JERSEY CITY, New Jersey (Ticker) -- Lamar Smith, Aaron Brooks
and Willie Jackson outplayed the likes of Edgerrin James,
Marshall Faulk and Kurt Warner on the first day of the NFL
playoffs.
And on the day the New Orleans Saints recorded their first
playoff win and knocked out the defending Super Bowl champion
St. Louis Rams, their former coach, Jim Mora, is still looking
for his first postseason victory.
Smith capped a club playoff-record 209-yard rushing performance
with a 17-yard touchdown 11:26 into overtime to lift the Miami
Dolphins to a 23-17 victory over the Indianapolis Colts in an
AFC wild card game.
The Dolphins (12-5) will meet the Oakland Raiders (12-4) net
Saturday in the divisional playoffs.
In his first postseason start, Brooks passed for four
touchdowns, including three to Jackson, as the Saints built a
24-point lead and held on for a 31-28 victory over the Rams.
The Saints (11-6) earned their first-ever playoff win and will
visit the Minnesota Vikings (11-5) next Saturday in the
divisional playoffs.
Smith's 209 yards is the second-best in NFL playoff history,
behind only Eric Dickerson's 248 in 1985 for the Los Angeles
Rams against Dallas. Larry Csonka held the team record with 145
yards against Minnesota in Super Bowl VIII in January 1974.
With 40 carries, Smith set a playoff record, surpassing the mark
of 38 shared by John Riggins and Ricky Bell.
"I didn't have any idea the game was going to end up like it did
today with me playing such a large role," Smith said.
Miami rallied from a 14-0 halftime deficit and tied it at 17-17
when Jay Fiedler hit tight end Jed Weaver with a nine-yard
touchdown pass with 34 seconds left in the fourth quarter.
Indianapolis (10-7) had a chance to win, but Mike Vanderjagt
missed a 49-yard field goal attempt in overtime. He missed just
two field goals the entire season (25-of-27) and converted
three, including a 50-yarder, in regulation today.
Mora slipped to 0-6 in postseason games, four with New Orleans
and two with Indianapolis.
"I don't feel snakebit at all," he said. "We just have to get
better so we can get the job done. We'll be back."
Miami rallied from a 14-0 halftime deficit, overcoming three
interceptions by Fiedler, thanks to Smith and a defense that
held Indianapolis' high-powered offense to a field goal after
halftime.
James, the NFL rushing champion in each of his two NFL seasons,
carried 21 times for 107 yards and caught three passes for 33
yards but was overshadowed by Smith.
Manning completed 17-of-32 passes for 194 yards and a touchdown.
Six days ago, NFL Most Valuable Player Marshall Faulk rushed for
a career-high 220 yards and three touchdowns to lead St. Louis
to a 26-21 win at New Orleans. The victory, coupled with
Detroit's loss to Chicago, clinched a playoff berth for the
Rams.
This time, Saints coach Jim Haslett vowed Faulk would not beat
him and he changed from an umbrella defense designed to stop the
pass to a more aggressive scheme. The revised game plan worked
for more than three quarters as the Saints built a 31-7 lead.
While Brooks directed the offense like a seasoned veteran, Faulk
was held to 24 yards on 14 carries and Pro Bowl quarterback Kurt
Warner was intercepted three times -- twice by safety Sammmy
Knight.
"We had to get to No. 28 (Faulk) and take him out of the game
and obviously put as much pressure on Kurt Warner as possible,"
said Saints Pro Bowl defensive tackle La'Roi Glover. "Maybe not
to sack him, but let him feel our presence a little bit. We did
that."
Ironically, Warner set an NFL record for most touchdown passes
in his first playoff start with five last season against
Minnesota. Brooks fell one shy of tying it in his postseason
debut, hitting Jackson from 10, 49 and 16 yards and Robert
Wilson from 12. He completed 16-of-29 passes for 266 yards with
an interception.
With three TD catches, Jackson tied a playoff record held by
several players and finished with six receptions for 142 yards.
Jerry Rice of San Francisco was the last to have three touchdown
grabs, in Super Bowl XXIX against San Diego.
Jackson's performance was especially significant since Saints
star receiver Joe Horn suffered a severely sprained right ankle
in the first half and did not return.
"As far as the records go, it doesn't mean anything if we didn't
win," Jackson said.
The Rams (10-7) staged a furious fourth-quarter rally, scoring
21 points in a seven-minute span to pull within 31-28.
"We just dug ourselves to big a hole here," Rams coach Mike
Martz said. "We just couldn't overcome that. We tried like
crazy at the end. The turnovers killed us."
Warner hit Ricky Proehl for a 17-yard touchdown, but Faulk
failed to score on the two-point conversion with 9:36 left.
Faulk turned a short pass into a 25-yard touchdown with 3:52
left and, after Dre' Bly recovered an onside kick, Warner scored
on a five-yard run and connected with Faulk on the two-point
conversion to pull the Rams within 31-28 with 2:36 remaining.
However, after St. Louis' defense held, Az-Zahir Hakim muffed a
punt and Brian Milne recovered for the Saints at the Rams
11-yard line with 1:43 left to seal the win. It was the fifth
turnover of the game for the Rams.
The Saints had lost their previous four postseason games between
the 1987 and 1992 seasons under Mora.
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