For the first time in franchise history, the New Orleans Saints advance towards the NFL’s grand finale: the Super Bowl. The Saints gained their ticket after defeating the Minnesota Vikings, 31-28. In that game, it was Garrett Hartley who led his team to victory. Hartley scored a 40-yard field goal in overtime, breaking the 28-28 score at the end of regulation. With the victory, which also gave the Saints the National Football Conference (NFC) title, the Black and Gold left behind the difficulties they had experienced in the last five years. They surpassed the hard moments after Hurricane Katrina, which left them stigmatized as a regular team during that time. The game also gave the New Orleans players to show a completely renovated and unified team, under the guidance of Sean Payton. The home side played one of its best games, committing only a few errors on the field. "It’s a moment I've waited a long time and we are not done," said Saints quarterback, Drew Brees, who was recruited by Payton to lead New Orleans to its revival. Both teams appeared formidable at the beginning of the games. But shortly thereafter, the Saints superiority became clear; the Vikings, who tried to match their rivals, simply couldn’t avoid making several mistakes. The first quarter became a scene of strong direct attacks. Both teams’ defense had to work hard, posing seemingly indestructible walls. Until, of course, Minnesota managed to open the score with a touchdown from Adrian Peterson, followed by a field goal from kick Ryan Longwell. With the score 7-0 in favor of the visiting team, the Saints responded quickly. They reacted with a 38-yard pass from Drew Brees to Pierre Thomas, who turned it into a touchdown and tied the score 7-7. The Vikings then took the lead 14-7, thanks to Sidney Rice, who scored a touchdown after receiving a 5-yard pass from Brett Favre. In the second quarter, the level of intensity only increased. Brees made another pass, this time to Davery Henderson, who made the touchdown catch and converted, putting score 14-14. Near the end of this period, the Vikings lost a ball that would have given them the opportunity to score a field goal. The Saints started the third quarter with a touchdown (21-14), the second one for Pierre Thomas. Then, with a touchdown from Peterson (21-21), Favre and his teammates manage to replace the goal they lost in the second half. At this point, the game posed a powerful challenge to both teams, neither of which was willing to give up and lose an opportunity to reach the NFL finals. In the fourth, the Vikings made more mistakes. The most serious came when they left a fumble that was recovered by Near Orleans and turned into a goal, moving the scoreboard to 28-21. The match seemed decided, but with four minutes left in the game, Peterson evened the score 28-28. The game moved into overtime. Once in overtime, the Saints prevailed 31-28 with a 40-yard field goal from Hartley. Those final points pushed New Orleans into the Super Bowl, where they will face the Indianapolis Colts on February 7th.
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