Quarterback Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints may have been underdogs entering Sunday, but they defeated league MVP Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts 31-17 in Super Bowl XLIV in Miami.
Trailing 17-16 entering the third quarter, the Saints' recaptured the lead on a 2-yard touchdown grab by tight end Jeremy Shockey to make it 22-16. To make it a seven-point lead, Lance Moore converted on the two-point play.
While it looked like the Colts (16-3) would march down for a score of their own Manning was intercepted by Tracy Porter, who sprinted downfield for a 74-yard touchdown to make it 31-17 with 3:12 left in the game.
Manning made one last push, getting the Colts down into the red zone, but failed to convert and his last pass of the season fell incomplete on a fourth-down play and the Saints knelt down on the ball to bring an exciting conclusion to the NFL postseason.
Drew Brees, who earned Super Bowl MVP honors, was near flawless in the game, completing 32-of-39 passes for 288 yards and two touchdowns. He connected with Pierre Thomas and Shockey on plays on 16 and 2 yards, respectively.
In the loss, Manning did a solid job, completing 31-of-45 passes for 333 yards, one touchdown and one interception. His lone touchdown pass came in the first quarter, when he connected with Haiti native Pierre Garcon on a 19-yard score.
Joseph Addai (77 rushig yards) also scored once for the Colts and teammate Dallas Clark had a game-high 86 yards receiving.
Brees tied a Super Bowl record with 32 completions, matching Tom Brady's mark set in Super Bowl 38 against the Carolina Panthers.
Saints' place kicker Garrett Hartley nailed 3-of-3 field goal tries of 44, 46, and 47 yards, while the Colt's Matt Stover was 1-for-2; making a 38-yarder and hooking a 51-yard try wide left.
Brees, who won his and the Saints (16-3) first Super Bowl, matched Manning, who also has one Super Bowl victory in two tries. Manning won MVP honors, beating the Chicago Bears 29-17 in Super Bowl XLI in 2007.
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