Super Bowl Capsules: Saints win 31-17 over Colts

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For images of the New Orleans Saints, click here.

For images of the Indianapolis Colts, click here.

For images of the fans, click here.

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MIAMI, Fla. — The ultimate underdogs, they ain’t. Not anymore. The Saints are Super Bowl champions now.

Who Dat? Try Drew Brees, Sean Payton and a team that has reversed its embarrassing past, carrying an entire city to the top with it. Put away those paper bags forever.

Brees and the Saints rallied to upset Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts 31-17 Sunday night in one of pro football’s most thrilling title games.

"We just believed in ourselves and we knew that we had an entire city and maybe an entire country behind us," said Brees, the game’s MVP. "What can I say? I tried to imagine what this moment would be like for a long time, and it’s better than expected."

But not something many expected from these descendants of the hapless Aints, who were 5-point underdogs.

"Four years ago who ever thought this would be happening when 85 percent of the city was under water from (Hurricane) Katrina?" Brees said. "Most people not knowing if New Orleans would ever come back or if the organization and the team would come back. ... This is the culmination of that belief and that faith."

Brees tied a Super Bowl record with 32 completions, the last a 2-yard slant to Jeremy Shockey for the winning points with 5:42 remaining. He was 32 for 39 for 288 yards.

A surprise onside kick sparked the Saints’ second-half comeback. Their 25th-ranked defense made several key stops, and Tracy Porter’s 74-yard interception return on a pass from Manning clinched it.

Manning tried to give chase, but was blocked by a New Orleans defender and fell awkwardly as the cornerback raced by. The four-time NFL MVP forlornly walked to the sideline as the Big Easy celebrations began.

"It’s time for the Saints to celebrate," he said. "It’s their field and it’s their championship."

An NFL also-ran for much of their 43 years, the Saints’ football renaissance, led by Brees and Payton, climaxed with Shockey’s touchdown and Lance Moore’s 2-point conversion catch, originally ruled incomplete but overturned on Payton’s challenge.

Porter’s pick, just as dramatic as his interception of Brett Favre’s pass to force overtime in the NFC title game, was the game’s only turnover. It’s one Manning will forever regret.

The Saints (16-3) won three postseason games this winter after winning only two in the previous 42 years. They beat Arizona, Minnesota and Indianapolis (16-3) — all division winners — for their first title, scoring 107 points and allowing only 59.

"We weren’t the Aints," Porter said. "We were a team of destiny, a team that can make big plays."

The championship came 4½ years after Katrina ravaged New Orleans, making the Saints nomads for the 2005 season. There even was some doubt they would return, but the NFL refused to abandon the city. The Superdome was repaired and the Saints won the NFC South in ‘06, their first season with Brees and Payton.

That was the season Manning won his only Super Bowl. He got the Colts off a quick start and had them in front for much of this one, but New Orleans’ league-leading offense, which scored 510 points this season, outscored Indy 31-7 after falling behind 10-0. That matched the biggest comeback in a Super Bowl.

Payton held the Vince Lombardi Trophy high over his head and ran into the end zone toward several hundred fans chanting the Saints’ rally cry: "Who dat, who dat, who dat say gonna beat dem Saints?"

Nobody can say it now.

"Everybody back in New Orleans gets a piece of this trophy," he said.

"I think I could kiss him," owner Tom Benson said.

Before many of the 74,059 fans got settled following the Who’s halftime show, the Saints worked a little football voodoo. Garrett Hartley’s onside kick was touched by the Colts’ Hank Baskett, then recovered by Chris Reis at the New Orleans 42.

"I just told our guys you’ve got to make me look good on this," Payton said. "That really becomes like a turnover."

Looking like the NFL’s most potent offense, the Saints seized the opportunity to take their first lead. It came on Pierre Thomas’ brilliant 16-yard run with a screen pass, capped by a dive into the end zone.

Manning simply shrugged, found Dallas Clark for 45 yards on a 76-yard drive, and Joseph Addai used a spin move a figure skater would envy to score from the 4.

But that was it for Indy.

"I certainly know how it was three years ago when we won," Manning said. "I know the people of New Orleans and the Saints have that same feeling right now."

Hartley, the hero of the NFC title game with his 40-yard field goal in OT, made a 47-yarder later in the third period. After Matt Stover was wide left on a 51-yarder early in the final quarter, Brees led the biggest drive in Saints history.

"We really felt as underdogs we had the better team," Payton said. "To be in that position where maybe a lot of people were picking against us, we liked the spot we were in."

Manning looked sharp on the Colts’ first two series, taking them 53 yards to a 38-yard field goal by Stover, at 42 the oldest player in Super Bowl history.

Then Manning led a 96-yard, 11-play drive that appeared almost routine, even though it tied the longest march in a Super Bowl. Addai rushed for 53 yards on the series, and Manning found Pierre Garcon behind backup cornerback Osama Young for the 19-yard score on third down.

New Orleans couldn’t match that, but did get a 46-yard field goal by Hartley to make it 10-3. Brees was sacked on third down by All-Pro defensive end Dwight Freeney, who sure looked frisky despite ligament damage in his right ankle that made his availability uncertain for two weeks.

Then Indy’s defense, ranked 18th during the season but staunch in the playoffs, really showed some power. After the Saints marched 71 yards, including 40 yards on two receptions by Marques Colston, New Orleans had third-and-goal at the 1. Mike Bell slipped trying to run right behind All-Pro guard Jahri Evans, and Thomas was stacked up at the line by Gary Brackett and Clint Sessions on fourth down.

But the Colts went against type and ran three times, leaving 35 seconds for the league’s most prolific offense to get in position for Hartley’s 44-yard field goal and a more manageable 10-6 halftime deficit.

Shootout? More like a slowdown. Indy had two three-and-outs and New Orleans had one.

But the points came quickly after halftime — mostly for the Saints.

"Look around the stadium," linebacker Scott Fujita said. "It was like 6- or 7-to-1 (Saints fans). The black and gold just poured into Miami.

"The whole world was behind us. This was bigger than just a game for the Saints. We are the world’s team."

Commentary: Brees answers ‘Who dat?’ with MVP performance

MIAMI — Drew Brees grew up in Texas and started playing for pay in faraway San Diego. But he made New Orleans his home and its cause uniquely his own.

After 43 years of futility and one of the finest quarterbacking performances ever delivered in a Super Bowl, he made sure there’s no need to ask "Who dat?" anymore.

Thanks to Brees, the answer to "Who dat say they gonna beat them Saints?" is: nobody.

"We just believed in ourselves and we knew that we had an entire city and maybe an entire country behind us," he said after being voted MVP in New Orleans’ 31-17 win over the Indianapolis Colts. "What can I say? I tried to imagine what this moment would be like for a long time, and it’s better than expected."

"I’m just feeling like it was all meant to be. What can I say? The birth of my son, and in the first year of his life we won a Super Bowl championship."

The people of New Orleans will embrace him now tighter than some of their kinfolk. It didn’t hurt, of course, that when Brees arrived in 2006, both he and the city were at a crossroad.

A torn labrum in his throwing shoulder in the final game of the 2005 season, coupled with the Chargers’ acquisition of promising young passer Philip Rivers, made Brees expendable and left him wondering whether his career was already on the downside. When Saints coach Sean Payton drove Brees around New Orleans hoping to sell him on joining the Saints, Brees realized, seeing residents struggling to cope with the devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina, that he’d found the perfect place to begin his own comeback.

"Four years ago, who ever thought this would happen?" he said, still fighting back tears.

Earlier, as confetti swirled just above the playing surface at Sun Life Stadium, Brees’ eyes were already watering, trying not to cry as he held his son, Baylen, who was wearing a Saints jersey with his father’s name on the back and a headset so the loud celebration wouldn’t scare him. Brees struggled yet one more time to keep his emotions in check as he lifted the silver Lombardi trophy over his head.

But a few minutes into his postgame interview, Brees simply quit trying.

"Eighty-five percent of the city was under water, all the residents evacuated all over the country, people never knowing if they were coming back or if New Orleans would come back," he said. "But not only the city came back, and the team came back ... when the players got there, we all looked at one another and said, ‘We’re going to rebuild together.’

"We leaned on each other," Brees said, pausing as he choked up. "This is the culmination of that."

Yet in the same way that New Orleans’ progress has come in fits and starts, so it was with the Saints on this night. After a rocky first quarter, Brees found his rhythm midway through the second quarter and finished with a record-tying 32 completions in 39 attempts for 288 yards and two touchdowns. He was never finer than during what turned out to be the go-ahead scoring drive, stringing together 10 straight completions.

What made it even more satisfying is that he outdueled Colts quarterback Peyton Manning.

"Phenomenal," wide receiver Marques Colston said. "You really can’t put that kind of performance in words. To have 32 completions and two drops, he deserves the MVP.

"Hopefully," he added, "you guys can start putting Drew in that elite quarterback conversation."

Consider it a done deal.

Jim Litke is a national sports columnist for The Associated Press. Write to him at jlitke@ap.org.

Too bad Payton can’t be MVP of Super Bowl

MIAMI — Sean Payton put in an MVP-like performance. From the sideline.

The New Orleans coach made all the right calls in the Super Bowl — even one that didn’t look so good at first, well, it turned out just fine. Thanks in large part to Payton’s bravado, the Saints won the first Super Bowl title in their franchise’s largely dismal history, beating that other Peyton — you know, Manning — and the Indianapolis Colts 31-17 Sunday night.

Payton will go down in Super Bowl lore for calling an onside kick at the start of the second half, the first time one had been attempted in this game before the desperation of the fourth quarter. The Saints recovered and drove down for a touchdown that put them ahead for the first time, 13-10.

"We were going to be aggressive," Payton said.

No kidding. Near the end of the first half, with his team trailing 10-3, Payton decided to go for it on fourth-and-goal from just outside the 1 instead of kicking a chip-shot field goal. When Pierre Thomas was stuffed for no gain, it looked as though Payton might be remembered for a big blunder.

But the Colts couldn’t do much, backed up against their own end zone, and were forced to punt it away. The Saints took over at their 48 with 35 seconds left — enough time to get back in position for Garrett Hartley, who knocked through a 44-yard field goal on the final play of the half, making sure Manning didn’t get it back.

Payton, it turned out, didn’t want Manning to have it at the start of the third quarter, either.

While The Who was rockin’ out at halftime, Payton calmly strolled up to punter and kickoff specialist Thomas Morstead to deliver the news: It was time for an even bigger gamble.

"We’re doing it," the coach said.

Morstead knew exactly what Payton meant. The Saints would attempt an onside kick the rookie had been working on less than two weeks, a bounder that he tries to "bend like Beckham."

After the teams returned to the field for the start of the second half, Morstead made sure to practice one deep kickoff, just to make sure the Colts wouldn’t suspect anything was up. Then he teed it up for real, moving forward slowly as if he was going to swing his right foot into the ball like any other deep kickoff.

Suddenly, the pigskin was hopping along the ground, headed toward Hank Baskett. The ball took a quirky bounce and ricocheted off the chest of the Colts receiver, setting off a mad scramble that took more than a minute to sort out. Finally, the officials made their call.

Saints ball. Jonathan Casillas was given credit for the recovery, but Morstead said it was actually third-string safety Chris Reis who wound up with the ball.

Whatever the case, it was someone in a white jersey.

"No one doubted we were going to get the ball," linebacker Scott Fujita said. "You like that in a coach. He has that certain swagger to him. It carries over to the (players)."

Added Colts defensive end Dwight Freeney, "I don’t know if they caught us by surprise, but they got it. It gave them some momentum they needed going into the second half."

With the Colts back in front 17-16 and the game getting deep in the fourth quarter, Drew Brees directed a nine-play, 59-yard drive that finished with a 2-yard touchdown pass to Jeremy Shockey. The next call was a no-brainer, go for 2 in hopes of making it a seven-point game.

Brees threw a low pass toward Lance Moore, who bobbled the ball before regaining control right at the goal line. The official immediately ruled incomplete, but Payton wasn’t going to take that for an answer. No doubt aided by his assistants upstairs who had a look at the replay, the coach decided to challenge the call.

If the referee had ruled against New Orleans, it would have cost them a potentially crucial timeout in a tight game. But the replay showed that Moore did have control and barely got across the line for a 24-17 lead instead of 22-17.

Payton pumped his fists, celebrating another decision that went his way.

Tracy Porter clinched it for the Saints with a 74-yard interception return for a touchdown, and Payton was reticent about accepting any praise.

"It’s really a credit to everyone, these players here," he said. "They carried out the plan."

But, as the final seconds ticked off, those players sought out their coach.

Payton was lifted into the air and hauled to the middle of the field above everyone else.

Just like an MVP.

-- Paul Newberry

La. native Porter seals Saints SB win

MIAMI — Right before getting on the team bus to go to the Super Bowl, Tracy Porter sat in the Saints’ downtown Miami hotel, getting his head shaved by his regular New Orleans barber.

Patches of hair left on Porter’s mostly bald head included a rendering of the Louisiana Superdome, connected by a road to the Vince Lombardi Trophy, as well as "SB 44," a reference to the Saints’ meeting with the Indianapolis Colts in the 44th Super Bowl.

"Now you can look at the Lombardi Trophy on the same road back to the Superdome," Porter said.

And that once unthinkable truth came thanks in no small part to Porter himself, a Louisiana native — and former Indiana University player — who made two of the biggest interceptions in Saints history in consecutive games.

His 74-yard touchdown on an interception of Peyton Manning gave the Saints an insurmountable two-touchdown lead late in the fourth quarter of New Orleans’ 31-17 victory over the Colts on Sunday night.

In the NFC title game, his late interception of Brett Favre stalled Minnesota’s potential game-winning drive. The Saints went on to beat the Vikings in overtime to earn their first Super Bowl berth in the club’s 43-year history.

When asked how it felt to make a huge interception against a quarterback such as Manning in such a big game, Porter had already been there.

"I got the same question when I picked off Brett Favre. Peyton, he’s a phenomenal quarterback, a first-ballot Hall of Famer, such as the previous two quarterbacks we played in the playoffs," he said, also referring to Arizona’s Kurt Warner. "I’ve been watching (Manning) since my time at Indiana put up points on the scoreboard."

Growing up in Port Allen, across the Mississippi River from Baton Rouge, Porter watched the Saints every Sunday with his family and friends. He remembers bags on the heads of embarrassed fans during the lean years.

"This is a moment he could really use to build off of and really elevate his status," Saints safety and active NFL interception leader Darren Sharper said. "I tell him all the time, ‘Tracy, if you wanted to be, you could be one of the top cornerbacks in the league the rest of your career’ because he has all he intangibles, all the talents to do that. And days like this in big-time games are what catapults guys to the upper echelon of players."

Porter said it was a case of film study paying off. He recognized the formation, with Austin Collie going in motion, and knew Manning would be looking for Reggie Wayne right around the needed distance for a first down.

"When I saw Austin Collie go in motion I said, ‘Oh yeah, this is the route they’ve been running all year,’ and yeah, I had it in my mind I was going to jump the route," Porter said. "It was just like I was watching it on film and I made the break on it and here comes the end zone."

He followed a couple of blocks, made one cut, and there was nothing but open field in front of him. He knew he was going to score and pointed to the stands, where Saints fans were jumping out of their seats with delight.

"I was pointing at the Who Dat nation out there," he said.

Manning called the interception a "great play."

"Porter made a heck of a play," Manning said.

Porter was drafted by the Saints in 2008 and earned a starting cornerback spot in his rookie season. But that year was cut short by a broken wrist in the first half of the season.

This season, Porter went down Nov. 15 with what was thought to be a season-ending knee injury at St. Louis.

"I was told that it was a severe knee injury and that I could be out for the year," Porter recalled. "During that time I was real down, thinking I wasn’t going to come back — second year in a row — thinking maybe I was jinxed. I was going to be labeled as that player who wasn’t durable."

The next day, Porter — and the Saints — got good news. It was a severe sprain. His season wasn’t over. He returned in Week 15 and played brilliantly in the playoffs.

Now, in the midst of Mardi Gras season, his family, friends, and Saints fans in New Orleans and all across the Gulf South have another reason to party.

"This team means more to the people of New Orleans than I can say any team in the NFL. I can say no one is behind their team as much as the people of New Orleans," Porter said. "They’re just as much a part of this victory as we are."

-- Brett Martel

Shockey leaves a mark on Super Bowl this time

MIAMI — Jeremy Shockey wasn't sitting in a suite for this Super Bowl. Instead, he was a big part of the New Orleans Saints' sweetest victory.

Shockey hauled in a touchdown catch for the go-ahead score Sunday night, helping the Saints beat the Indianapolis Colts 31-17 for their first NFL championship.

And for Shockey, that 2-yard score had to feel like redemption.

"A great feeling," he said. "I work hard in my career, in my profession. ... I don't just do this for the money or anything. I've got metal in my leg. I've got broken bones. I've got ligaments that are torn and I do this for the love of the game. The passion I have for it, it's still there."

Only two short years ago, that passion was in question.

Shockey was with the New York Giants — in name only — when they upset New England in the 2008 Super Bowl. He watched that title game from a suite above the field and felt like an outcast after breaking his left leg and missing their scintillating playoff run.

That essentially set up his trade to New Orleans. This ring, he can say he earned.

"I know there's a lot of people out there that think, I don't know, negative thoughts about me," Shockey said.

But does he feel redeemed as a player now?

"Yes," he said.

The stat sheet will say he had only three catches for 13 yards in the title game. The Saints will quickly say that Shockey did so much more than that on the way to this championship.

The Saints were thought of by some as a finesse team until Shockey came along, with his rough-and-tumble ways and a personality seeming more suited for professional wrestling than professional football.

Just what New Orleans needed, Reggie Bush said.

"I told him, 'God had a different plan for you,'" said Bush, the Saints' flashy running back and returner. "He's got to appreciate it. I know he does. Shockey's brought so much to this team, an attitude that we definitely needed. ... We needed a guy like Shockey to bring that aggressiveness to our offense, and he's been nothing but special from Day 1."

Blond, bold and brash, Shockey came to the NFL from the Miami Hurricanes, where he blossomed into a star.

He caught 74 passes for 894 yards as a rookie with the Giants in 2002. Both of those numbers still represent career highs.

On Sunday, he got the best moment of his career.

"This game is very humbling," Shockey said. "Any chance you get to make a play, a lot of hard work has gone into that. I've probably run that route 1,000 times in my career, probably only caught a couple touchdowns off of it, but only one in the Super Bowl."

It came with 5:42 left in the game, when he caught a pass from Drew Brees and barreled backward into the end zone, putting the Saints ahead for good. Shockey tossed the ball to the sideline, wanting it as a keepsake.

A ballboy picked it up instead. No matter. Shockey will have plenty of other ways to remember this one.

"To be part of something that's been building, an organization that's never had any success in the postseason and being a part of that is very special. Obviously, always winning is very special," Shockey said. "I have great memories of winning in high school, junior high, college, the Giants and now with the Saints. It's about as special as it gets."

-- Tim Reynolds

New Orleans fetes Saints victory, Carnival season

NEW ORLEANS — Saints fans hugged, kissed, and spilled onto the streets Sunday as a citywide party erupted after their once woebegone NFL franchise defeated the Indiapolis Colts in the Super Bowl.

French Quarter crowds, beefed up by tourists in town for Carnival season and by those wanting to experience the euphoria of a Saints victory, poured onto Bourbon Street to celebrate in a scene that looked more like Fat Tuesday than a Sunday night. The Saints won 31-17 in the franchise’s first appearance in the big game.

As a brass band played "When the Saints Go Marching In" inside Irvin Mayfield’s Jazz Playhouse, revelers jumped up and down, stood on chairs and tables and waved black and gold umbrellas when the Saints won.

"This is so awesome," said Darlene Milliet, as she hugged her sister, Cindy Lasiter, both of them crying in the French Quarter. "I can’t believe it!"

"It’s like a dream come true. It’s just a dream come true," said Lasiter.

Vince Scanil, a Tampa Bay Buccaneers fan in town for an anniversary weekend with his wife, said he remembered how special it was when his team won their first Super Bowl, but it seemed extra special for New Orleans, a city that suffered so much after Hurricane Katrina.

"Our hearts pour out for them. What a great city to win it," he said as plastic beads swung from his neck and he watched revelers. "It’s a heartwarming thing, the Saints."

Trina Pearley-Brown was raised by her mother to be a Saints fan, and she was carrying on the legacy even though her mother died before Katrina.

"You can’t describe it. It’s so awesome. We’ve been waiting for this for years," said 47-year-old from Gramercy, La. "It’s means so much to the city. They’re back. They’re alive."

It was a similar scene along a row of neighborhood bars and restaurants on Maple Street, not far from Tulane and Loyola universities, where college students and area residents, most clad in black and gold, hit the street screaming and cheering. Fireworks resounded and flares lit up the sky.

"House of the Rising Sun" blared from speakers at Bruno’s Tavern, where patrons sprayed each other with champagne and beer.

The victory capped a weekend of Saints-centered celebration along Carnival parade routes. The spirit bled into the political arena. The city had elected a new mayor Saturday, Mitch Landrieu, and supporters prefaced his victory speech by chanting "Who Dat Say Dey Gonna Beat Dem Saints."

The celebrations began hours before the game, as dogs dressed in Saints jerseys and gaudy floats carrying masked riders provided a rolling pre-game tailgate party for thousands as New Orleans started partying long before the Super Bowl kicked off.

David Frazier and Daphne Naro, of the San Francisco area, were among the parade goers along Canal Street at the edge of the French Quarter. The game brought them back to New Orleans, Frazier’s home town.

"The Saints in the Super Bowl, man. That’s a once-in-forever thing," Frazier said.

In the French Quarter, the afternoon celebrations began with the procession of the "Krewe of Barkus," a mini-parade for dogs. Dogs sporting black and gold feathers, beads, sequins and Saints jerseys marched with their owners through the Quarter.

One yellow labrador retriever walked the parade route past St. Louis Cathedral dressed like Saints tight end Jeremy Shockey, complete with stringy blond wig and fake tattoos running down his legs below the No. 88 jersey.

"He has a laid-back surfer personality, like Shockey," said Stas Zhuk, gesturing to 2-year-old Diego being walked by his wife. "He’s friendly to everyone."

They moved to New Orleans six months ago, "so we became intense rabid fans in a short amount of time," Zhuk said.

-- Kevin McGill and Stacey Plaisance

Saints fans in Miami celebrate Super Bowl win

MIAMI — Saints fan Peggy Byrd says New Orleans winning the Super Bowl helps wash away some tough times.

The 56-year-old Byrd said she believed that the New Orleans Saints could win the big game, and that’s what fans shouted as they left the stadium after the Saints beat Indianapolis Colts 31-17 on Sunday night.

Peggy and husband Rocky lost all their possessions in Hurricane Katrina, even their wedding photos.

"This is the best feeling since Katrina," she said. "I can’t believe it. We knew what a good team we had."

In 1979, she got a notarized contract with her boss at The Peoples Bank in Biloxi, Miss., that if the Saints ever made it to the Super Bowl he would pay her way. He ended up paying for her husband, too.

"The first thing I did was look up at the sky and say, ‘Thank you Lord,"’ she said after New Orleans won.

Many Saints fans said they saw people crying in the stands. Others cheered "Who Dat? Who Dat?" as they began a night of partying in South Florida.

"It’s been a long time coming, but we kept the faith," said Madeline Henderson, from Shreveport, La. "It was very touching ... So happy for the city, the state, the team."

Ezra Azizo, 21, is originally from New Orleans but was forced to move to New York after Katrina. A student at Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City, he dropped a class to get a refund and use the money to come to Miami to watch the Saints. He said his father pays his tuition. He got $1,600 back.

"It’s one of the greatest days of my life," he said. "I was in shock and awe."

Paula and Charles Mitchell of New Orleans agreed that winning was a wonderful feeling.

She pointed to a bracelet she was wearing that said "hope" on it.

"We deserved this," she said.

They said they were going back home to throw a Super Bowl party.

Russell Baker, 25, stood in the stands after the game, gold paint peeling from his face. He wore a T-shirt with Reggie Bush’s face on it and his sister, Kristen, had a black crown atop her head.

"Oh my God! It doesn’t even make sense," Russell Baker said. "We used to be the ‘Aints. We wore brown bags on our heads and now we’re Super Bowl champions!"

Baker’s sister wore yellow ribbons in her hair and gold cape. She carried a sign proclaiming that she loved the Saints "even before they were famous."

"Oh my gosh, I’ve never been happier in my whole life," Kristen Baker said. "This is the best day of my whole entire life. I’ve been waiting 29 years for this."

Some fans wondered about the festivities that were going in New Orleans.

"Our boys have worked so hard, the coaches have worked so hard," said New Orleans resident Gloria Newman, who turns 83 in March. "The town has been behind them for so many years, and we feel like we deserve it. It’s time for some good times for the city. And you know they’re partying in New Orleans tonight. Bourbon Street must be really jumping."

But maybe one fan summed it up.

"We just walked out of heaven, baby," said Thomas Krefft, 43, from Slidell, La.

-- Lisa Orkin Emmanuel

Manning throws away bid for one final comeback

MIAMI — Peyton Manning spent the whole season building toward a Super Bowl crown, a win that certainly would put him among the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history.

And then he threw it all away.

Blocked onto his butt, Manning could only watch as Tracy Porter returned an interception for a clinching, 74-yard touchdown in the final minutes Sunday that gave the New Orleans Saints a 31-17 victory over the Indianapolis Colts.

"It’s certainly disappointing. Very disappointed. Disappointed," Manning said.

It was a startling end to a Super Bowl that seemed destined to wind up in Manning’s strong right hand. It was the lone turnover of a back-and-forth thriller — who in the world would have thought the big mistake could be made by Manning?

Yet there he was, sitting on the grass after brawny Saints defensive end Will Smith knocked him down as he tried to make a tackle. Manning took a glance over his shoulder to watch Porter’s romp to the end zone, unbuckled his chin strap, stood up and simply walked toward the bench.

"We probably never got into a great rhythm. We were certainly worse in lapses in our final possession," Manning said.

All week, this was the story line in Miami: Could Manning, a New Orleans boy through and through, deny the Saints in a game they desperately wanted to win for their city?

Turned out he helped his hometown team win its first Super Bowl — only not in the way he imagined.

Dad Archie Manning, the longtime star Saints quarterback, got caught smack in the middle.

"I was pulling for the Colts. I’m not quite over that, but I’m happy for New Orleans," he said.

"I don’t know if I’m going to celebrate or not. Maybe later, when the city does, but I’m not in a celebrating mood. Glad to see everybody else in New Orleans celebrate. That’s enough for me now," he said.

Added Archie: "I’m proud of him. ... It just wasn’t meant to be."

His son repeated the word "disappointing" at least 10 times in his postgame interview session, using it to describe everything from the Colts not having the ball much in the second quarter to the interception that decided the title.

"We played well in the first playoff game, played well two weeks ago. We just didn’t make enough plays against the Saints," Manning said.

"I understand how excited the Saints are, their families and the city of New Orleans is going to be," he said. "I’m sorry to our fans that we weren’t able to get it done."

Until Porter cut in front of receiver Reggie Wayne on the left side, Manning seemed to be in charge. The four-time MVP did his dance at the line of scrimmage, putting his teammates in position, and zipped pass completions all over the field.

The Colts set an NFL record with seven fourth-quarter comebacks this season, and surely most everyone at Sun Life Stadium thought ol’ Peyton was at it again. Down 24-17, the Colts were driving toward a tying score until Porter sealed it with 3:12 left.

Manning had been MVP of the Colts’ victory in the Super Bowl on the very same field three years ago, and was a good bet to win the trophy once more. Instead, the night finished the same way his final college game at Tennessee ended — a bruising loss to Nebraska, also on this field.

Even after Porter’s pick, Manning tried to rally the Colts. He moved them near the Saints’ goal line, but a final pass to Wayne fell incomplete.

Saints quarterback Drew Brees, the beneficiary of Manning’s pep talks while in college at Purdue, took a knee to run out the clock and start New Orleans’ party.

Manning left the field without seeing Brees.

"I’ll certainly talk to Drew," Manning said. "There’s not much consolation for the guys that didn’t win. There’s the stage being set up and the celebration."

Manning wound up 31 for 45 for 333 yards and one touchdown. He finished one short of the Super Bowl record for completions set by Tom Brady and tied by Brees, though the one pass he threw to the Saints will be the one that fans remember, and it’ll be the pick that’s shown on highlight films for years.

"It’s kind of a play we’ve run a lot. Porter made a heck of play," Manning said.

Said Porter: "It was great film study. The coaches did a great job of preparing us for that route."

Known for their late rallies, the Colts lost by letting the Saints outscore them 15-0 in the final 15 minutes.

As he walked from the sideline to the huddle with his head down to start the fourth quarter, Manning suddenly found himself surrounded by three dozen Colts cheerleaders rushing off the field after their routine. He stopped, let them pass and kept on his way.

Early in the period, Manning made one of his few bad throws, floating a deep ball that fell incomplete near the goal line. Manning threw down a towel when he got to the bench.

Moments later, the giant video board showed his younger brother, Eli, in the crowd. Eli was the MVP of the Super Bowl two years ago as QB of the New York Giants, but there was no celebrating this time.

Most celebrities such as Jamie Foxx, Gloria Estefan and Scottie Pippen smiled when they showed up on the board. Not Eli. He merely looked straight ahead, a blank stare.

-- Ben Walker

Colts’ supporting cast falls short in Super Bowl

MIAMI — Peyton Manning’s supporting cast helped him reach the Super Bowl.

The Colts’ inability to get the little things right Sunday left all of them empty-handed.

From the dropped passes to the missed tackles, the failure to recover an onside kick to Manning’s game-sealing interception, Indianapolis blew chance after chance.

The result: Saints 31, Colts 17.

"I can’t say we ever saw that coming at all," center Jeff Saturday said. "They just outplayed us."

It was the first time all season Indianapolis could definitively say that.

After all, this was the can’t-miss Colts.

After breaking the NFL record with 23 consecutive regular-season wins, setting the league record for most victories in a decade (115) and giving up a shot at a perfect season, the Colts had only one goal: earning a second ring.

Well, that quest can start again next year. The Colts got it all wrong in Miami.

Indy’s young receivers, Pierre Garcon and Austin Collie, both failed to come up with big third-down catches. Reggie Wayne had only five catches for 46 yards and failed to get into the end zone.

Manning made an uncharacteristic gaffe, too, throwing a ball straight to cornerback Tracy Porter, who jumped Wayne’s route and ran it back 74 yards for the decisive score.

"He made a great play, he just made a great play, that’s all I can say," Manning said.

The Colts defense had its own problems.

All-Pro defensive end Dwight Freeney was the only pass rusher to get consistent pressure on New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees. And Freeney was playing with a torn ligament in his right ankle, which became more problematic in the second half after it stiffened up.

The Colts also repeatedly missed tackles, allowing New Orleans to pick up extra yardage and keep driving for scores.

None of it went according to the plan.

"What we did do well was take away the big plays," defensive captain Gary Brackett said. "What we didn’t do well was wrapping up."

One of the decisive miscues came on special teams.

Hank Baskett had a chance to make the Saints pay when they opened the second half with a surprise onside kick, trailing 10-6. The little-used receiver got his hands on the ball, but let it bounce away and New Orleans recovered to set up a TD drive.

Baskett’s wife, Kendra Wilkinson, was so upset she walked to the back of her suite. Baskett didn’t take questions after the game.

Teammates, however, called it the turning point.

"As the special teams captain, I felt like we didn’t do the little things right," safety Melvin Bullitt said. "If we do, we’re getting the ball there at the (Saints’) 40 and it might have been a totally different game."

Maybe.

But the way Indy played, it might not have mattered.

After New Orleans kicked its first field goal early in the second quarter, Garcon dropped a third-down pass that hit him in the shoulder. Indy ran only six plays in the period and didn’t pick up a first down.

There was more of the same in the second half.

Collie was stopped for a 3-yard loss on second-and-8, a play Manning bemoaned could’ve have gone for a first down had the rookie turned upfield. Manning came right back to Collie, who couldn’t catch a third-down pass.

On Indy’s next series, Porter picked off Manning and the Saints led 31-17 with 3:12 to go.

"You never know how it’s going to turn out," said Manning, a former Super Bowl MVP. "The Colts started hot, the Saints came back. We just didn’t play well enough at certain times and in certain phases. The Saints deserved to win."

-- Michael Marot

Colts fans disappointed but respectful of Saints

INDIANAPOLIS — Colts fans were disappointed after the 31-17 loss to New Orleans on Sunday night, but some retained a soft spot for the Saints.

Many Colts fans empathized with New Orleans because the city endured Hurricane Katrina and the franchise had never before been to a Super Bowl.

"They needed a morale boost, the people of that area," Colts fan Floyd Newson said.

"I’m disappointed that the Colts lost, but it’s hard to hate the Saints," said Dan Barnett, an Indianapolis native who lives in Chicago.

Some fans in the state of Indiana cheered for Saints quarterback Drew Brees, who played his college ball at Purdue University. Sentiment was divided near the West Lafayette, Ind. campus in the days leading up to the game.

Brees passed for 288 yards and two touchdowns and was named the game’s MVP. Tim Berry, a Purdue graduate who watched the game at Jillian’s in downtown Indianapolis, is a Colts fan who said he could live with Brees getting a ring.

"It’s good to see Drew Brees win, but it would have been better to see Peyton Manning win."

Dion Ray, a Saints fan from Chicago, wore a black Brees jersey to the pro-Colts establishment.

"I like Drew Brees, and it was about time for the Saints," he said.

The atmosphere throughout Indianapolis was festive well before the game. Blue jerseys and shirts were the Sunday best for members of Circle City Church in northeast Indianapolis. Bars, especially those downtown, had large crowds.

Some fans appreciated the chance to cheer for the Colts in their second Super Bowl appearance in four years, considering that coach Jim Caldwell replaced Tony Dungy and longtime star receiver Marvin Harrison no longer is with the team.

"Going into the season, no one thought the Colts could get this far with all the changes they made," said Arlindo Chimbanda, who lives in Indianapolis.

The mood at Jillian’s varied. When the Saints recovered an onside kick to start the second half, it was nearly silent.

The crowd got excited again when Joseph Addai scored on a 4-yard run in the third quarter to put the Colts up 17-13.

The crowd buzzed as the Colts entered the fourth quarter up 17-16. So many times this season, Manning came through in the final 15 minutes.

This time, he threw an interception to former Indiana University player Tracy Porter, who returned it 74 yards for a touchdown with 3:12 to play. That touchdown put the Saints up 31-17 and sent some patrons to the exit and others into tears.

Colts fan Tony Joyner of Indianapolis couldn’t believe Manning struggled with the game on the line.

"Man, I don’t know. I do not know. Manning with the interception? But you’ve got to give it up to the Saints, they played good. If it ain’t us, there’s no other team I’d rather win than the Saints."

Colts fans had hoped to see Manning elevated into legendary status.

"I really think I would like to see Peyton Manning go down as one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time," Cord Hale said before the game. "Rings do matter when you look back in history."

Some fans believe Manning will get another shot.

"I do hate that they lost, I really do," Joyner said. "But we will be back. Saints, I don’t know about that, but we will be back."

-- Cliff Brunt