Bobby Hebert was not holding back after the New Orleans Saints cruised to a blowout 38-3 win over the Green Bay Packers.
“This victory goes down as one of the greatest regular season victories in Saints history and top three in the Sean Payton-era.”
The Packers have advanced to the NFC Championship each of the last two seasons and three of the past five. They were the #1 seed in the NFC last year and the #2 seed the year before. Quarterback Aaron Rodgers is the reigning-MVP.
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With a new starting quarterback, their top wide receiver out recovering from an injury, and their starting center exiting with an injury on the first drive, the Saints offense churned out efficient drives and scored 38 points. Meanwhile, the defense held the Packers to just 3 points, handing Rodgers the worst loss of his career.
“Paulson Adebo, you couldn't have a greater start to a career,” Hebert said. “Being a rookie and going out there [with] his swagger and the way he played, unbelievable. It's truly outstanding.”
Adebo, a third round draft pick out of Stanford, had three tackles, one pass deflection, and one interception, picking off Rodgers in the redzone. He was just one of several defenders who helped harry and harass the Green Bay offense all afternoon, allowing them to convert just 10% of their third downs.
“They were 1-10 [on third down], 1-10,” Hebert emphasized. “If you're 1-10, you're not winning anything. You're not even winning anything in Little League.”
Hebert also highlighted the time of possession discrepancy.
“The first half was ridiculous,” Hebert said. “How can Aaron Rodgers score if he's on the bench? You can't score when you're on the bunch.”
Overall, New Orleans possessed the ball for 34:36 to Green Bay's 25:24; and, as Hebert said, it was much more lopsided in the first half. In the first 30 minutes, the Saints had the ball for 21:51 while the Packers had it a mere 8:09.
“[Your performance] is never 100%,” Hebert said. “But you had a lot more positives than the few negatives. Just an outstanding performance from top to bottom, to say the least.”
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Hebert pointed out another part of the dominant defensive performance: the Saints have now gone 23 games – regular season and postseason – without allowing a 300 yard passer. You have to go back to a loss to the San Francisco 49ers on December 8, 2019 for that. For some context, Rodgers crossed the 300 yard mark six times in 18 total games last season.
The bottom line for the Cajun Cannon?
“That was a convincing win. I know we're struggling and suffering a lot of adversity here in south Louisiana, but the Saints know how to help you feel good for a few hours to escape.”