Below are notes on the New Orleans Saints 2011 regular season schedule
at Green Bay Packers (Sept. 8):Game will be a matchup between the last two Super Bowl Champions…The Saints will be playing in the NFL's kickoff contest for the second consecutive season and for the third time in five seasons...New Orleans will be opening on the road for the first time since 2007…The Saints have won their last three season openers and four-of-five under head coach Sean Payton…Green Bay owns a 14-7 advantage in the series, but New Orleans has won three of the last four...In the last meeting on Monday, November 24, 2008, the Saints tied a single-game club record for scoring in a 51-29 win where QB Drew Breesthrew four touchdown passes and RB Deuce McAllisterscored his franchise-best 54th touchdown.
vs. Chicago Bears (Sept. 18): Chicago has 13-11 edge in the all-time regular season series…This will be the first time that the Bears come to the Louisiana Superdome since 2003 and since*Payton *became head coach…The Saints have a 4-2 record against the Bears in the Superdome.
vs. Houston Texans (Sept. 25): The Saints will face the Texans in both the 2011 preseason and regular season…While the two clubs have played in every preseason since 2008, preceded by joint practices, they've only met twice in the regular season since the Texans began play in 2002.
at Jacksonville Jaguars (Oct. 2): The Saints and Jaguars will square off for only the fifth time, with the two squads having split their four meetings, including a 41-24 Saints win at the Superdome in 2007…New Orleans will be making their first trip to Jacksonville since 2003, when in one of the most memorable final plays from scrimmage in NFL history, the Saints pulled off a 75-yard, three-lateral touchdown as time expired.
Carolina Panthers (at Oct. 9, vs. Jan. 1): The New Years Day contest between the clubs will mark the seventh time the two clubs have ended a regular season against each other since Carolina entered the league in 1995…The Panthers hold a 17-15 lead in the series, with the Saints coming off of their first sweep since 2001.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (at Oct. 16, vs. Nov. 16): New Orleans holds a 22-16 edge in the all-time series against the Buccaneers, the club's best winning percentage (.595) versus an NFL opponent…The two clubs have been frequent foes, even before divisional realignment in 2002…From 1977-2001, the Saints and Buccaneers met 20 times…New Orleans and Tampa Bay have split each season series since 2008.
vs. Indianapolis (Oct. 23): In a rematch of Super Bowl XLIV, the Saints and Colts will meet for the 11th time in the regular season…The last three regular season and postseason matchups between the Saints and Colts have all been nationally broadcast prime-time matchups.
at St. Louis Rams (Oct. 30):The Saints and Rams have played 69 times with St. Louis holding a 38-31 edge…New Orleans has only played their other old NFC West foes Atlanta (83) and San Francisco (71) more often…The Saints have won the last two meetings.
Atlanta Falcons (at Nov. 13, vs. Dec. 26):Atlanta holds a 45-38 regular-season advantage in the all-time series against the Saints, though New Orleans has won 8 of 10 meetings since Payton became Head Coach…Both meetings in 2010 were decided by three points; a Week three 27-24 overtime win by the Falcons at the Superdome and a Monday night 17-14 Saints win in Atlanta on December 27…The Saints have played the Falcons more than any other opponent…This will be the third consecutive year and sixth time in seven seasons that the two clubs have played on Monday Night Football.
vs. New York Giants (Nov. 28): The Giants hold a 14-11 edge in the all-time series, but New Orleans has won three of the last four contests, including the October 18, 2009 48-27 Saints win where Brees threw for 369 yards and tossed four touchdowns.
vs. Detroit Lions (Dec. 4): The Saints lead the all-time series 10-9-1…The clubs last met in the 2009 season opener, a 45-27 Saints victory at the Superdome, where Brees tied a single-game club record and tossed a career-best six touchdowns.
at Tennessee Titans (Dec. 11):Along with Houston, the Saints will face the Titans in both the preseason and regular season…Tennessee leads the series 7-4-1 and the Saints will be seeking their first win since 1993, when the Titans franchise was the Houston Oilers.
at Minnesota Vikings (Dec. 18): The Vikings lead the regular season series 18-8 and postseason rivalry 2-1, but the Saints have most recently gotten the better of Minnesota in the 2009 NFC Championship and 2010 NFL kickoff matchup…This will be New Orleans' first trip to Minnesota since 2005…The two clubs opened the 2010 NFL regular season in a September 9, 14-9 win by the Saints at the Superdome.
