blacksaint

Reciever Moore scores first touchdown; Bush has early success

Monday, October 15, 2007
By Bob Fortus

SEATTLE -- Before Sunday, the Saints had trouble putting consistent pressure on opposing quarterbacks.

Against Seattle, the Saints went on a sacking frenzy. They sacked Matt Hasselbeck five times for losses totaling 29 yards.

"We wanted to come in and try to put some pressure on the quarterback, fly around, get more different looks," said safety Roman Harper, who had two sacks on blitzes.

New Orleans, which came into the game with one sack this season, sacked Hasselbeck on the Seahawks' first possession. Hollis Thomas dropped him for a 6-yard loss, setting up a punting situation on which the Saints scored on a fumble recovery by Pierre Thomas.

Early in the second half, the Saints sacked Hasselbeck on consecutive plays. Defensive tackle Brian Young sacked him on second down, and Harper sacked him on a third-down blitz. Later, Charles Grant got his first sack this season. Harper got another sack late in the fourth quarter.

"We just rushed," Grant said. "We did a little more blitzing to free up the rush."

NICE FIRST START: Taking advantage of his first start for the Saints, Lance Moore scored his first career touchdown.

Moore, who started at wide receiver in place of Devery Henderson, scored on a 7-yard end-around in the second quarter to give New Orleans a 21-0 lead.

"I had great blocking out there," Moore said, mentioning blocks by Marques Colston and Mike Karney. "There was nobody in my face."

Moore also caught three passes for 35 yards. His 20-yard reception on the Saints' second scoring drive gave New Orleans a first down at the Seattle 35.

After the Seahawks scored in the fourth quarter to make the score 28-17, Moore recovered their on-side kick.

SPECIAL TEAMS CONTRIBUTE: The Saints grabbed the early lead with a special teams touchdown. Seattle punter Ryan Plackemeier couldn't handle a low snap from Boone Stutz. After Saints Usama Young and Chris Reis failed to come up with the loose ball, Thomas pounced on it and scored on a 5-yard return for his first career touchdown.

In the second quarter, Josh Bullocks blocked a 44-yard field-goal attempt by the Seahawks' Josh Brown. It was the Saints' first blocked kick this season.

BUSH BREAKS LOOSE: Before Sunday, Reggie Bush never had run more than 18 yards from scrimmage. In the first half against Seattle, Bush had two runs of 22 yards and another run of 19 yards.

CAMERA CAUSES DELAY: The NBC camera suspended by wires to provide overhead shots on television got a little too close to the field, causing an eight-minute delay early in the first quarter. During a Saints timeout, the camera slowly descended toward the playing surface. The camera briefly touched the field at about the Seahawks' 16-yard line.

ODDS AND ENDS: Saints defensive end Will Smith left the field early in the third quarter because of cramps. He said got an IV in the locker room. He returned to the game early in the fourth quarter. . . . For the second consecutive game, Steve Weatherford kicked off for the Saints instead of Olindo Mare. Mare kicked the extra points. . . . David Patten caught eight passes, tying his career high for receptions in a game. He had 113 yards receiving, his first game with at least 100 yards since 2004. . . . The Saints got a break on a fumble in the first half. Patten fumbled after catching a 16-yard pass in the first quarter, and the ball caromed bounced toward the Seattle goal line. The Saints gained an additional 15 yards when Eric Johnson recovered at the Seahawks' 45. The drive resulted in a touchdown catch by Johnson early in the second quarter. . . . Saints tight end Billy Miller caught two passes. The catches were his first two this season. . . . Despite their success, the Saints still were plagued by dropped passes. They had five, including Coltston's first two this season. . . . Wide receiver Terrance Copper and defensive end Josh Cooper were inactive for the first time this season.

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