Chris Ivory impressive in New Orleans Saints victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
With Drew Brees at quarterback, the New Orleans Saints have earned the reputation of being deadly through the air, but it was rookie running back Chris Ivory and the Saints run game who stole the show,
leading the Saints to a 31-6 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday 17 October.
How it happened
Although it was Ivory who kept the chains moving by racking up 158 yards on 15 carries, it was Brees and Co. who put the points up on the board as he hit Lance Moore and Robert Meachem for 40-yard first
half strikes, as the Saints went into half-time up 17-0.
Brees threw his third touchdown pass of the day to Heath Evans who capped off an 8-play, 46-yard drive with a four-yard catch for a touchdown to make it 24-0 for the visitors.
Michael Spurlock caught a two-yard pass from Josh Freeman in the fourth quarter to get Tampa on the board. Ladell Betts finished off the scoring with a one-yard run late in the fourth helping the Saints
cruise to an easy victory.
What they're saying
Team-mates were quick praise Ivory and his impressive performance.
"He's a young back that's got a lot of talent, still learning his way around this league," Brees said. "Obviously, he had a huge day."
Saints head coach, Sean Payton, also thought Ivory played well but admits that the young running back still has room to grow.
"He does some good things, and there's some things he's got to work on to get better. But I thought he ran hard."
As for Ivory, himself, he's just happy to have the opportunity.
"I've been working hard at practice every day of the week, trying to get better. ... You put the work into it, something is going to come out of it," he said. "I know every game probably is not going to
be the best, but I'm going to try and take a step every game."
What it all means
The Saints will be happy to have bounced back after a tough loss last week to the Arizona Cardinals which saw Brees throw three interceptions. They may now feel as though they have more options running
the ball than they did before which could help limit Brees' number of throws. They host the Cleveland Browns next week.
There's no shame in losing to the reigning Super Bowl champs and the Bucs had done well in the first quarter of the season, though their record now drops to 3-2. They host the St. Louis Rams next week.
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