Copper . In the second quarter , the Saints started to take command as kicker John Carney completed a 20 - yard field goal , while rookie RB Reggie Bush got a 15 - yard TD run on a reverse . Pittsburgh would get kicker Jeff Reed to get a 32 - yard field goal , yet New Orleans responded with RB Deuce McAllister getting a 4 - yard TD run . In the third quarter , the Steelers started to fight back as Roethlisberger completed a 38 - yard TD pass to WR Cedrick Wilson for the only score of the period . In the fourth quarter , RB Willie Parker followed up two 70 + yard runs with a 3 - yard and a 4 - yard TD run to give Pittsburgh the lead . The Saints tried to fight back with McAllister getting a 4 - yard TD run , but Pittsburgh held on to win . With the loss , the Saints fell to 6 - 3 . Week 11 : vs . Cincinnati Bengals . Coming off a road loss to the Steelers , the Saints went home for an interconference fight with the Cincinnati Bengals . In the first quarter , Cincinnati struck first with QB Carson Palmer completing a 41 - yard TD pass to WR Chad Johnson . Afterwards , New Orleans responded with QB Drew Brees completing a 72 - yard TD pass to WR Joe Horn . In the second quarter , the Bengals took the lead with kicker Shayne Graham getting a 21 - yard field goal for the only score of the period . After a scoreless third quarter , kicker John Carney began the fourth quarter with 24 - yard field goal . However , things went downhill with Cincinnati ' s most dominant part of the game . Palmer would complete a 60 - yard TD pass and a 4 - yard TD pass to Chad , while rookie DB Ethan Kilmer returned an interception 52 yards for a touchdown . Afterwards , New Orleans could only muster a 27 - yard TD pass from Brees to WR Terrance Copper . With the loss , the Saints fell to 6 - 4 . Week 12 : at Atlanta Falcons . Trying to snap a two - game skid , the Saints flew to the Georgia Dome for an NFC South rematch with the Atlanta Falcons . In the first quarter , New Orleans started off strong with QB Drew Brees completing a 76 - yard TD pass to WR Devery Henderson , while RB Deuce McAllister got a 1 - yard TD run . Afterwards , Falcons kicker Morten Andersen completed a 22 - yard field goal for Atlanta . In the second quarter , Andersen would give the Falcons a 30 - yard field goal , while on the final play of the half , Brees threw a spectacular 48 - yard " Hail Mary " TD pass to WR Terrance Copper . In the third quarter , Atlanta tried to fight back , as RB Warrick Dunn got a 1 - yard TD run for the only score of the quarter . In the fourth quarter , New Orleans managed to put the game away with kicker John Carney completing a 25 - yard field goal and McAllister getting a 9 - yard TD run . With the season sweep over the Falcons , the Saints improved to 7 - 4 . Week 13 : vs . San Francisco 49ers . Attempting to capitalize on their decisive victory at Atlanta , a revitalized Saints team entered the game with high hopes . In the first quarter , 49ers kicker Joe Nedney kicked a 29 - yarder for the 49ers only score of the half . Reggie Bush exploded in the second quarter with a 1 - yard run TD and , after an interception returned to the 7 - yard line by Mike McKenzie , a sneak - around TD late in the quarter . Coming into the third quarter , Alex Smith completed a 48 - yard TD pass to Antonio Bryant , but that was the final score for the 49ers . After a John Carney field goal , Reggie Bush took hold of a five - yard shovel pass from Drew Brees and scored his third TD of the night . In the fourth quarter , Bush ran down the sidelines and appeared to be heading for a fourth touchdown after a quick pass that he turned into a 74 - yarder , but he fumbled the ball out of bounds . However , he scored on a ten - yard run a few plays later , and kicker John Carney sent the game away with a 33 - yard field goal . With the win , the Saints improve to 8 - 4 . Week 14 : at Dallas Cowboys . After a spectacular offensive performance all around by the Saints against the 49ers , they headed to Dallas to face off against their NFC rivals the Cowboys . The Cowboys started off strong with a 77 - yard Julius Jones run , but they were silent for the rest of the quarter . In the second quarter , a shaky Saints team suddenly scored on all three of their drives : a 2 - yard run from Mike Karney , a 3 - yard pass from Drew Brees to Karney , and a 27 - yard pass from Brees to WR Jamal Jones ; and to cap it all off , Dallas kicker Martin Gramatica missed a field goal at the end of the half . A surprising Saints team stymied the Cowboys to a field goal by Gramatica , and Reggie Bush quickly answered with a 61 - yard catch for a TD . Terrell Owens answered with a 34 - yard touchdown catch . Mike Karney struck again with a 6 - yard catch , and after a challenge by Sean Payton it was ruled a TD . The Saints recovered an onside kick at the 40 , and Devery Henderson caught a 42 - yard pass and crawled in for a touchdown . With the blowout against the Cowboys , the Saints improved to 9 - 4 and are one game away from clinching the NFC South . Mike Karney was called by Drew Brees ' Mr . Touchdown , ' because he had three TD ' s . Week 15 : vs . Washington Redskins . The Washington Redskins entered the game strongly , with a solid drive straight down the field , but blitz , a fumble , and a penalty all worked against the Redskins , and forced a 37 - yard field goal . However , they stifled the Saints offense and scored a quick TD later . The Saints answered back with a touchdown from the goal line , and limit the Redskins to a field goal . The surprising Redskins offense was hindered in the second quarter , as were the Saints , but in the beginning of the fourth , the Saints opened up with a field goal , which the Redskins quickly answered . In a key play , the Saints converted a 4th - and - 5 play late in the fourth quarter , down 16 - 10 , which led to another key 16 - yard throw on third down on the 2 minute warning . Reggie Bush made a dash to the twenty - yard line two plays later , and the Saints took their second time out with 1 : 01 left in the 4th quarter . On 4th and 8 with 53 seconds left , Carlos Rogers knocked the ball down and sealed the Saints ' fate . With the loss , the Saints fell to 9 - 5 , but because the Carolina Panthers fell to the Pittsburgh Steelers ( along with the Atlanta Falcons falling to the Dallas Cowboys ) , they clinched the NFC South and a spot in the playoffs . Week 16 : at New York Giants . Despite the loss the previous week , the Saints could clinch a first - round bye with a win and help . They entered the Meadowlands against a New York Giants team trying to gain momentum that could lead them to a playoff spot . Hoping they could capitalize off the Saints loss , the Giants ' first drive saw a 55 - yard touchdown pass from Eli Manning to Plaxico Burress . The Saints ' offense opened with a three - and - out , but they successfully recovered their punt . A field goal narrowed the score to 7 - 3 . A subsequent Saints drive ended with another field goal . With 10 : 30 left in the second quarter , the Saints directed a huge , time - eating drive that ended with a touchdown on fourth - down with just 1 : 56 left in the half . Seven minutes into the third quarter , Reggie Bush sped past the Giants ' linebacker corps and scored on a one - yard TD , to lengthen the score to 20 - 7 . In the middle of the third quarter , Reggie Bush returned a punt , fell onto his knees ( but because nobody touched him he was not down by contact ) , and he then ran the ball in for a touchdown . However , a challenge revealed that the Giants ' punter just barely nicked the leg of Bush , and he was ruled down by contact . Early in the fourth quarter , Deuce McAllister ran it in for the final TD of the day , and John Carney sealed it with a 38 - yard field goal . The Saints defense was stout throughout the game , shutting out the Giants after their opening touchdown , and never allowing the Giants to run a play in their territory . With the win , the Saints improved to 10 - 5 . The following day , the Dallas Cowboys fell to the revitalized , Jeff Garcia - led Philadelphia Eagles , and the Saints secured the # 2 spot in the NFC , and a first - round bye . Week 17 : vs . Carolina Panthers . The New Orleans Saints hosted the final game in their regular season against their NFC South Rivals , the Carolina Panthers at 12 : 00 Central Time in the Superdome . On December 29 , 2006 , the Friday before the game , the Saints announced several roster moves . Players , such as RB Jamaal Branch , were activated from the practice squad . It was widely speculated that this was to help give some of the full - time starters rest before the post - season . The Saints allowed the starters to play in the first drive on offense , which ended up in a quick touchdown , and for the first two plays of the second drive , before resting all of the starters . The head coach of the Saints , Sean Payton , did this to prevent injuries before the playoff game . The Carolina Panthers ended up scraping together a victory against the second and third stringers of the Saints 31 - 21 . Playoffs . NFC Divisional Round : vs . Philadelphia Eagles . Being in the divisional round for only the second time in franchise history , the second - seeded Saints began their playoff run against the third - seeded Philadelphia Eagles . With both teams coming into the game with the NFL ' s best offenses , the outlook was a high - scoring shootout . In the first quarter , New Orleans drew first blood with kicker John Carney nailing a 33 - yard field goal for the only score of the period . In the second quarter , the Saints increased its lead with Carney kicking a 23 - yard field goal . However , the Eagles took the lead with QB Jeff Garcia completing a 75 - yard TD pass to former Saints wide receiver Donte ' Stallworth . New Orleans retook the lead with rookie RB Reggie Bush ramming a 4 - yard TD run ; yet Philadelphia regained the lead with RB Brian Westbrook diving for a 1 - yard TD run to exit the second quarter with a 14 - 13 lead . In the third quarter , the Eagles jabbed at the Saints ' once - stoic running defense with another Westbrook TD run , this one for 62 yards . The Saints countered with RB Deuce McAllister shoving his way in with a 5 - yard TD run ; and finally , the Saints scored their final touchdown for the lead with a knockout 11 - yard TD pass from Drew Brees to McAllister . In the fourth quarter , the Eagles drove down to the red zone and threatened to strike , but the Saints ' defense stepped up and forced kicker David Akers to kick his only score for the Eagles , a 24 yard field goal . Suddenly it looked grim for the Saints when , on the ensuing drive , a pitch - out from Brees to Bush bounced off the running back ' s hands and the Eagles recovered . However , the Saints defense forced a 4th - and - 10 , and an 18 - yard pass that seemed keep the Eagles alive was called back on a false start penalty . The Eagles punted with 1 : 39 remaining , and the Saints converted a first down to end the game . During the game , the Saints made a franchise playoff record with 435 total yards of offense . Deuce McAllister gained a franchise playoff record 143 yards on 21 carries with 1 touchdown , along with 4 catches for 20 yards and 1 touchdown . With the win , New Orleans improved its overall record to 11 - 6 and advanced to its first NFC Championship Game appearance in the team ' s 40 - year franchise history , where they took on the Chicago Bears . NFC Championship Game : at Chicago Bears . Following their divisional win over the Eagles , the Saints flew to Soldier Field for their very first NFC Championship Game , where they would take on the top - seeded Chicago Bears . In the first quarter , New Orleans trailed early with Bears kicker Robbie Gould getting a 19 - yard field goal for the only score of the period . In the second quarter , the Saints continued to trail as Gould gave Chicago a 43 - yard and a 23 - yard field goal , while RB Thomas Jones got a 2 - yard TD run . New Orleans would manage to get some momentum for the second half as QB Drew Brees completed a 13 - yard TD pass to rookie WR Marques Colston . In the third quarter , the Saints started to get more momentum as Brees completed an 88 - yard TD pass to rookie RB Reggie Bush . However , the Bears began to creep back , getting a safety when Brees was called for intentional grounding while in his own endzone . In the fourth quarter , New Orleans ' struggles continued with Chicago QB Rex Grossman completing a 33 - yard TD pass to WR Bernard Berrian . Also , Bears RB Cedric Benson got a 12 - yard TD run , while Jones wrapped up the game with a 15 - yard TD run . Pundits felt that the New Orleans ' loss was the fact that they were a " dome " team and were forced to play in snowy conditions while committing five turnovers ( three lost fumbles , an interception , and one on downs ) . With the loss , the Saints season ended with an overall record of 11 - 7 .