Saints Down Falcons, 31-27

Chris Ivory #29 of the New Orleans Saints runs past  Dunta Robinson #23 of the Atlanta Falcons to score a touchdown at The Mercedes-Benz Superdome on November 11, 2012 in New Orleans, Louisiana.

The New Orleans Saints continued their climb back to the .500 mark, by downing the previously undefeated Atlanta Falcons, 31-27, on Sunday afternoon at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana.

For New Orleans, it was their fourth win in their last five outings, after losing their first four games this season, while Atlanta lost for the first time this year.

The Falcons scored the first ten points of the game, and held a 10-0 lead at the 9:24 mark of the opening quarter, but the Saints scored 28 of the next 35 points, and held a 28-17 lead at the 9:37 mark of the third quarter.

Atlanta came back however, and trailing 31-27, they had a chance to take the lead, with the football inside the Saints' 10-yard line. But the New Orleans defense held, forcing Atlanta to turn the ball over on downs, icing another Saints' win.

Atlanta out-gained New Orleans, in terms of total yardage, 454-440, including a 408-292 advantage through the air.

The Saints were led by quarterback Drew Brees, who completed 21-of-32 passes for 298 yards and three touchdowns, while Chris Ivory and Mark Ingram combined for 139 yards on 23 carries.

Quarterback Matt Ryan paced the Falcons in a losing cause, throwing for 411 yards and three touchdowns.

With the win New Orleans improved to 4-5, while Atlanta fell to 8-1.

The Saints travel to Oakland, California next Sunday, to face the Oakland Raiders.

View the game box score.