Silva: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for NFC teams.
SportsTalk: Albert Pujols signs with the Angels and Prince Fielder joins the Tigers. Which team is better now?
Ryan Callahan scored three goals as the New York Rangers beat Philadelphia 5-2 on Saturday for their seventh straight win over the Flyers.
Jeremy Lin hit a free throw with 4.9 seconds left to overcome a dreadful second half and lift the New York Knicks to their fifth straight victory, 100-98, over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday night.
Arc's five up, five down: After No. 11 Michigan State's 58-48 upset of No. 3 Ohio State, you'd be a fool to discount the Spartans title chances now.
CFT: Jordan Jefferson makes it clear he wasn't happy with LSU's game plan in the Tigers' BCS Championship Game loss to Alabama.
Move over, Hollywood and NFL types, golf's two real A-listers take center stage Sunday at Pebble Beach, both in need of a win.
The United States swept favored Switzerland out of the Davis Cup on Saturday when Mardy Fish and Mike Bryan beat Roger Federer and Stanislas Wawrinka 4-6, 6-3, 6-3, 6-3.
Luis Suarez's refusal to shake hands with Patrice Evra overshadowed Manchester United's 2-1 win over rival Liverpool that lifted the defending champions to first place in the Premier League on Saturday.
Marlies Schild of Austria won her sixth World Cup slalom of the season Saturday after overall leader Lindsey Vonn and defending champion Maria Hoefl-Riesch crashed out in the opening run on the windy Pyrenees course.
Robins: It’s the Year of the Dragon on the Lunar calendar, and this Chinese influence could extend to it also being the year of the Pekingese on the green carpet at the 136th Westminster Dog Show on Tuesday.
ATLANTA - The New Orleans Saints are still perfect, which is all that matters.
They’re not the least bit worried about another close call.
Drew Brees threw for 296 yards and three touchdowns, Jonathan Vilma came up with two huge defensive plays, and the Saints pulled out another tight win, 26-23 over the pesky Atlanta Falcons on Sunday.
A week ago, New Orleans (13-0) appeared on the verge of losing until Washington missed a chip-shot field goal in regulation. The Saints rallied for a 33-30 overtime win.
This time, they struggled to hold off an Atlanta team that was missing injured stars Matt Ryan and Michael Turner. The result was in doubt until Vilma came up with a crushing fourth-down hit on Jason Snelling, stopping him a yard short of the marker with just over a minute remaining.
New Orleans joined Indianapolis, also a winner Sunday, as one of seven NFL teams to reach 13-0. Still, these last two games have been the closest margins of a season dominated by double-digit wins.
A cause for concern?
“Why would we be concerned? We’re 13-0,” Vilma said. “You’re not going to get many blowout wins in the NFL.”
Or, as Brees said, “We call that being battle-tested.”
While lacking in style points, New Orleans set a franchise record for wins in a season, clinched a first-round bye in the playoffs and moved a step closer to home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs.
“It’s only going to get harder from here on out,” Brees said. But “no matter what the situation, we always feel like we have an opportunity to win. Whether it’s our offense, defense or special teams, somehow we’re going to find a way to win the game.”
Garrett Hartley put New Orleans back ahead on a 38-yard field goal with a 4:42 remaining after the Falcons rallied from two touchdowns down to tie it at 23.
Atlanta still had a couple of chances to pull out an improbable victory. Vilma stopped them both.
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First, the linebacker dropped into coverage to pick off a pass that Chris Redman, filling in again for Ryan, intended for Roddy White over the middle. The Saints failed to score any points off that miscue, attempting a fake field goal that didn’t work.
The Falcons were trying to get into field-goal range when they faced fourth-and-2 at the New Orleans 46. Redman threw short to Snelling, but Vilma plastered the running back for only a 1-yard gain. Atlanta had run the very same play out of the same formation earlier in the game, so Vilma read it all the way.
The Saints’ defense gave up 392 yards and forced only one Atlanta punt, but it didn’t cost them.
“We always want them to put it on our shoulders at the end of the game,” Vilma said.
The Falcons (6-7) lost for the sixth time in eight games and their playoff hopes are all but over. They will need to win out to avoid extending one of the most unwanted streak in sports — Atlanta has never had consecutive winning seasons during its 44-year history.
As for the Saints, they’re chasing history. Three more wins to go for a perfect regular season, something that only three other teams have done.
“It means a lot to us,” Brees said. “These kind of years don’t come around very often.”
Silva: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for NFC teams.
Wesseling: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for AFC teams.
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Jeremy Lin hit a free throw with 4.9 seconds left to overcome a dreadful second half and lift the New York Knicks to their fifth straight victory, 100-98, over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday night.
Wesseling: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for AFC teams.
Silva: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for NFC teams.
