The victory wound up being so easy for New Orleans that Payton began pulling his regulars early in the fourth quarter.

It was more like what Saints fans had gotten used to earlier in the season, when New Orleans was blowing out opponents en route to a 13-0 start.

The Saints then finished the season on a three-game skid, averaging 14.7 points during that stretch. But New Orleans finished as the NFC’s top seed anyway, and players said after their bye week that they’d return healthy and in top form.

“We had a plan the whole time,” said Brees, who passed for 247 yards. “It was hard for anybody to understand that plan if you’re not a member of my team, but we trusted in that plan, that process. We executed throughout the week and it showed in the game.”

Looking to inspire the club, Payton on Friday signed fan favorite Deuce McAllister, who was inactive but led the team out onto the field before the game alongside Bush, who was wielding a black baseball bat with the inscription, “Bring the wood.”

It didn’t appear as though the Saints would be delivering a beating when the game started, though.

Arizona took the opening kickoff, and with the Superdome crowd howling madly to fire up the defense, Tim Hightower burst through a huge hole on the first play from scrimmage, cut back left and stunned the crowd into silence with a 70-yard TD run. It was the fourth rushing touchdown of 66 yards or more given up by New Orleans this season.

But the Saints had 59:41 left to make up for it. They needed one series to tie it, with Hamilton’s 1-yard run capping a more methodical 10-play, 72-yard drive.

On Arizona’s next possession, Warner hit Jerheme Urban cutting across the middle, but Randall Gay stripped him from behind and the ball bounced right to Darren Sharper, who returned it to the Cardinals 37. That led to Brees’ 17-yard scoring strike to Shockey, who hopped as if the right foot injury that kept him out of the last three regular-season games was bothering him.

New Orleans was off to the races, scoring its third TD in 6:46 when Bush ran left, stopped, started again, danced away from two defenders who fell on each other missing him, then rocketed into the open field for his 46-yard TD.

“He’s a guy who can change the game,” Payton said.

A 4-yard touchdown run by Chris “Beanie” Wells made it 21-14, but the Saints went back up by two TDs when Brees hit Henderson on a flea flicker for a 44-yard score.

Colston’s 2-yard touchdown catch made it 35-14 at halftime.

Notes: Arizona was 1 of 8 on third down and had the ball for only 23:33. ... Aside from Hightower’s touchdown on the first play, the Cardinals ran for only 31 yards. ... New Orleans hadn’t won by more than three points since a 38-17 victory over New England on Nov. 30.

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