Jacob Mayer

The New Orleans Saints will travel north this weekend for a Sunday evening matchup with the defending Super Bowl-champion New York Giants.

The two slumping teams will have each something to prove as New Orleans has dropped two straight heartbreakers, while New York has lost three of their last four games and are beginning to lose their footing atop the always-tough NFC East Division.

The Saints fell short last night against archrival Atlanta, 23-13 in the Georgia Dome in front of a sell-out crowd and a national television audience.

New Orleans has dominated the Falcons over the past seven seasons, winning eleven out of their last 13 meetings before yesterday, but couldn’t overcome one of the worst games of quarterback Drew Brees’ career.

The San Francisco 49ers dealt the New Orleans Saints a serious blow to their playoff hopes, defeating them 31-21 Sunday in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.

Despite an improved defensive effort, the Saints were unable to overcome a couple of big plays and offensive miscues.

The Saints’ defense yielded a season-low 375 yards to the 49ers offense but couldn’t overcome a pair of crucial interceptions by Drew Brees.

Brees was 26 of 41 for 267 yards and three touchdowns, but he threw two interceptions which were returned for touchdowns.

The Saints improved their record to 5-5 with a 38-17 win over the Raiders in Oakland on Sunday.

The offense continued its balanced attack, rushing for more than 100 yards for the third consecutive game. Mark Ingram led the way for the Saints’ ground game, rushing 12 times for 67 yards and a touchdown.

Drew Brees provided another masterful performance, completing 74.1 percent of his passes for 219 yards and three touchdowns.

Lance Moore caught two of Brees’s touchdown passes, totaling 53 yards.

The New Orleans Saints handed the Atlanta Falcons their first loss of the 2012 season Sunday in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome by a margin of 31-27.

The Falcons started the season on a roll, traveling to New Orleans with an unblemished 8-0 record. But, despite Atlanta’s successes, the Saints always seem to slow the Falcons down.

In their last 13 meetings, the Saints have now defeated the Falcons eleven times, and four straight overall.

The Saints beat the Philadelphia Eagles 28-13 at the Superdome, showing flashes of their old brilliance.

“Bend but don’t break,” could have been the mantra for the historically bad New Orleans Saints defense during a game that featured some defensive miscues and a few spectacular plays by the Eagles’ skill position players — most notably a 77-yard bomb from Michael Vick to DeSean Jackson in the third quarter.