THE MATCHUP: SAINTS VS. PATRIOTS 2021 WEEK 3

The Saints (1-1) will continue their three-game leg away from the Caesars Superdome to start the season when they hit leg three with a matchup at the Patriots (1-1) at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Mass. on Sunday. Both 1-1 teams will be looking to exit the month of September and enter the month of October on the plus side.

The two teams, who feature the highest (Patriots) and fourth-highest (Saints) win totals in the NFL since 2006 enter Sunday's interconference matchup after having faced rugged division foes on the road. New Orleans will be looking to make corrections from a 26-7 loss at the Carolina Panthers at Bank of America Stadium, while the Patriots handled the New York Jets 25-6 at MetLife Stadium.

SAINTS-PATRIOTS SERIES HISTORY

The Saints and the Patriots have met 14 times with New England holding a 10-4 lead. New Orleans will be looking to break a two-game losing streak against New England and capture their first road win in Foxboro since 1995.

New England has dominated the series, including a stretch where the Patriots won the first five games between the two clubs. New Orleans posted three-straight victories from 1989-95 – all on the road. The Saints broke a three-game losing streak with a 38-17 win over the Patriots on Monday, November 30, 2009, when they improved their record to 11-0.

Eight of the 13 games have been decided by a touchdown or less - including two by a field goal. The Saints have a 3-4 record in Foxborough, having dropped the last three contests. A view of the results:

• 12/10/72 Loss, 10-17 Tulane Stadium 64,889
• 12/5/76 Loss, 6-27 @ Schaefer Stad. 53,592
• 12/21/80 Loss, 27-38 Superdome 38,277
• 12/4/83 Loss, 0-7 @ Sullivan Stad. 24,579
• 11/30/86 Loss, 20-21 Superdome 58,259
• 10/12/89 Win, 28-24 @ Sullivan Stad. 47,680
• 11/8/92 Win, 31-14 @ Foxboro Stad. 45,513
• 12/3/95 Win, 31-17 @ Foxboro Stad. 59,876
• 10/4/98 Loss, 27-30 Superdome 56,172
• 11/25/01 Loss, 17-34 @ Foxboro Stad. 60,292
• 11/20/05 Loss, 17-24 @ Gillette Stad. 68,756
• 11/30/09 Win, 38-17 Superdome 70,768
• 10/13/13 Loss, 27-30 @ Gillette Stad. 68,756
• 9/17/17 Loss, 20-36 Superdome 73,168

THE LAST MEETING

New England Patriots 36, Saints 20; September 17, 2017 @ Mercedes-Benz Superdome – If Tom Brady and the Patriots were suffering from a Super Bowl hangover, it looks as though a trip to New Orleans pulled the defending champions out of it.

The 40-year-old Brady bounced back with a vengeance from a season-opening loss, throwing three touchdown passes in the first quarter for the first time in his career, eclipsed 300 yards passing in the first half for only the second time, and New England scored 30 first-half points en route to a 36-20 victory over the Saints, who dropped their first two games of the season.

Saints quarterback Drew Brees was 27 of 45 for 356 yards and two touchdowns.

SAINTS-PATRIOTS SERIES FAST FACTS

Saints' Largest Margin of Victory vs. Patriots:

21 (Saints 38, Patriots 17, 11/30/09 at Superdome)

Patriots' Largest Margin of Victory vs. Saints:

19 (Patriots 27, Saints 6, 12/5/76 at Schaefer Stadium)

Current Series Streak:

Patriots 2 (10/13/13-present)

Saints' Longest Win Streak vs. Patriots:

3 (11/12/89-12/3/95)

Patriots' Longest Win Streak vs. Saints:

5 (12/10/72-11/30/86)

Most Points by Saints vs. Patriots:

38, (Saints 38, Patriots 17, 11/30/09 at Superdome)

Most Points by Patriots vs. Saints:

38, Saints 27 (12/21/80 at Louisiana Superdome)

Most Points, Both Teams:

65 (Patriots 38, Saints 27, 12/21/80 at Louisiana Superdome)

Fewest Points by Saints vs. Patriots:

0, Patriots 7 (12/4/83 at Sullivan Stadium)

Fewest Points by Patriots vs. Saints:

14, Saints 31 (11/8/892 at Foxboro Stadium)

Fewest Points, Both Teams:

7, (Patriots 7, Saints 0, 12/4/83 at Sullivan Stadium)

NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS IN WEEK 2

From Patriots.com

The Patriots grabbed four interceptions off of Zach Wilson that helped them build an early lead that they'd extend in the second half, coming away with a 25-6 win to record their first victory of the season.

Damien Harris bounced back from his Week 1 fumble, picking up an impressive rushing touchdown in the second half that helped put the Jets away, while Mac Jones and the rest of the offense played an efficient and mostly error-free game that was enough when paired with the Jets' turnovers.

It wasn't all perfect, but the Patriots took advantage of the Jets' mistakes and it was enough to even their season record at 1-1.

Read More: 5 Keys from Patriots' win over the Jets
Breaking down Pats' good and bad on third down vs. Jets
Game Observations: Turnovers help Patriots turn things around
Game Notes: Patriots extend streak to 11 straight wins over the Jets

NEW ORLEANS SAINTS WEEK 2 RECAP

The Carolina Panthers, a week after their season-opening win over the New York Jets, continued to take advantage of home cooking and handed the Saints a 26-7 defeat on a warm afternoon at Bank of America Stadium.

The Panthers defense seemingly took away most of the Saints' big play abilities, with New Orleans' longest play a 27-yard connection between quarterback Jameis Winston and wide receiver Lil'Jordan Humphrey. New Orleans struggled running the ball (17 carries for 48 yards) and on early downs, resulting in unfavorable situations and production on third down (2-for-11) and losing the time of possession battle 38:32-21:28.

Defensively, linebacker Demario Davis led the club with 12 tackles, while a pair of young defensive linemen in defensive tackle Malcolm Roach and defensive end Payton Turner recorded their first career interception and sack respectively.

NEW ORLEANS-NEW ENGLAND 2021 STATISTICAL COMPARISON

League Rankings

SAINTS-PATRIOTS CONNECTIONS

• New Orleans Offensive Coordinator Pete Carmichael prepped at Medway (Mass.) High School in football and baseball and went on to a baseball career at Boston College where he was a four-year letterman and team captain in 1994. Carmichael started his coaching career as an assistant coach at the University of New Hampshire in 1994
• New Orleans DL Montravius Adams went to training camp with the Patriots in 2021. Adams, Patriots linebacker Brandon King and cornerback Jonathan Jones were college teammates at Auburn
• Senior Defensive Asst. Peter Giunta is a Salem, Mass. native who played at St. Johns (Danvers, Mass.) Prep, Northeastern and served as an assistant at Brown
• New England area scout Tim Heffelfinger served in the same position with New Orleans from 1998-2005
• New Orleans WR Chris Hogan played for New England from 2016-18
• WR/RS Deonte Harty played at Assumption College
• New England Special Teams Coordinator Darren Rizzi played at the University of Rhode Island from 1989-91 and coached in Kingstown in 1992 and 1998 (head coach). Rizzi tutored Patriots CB Devin McCourty on special teams at Rutgers in 2007. Rizzi also served as head coach at the University of New Haven, where Saints assistant Special Teams Coach Phil Galiano served on his staff
• New Orleans wide receiver Marquez Callaway, running back Alvin Kamara, defensive tackle Shy Tuttle and New England running back Jakob Johnson were college teammates at the University of Tennessee
• Saints Safety Malcolm Jenkins, Patriots wide receiver Nelson Agholor and safety Jalen Mills were teammates with the Philadelphia Eagles. Mills also played at Louisiana State University
• New Orleans Guard/Center Cesar Ruiz, Patriots guard Mike Onwenu, defensive end Chase Winovich and linebacker Josh Uche were college teammates at the University of Michigan
• Patriots Special Teams Coordinator Cameron Achford is a McComb, Miss. native who played at Belhaven College and coached at Southern Mississippi and Southwest Mississippi Community College
• Patriots RB Brandon Bolden is a Baton Rouge native who played at Mississippi
• VP of Football Administration Khai Harley earned a master's degree in sports management from Springfield College
• G/T Andrus Peat and New England DE Harry Anderson were college teammates at Stanford.
• LB Demario Davis and Hogan played with Anderson with the New York Jets. Davis also played with New England K Nick Folk with the Jets from 2012-15
• Patriots DT Davon Godchaux prepped at Plaquemine HS and played at LSU from 2014-16 New Orleans S Jeff Heath and New England T Trent Brown were teammates in Las Vegas in 2020
• Patriots DE Tashawn Bower played at LSU
• New Orleans Football Administration Associate Tosen Eyetsemitan prepped at Moses Brown (Providence, R.I.) School
• New Orleans CB Paulson Adebo and New England P Jake Bailey were college teammates at Stanford in 2018
• Saints CB Desmond Trufant and Patriots CB Justin Bethel were teammates in the same Atlanta secondary in 2019
• New Orleans Assistant Secondary Coach Cory Robinson played at Central Connecticut State from 2005-2008
• Saints Football Communications Director Justin Macione is a Chelmsford native who went to Austin Prep (Reading, Mass.) and graduated from Providence College
• New Orleans linebacker Pete Werner and Patriots cornerback Shaun Wade were college teammates at Ohio State.