New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees on where this regular season game ranks:
"We battled through adversity at times and we had things not go our way. We stayed the course. We knew the plan and we stuck with it. You could argue that there was 21 points that went against us out there. Obviously, we dropped the punt and we gave them seven. I threw the interception, which gave them seven. We get the interception and it could have been seven. That's 21 points right there that did not swing our way. We continued to battle. We stuck to the plan. Our defense played lights out. Our special teams came back with a big return. Garrett (Hartley) makes three big kicks. Offensively, we had three drives in their red zone in the fourth quarter. We stuck with it."
On if he said anything to Garrett Hartley this week:
"Yes, I told him that we believe in you and that you are our guy. We all did. I saw a lot of guys here and there giving him a pat on the back. It doesn't always go the way that you planned. Sometimes you have to fight through the adversity. It molds you and strengthens you and allows you to become the player that you are meant to be. Garrett his had his ups and downs throughout his career, but he has made a lot of big kicks for us. I think that is just the life of a kicker."
On Marques Colston getting the career receiving yards record:
"It's awesome. I thought about this today. I think it is very cool that we have a Ring of Honor now. We had the first three members inducted last week: Archie Manning, Rickey Jackson and Wille Roaf. I was looking up there at those names and I couldn't help but think of the guys on this team that will be up there. Marques Colston is one of those guys. I'm fortunate to have played with him the last eight years. Hopefully, we have quite a few more together."
Wide receiver Marques Colston on breaking the career receiving yards record:
"I knew it going in. At that point in the game, it was definitely still in the balance. The most important thing was to get the victory."
On reflecting on the record:
"I'll do anything I can to help get the win. I think everyone in this locker room has the same feeling. That's what makes us a good team."
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Kicker Garrett Hartley**on making the 42-yard field goal to tie the game:
"I don't believe anything is ever perfect, but it went down the middle and we tied it up."
On his mental mind-set:
"I just take myself out of the element. It was really funny that this happened the way that it did today because on the way to the stadium I was on the phone with John Carney. I was picking his brain a little bit. He told me the same thing he did in the NFC Championship game. When it comes down to the wire, just take yourself out of it. You can't control anything else other than getting the opportunity. That's just the way things unfolded. This one is just a little bit sweeter."
On if he was glad to get the opportunity:
"Honestly, I just wanted to get the win. I thought that we were going to get the safety and go up. Things just fell this way. The coaching staff and the players still show confidence in me. It's something I've never lost. I've been striking the ball real well. I had a couple of unfortunate breaks, but I was able to come through when the game was on the line today."
Defensive end Cameron Jordan on the physicality of the game:
"It was a physical game. That's what you expect from them. Our defensive line is so young and talented. We didn't know what we were going to be this year, but I think we found our identity. We are definitely a physical defensive line and that's how we came to play today."
On defense's attitude on the last couple of series:
"We said in the beginning of the year that we wanted (the game) to be put on us. We want to be that defense that you can rely on and not the defense that is a liability."
On stopping Frank Gore:
"Year in and year out he is a strong runner. He is agile. He is everything that they would want in a running back. I think that we did a great job containing him. We collapsed on him. The linebackers made great plays. Our defensive line held their own."
Linebacker Junior Galette on stopping the running game:
"We said earlier in the week that if we stopped the run that we'd have a really good chance of winning this game. We put us in a position to do what we do best and that is to get after the quarterback. I think we did that. We stopped the run and played hard-nosed football. Everything came down to getting after the quarterback. We had the edge tonight."
On beating San Francisco:
"This was a team that kicked us out of the playoffs two years ago. Sean (Payton) says to not look back on the past, but it still hurts. If we would have won that game, then we would have come back here and played New York at home. We know that this is a team that we might see later on in the playoffs. It's good to get that out of the way right now. Now, we are just worried about beating Atlanta."
