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METAIRIE, La. — For much of his time in New Orleans, Mark Ingram received more than he has given.

He earned little praise from the fan base, which booed him early in New Orleans’ game against Dallas this season.

But he never lost faith and his teammates never gave up on him.

And against Philadelphia, he finally gave more than he received. In the season’s biggest game, he ran for 97 yards and a touchdown, pacing the Saints to 185 on the ground in a two-point win.

The Saints (12-5) will need a reprise of that team rushing performance Saturday against No. 1-seed Seattle (13-3) in the NFC divisional playoffs.
It might just be what New Orleans has to do anyway, what with the weather expected to be stormy with high winds.

“I think you pay close attention to that,” coach Sean Payton said. “How long can you make the quarter last when you are with the wind. How quick can you make a quarter go by when you are against it?”

The problem is Seattle’s defense is better than Philadelphia’s. The Seahawks have held two of their past three opponents to 25 yards or less on the ground, helping them end the regular season as the league’s best total defense (273.6 ypg).

The last time the two teams played, Seattle held New Orleans to 44 yards on the ground and just 188 total on Dec. 2.

The good news for New Orleans, however, is that it’s running the ball better.

The Saints gained 126 yards in the regular season finale and 98 against the Bucs. In a win over Carolina on Dec. 8, the Saints averaged 4.1 yards per carry in a big win.

Ingram finished the season with a 4.9 yard-per-carry average while rookie Khiry Robinson was at 4.1

“I think even going into the Philly game we felt really confident that those guys are all good running backs,” right tackle Zach Strief said. “They all kind of bring something different. That’s the design of having this running back by committee.”

Read more: Mark Ingram never lost faith and teammates never gave up on him | wwltv.com New Orleans

halloween 65

Just smash the Seahawks in the mouth!!

Danno

Too bad numerous so called fans did.

SmashMouth

Well, it's not like he did not deserve it based on his early performances. What is this, his third year? I was admittedly one of the doubters, one of many. But I am really, really happy for him... and the Saints. Hope he keeps it up. We need him.

foreverfan

Schmohams

I was another doubter, praying that we would trade Mark, I thought he was a bust and a major waste of a pick. But now my feelings toward him are uncertain, if he shows big in Seattle I will wear my Ingram jersey and smile brightly.

WHODATINCA

I am not, yet, a fan of Mark Ingram. So there. We will see how he does in Seattle. He could redeem himself with me with a 150 yd. game. Otherwise, we will see how he plays next year -- if he is with us next year. He has taken WAY TOO LONG to develop.

Schmohams

I think when he had turf toe he had a long hard look at film of himself and something snapped, he gets it now.

SmashMouth

Are you calling Bama football players intellectually challenged?

Utah_Saint

Nobody is happier that Ingram's playing great now than I am but come on man, at one point this season he was averaging around 2 yards a carry, while PT and Sporles had almost double that. And in the past two seasons he had the lowest ypc of the three of them. Maybe it's just me, but questioning Ingram's ability was perfectly understandable.