ATLANTA — The New Orleans Saints are still perfect, which is all that matters.
Drew Brees threw for 296 yards and three touchdowns, Jonathan Vilma came up with two huge defensive plays and the Saints pulled out another tight win, 26-23 over the pesky Atlanta Falcons on Sunday.
A week ago, New Orleans (13-0) appeared on the verge of losing until Washington missed a chip-shot field goal in regulation. The Saints rallied for a 33-30 overtime win.
This time, they struggled to hold off an Atlanta team that was missing injured stars Matt Ryan and Michael Turner. The result was in doubt until Vilma made a crushing fourth-down hit on Jason Snelling, stopping him a yard short of the first- down marker with just over a minute remaining.
New Orleans joined Indianapolis, also a winner Sunday, as one of seven NFL teams to reach 13-0.
While lacking in style points, New Orleans set a franchise record for wins in a season, clinched a first-round bye in the playoffs and moved a step closer to home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs.
“It’s only going to get harder from here on out,” Brees said. “But no matter what the situation, we always feel like we have an opportunity to win.”
Garrett Hartley put New Orleans back ahead on a 38-yard field goal with a 4:42 remaining after the Falcons rallied from two touchdowns down to tie it at 23.
Atlanta still had a couple of chances to pull out an improbable victory. Vilma stopped them both.
First, the linebacker dropped into coverage to pick off a pass that Chris Redman, filling in again for Ryan, intended for Roddy White over the middle. The Saints failed to score any points off that miscue, attempting a fake field goal that failed.
The Falcons were trying to get into field-goal range when they faced fourth-and-2 at the New Orleans 46. Redman threw short to Snelling, but Vilma plastered the running back for only a 1-yard gain.
The Falcons (6-7) lost for the sixth time in eight games, and their playoff hopes are all but over.
