Spokesman-Review
National Football League
New Orleans 38, Green Bay 3
When: 4:25 PM ET, Sunday, September 12, 2021
Where: TIAA Bank Field, Jacksonville, Florida
Temperature: 83°
Head Official: Carl Cheffers
Attendance: 35242

Jameis Winston tied a career-high with five touchdown passes and New Orleans intercepted Aaron Rodgers twice in the Saints' 38-3 victory in the season opener for both teams Sunday in Jacksonville, Fla.

Winston made his first start for the Saints in the wake of Drew Brees' retirement after a 15-year tenure and passed for just 148 yards, but he completed 14 of 20 with no interceptions in a much more efficient performance than reigning MVP Rodgers had.

Rodgers completed 15 of 28 passes for 133 yards and a 36.8 passer rating before being replaced by Jordan Love in the fourth quarter.

The game was moved to Jacksonville from the Caesars Superdome after Hurricane Ida damaged New Orleans two weeks ago. The Saints have practiced in the Dallas-Fort Worth area since canceling their preseason finale.

With Green Bay trailing 17-3 coming out of halftime, Rodgers drove the Packers to the Saints' 9 on the first possession of the third quarter, trying to pull within a touchdown. But Saints rookie Paulson Adebo snagged an interception at the 7-yard line and returned it out to the Saints' 40.

After the Packers defense held, Rodgers threw another interception on the ensuing possession, with Marcus Williams intercepting a deep pass and returning it 53 yards to the Packers' 12.

That led to Winston's 10-yard touchdown pass to Chris Hogan and a 24-3 Saints lead after three quarters.

Winston added an 8-yard touchdown pass to Juwan Johnson and a 55-yarder to Deonte Harris in the fourth quarter.

The Saints received the opening kickoff and drove to Aldrick Rosas' 44-yard field goal for a 3-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Winston threw a 3-yard touchdown pass to Alvin Kamara for a 10-0 lead on New Oreleans' second possession.

On their third possession, Winston converted a fourth-and-7 with a 12-yard completion to Johnson on the way to a 1-yard touchdown pass to Johnson on another fourth down for a 17-0 New Orleans lead.

To that point the Packers had run just 12 plays over two possessions. Rodgers drove them 54 yards in six plays and Mason Crosby made a 39-yard field goal as time expired to cut New Orleans' lead to 17-3 at halftime.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
Rushing
Green Bay   New Orleans
AJ Dillon Player Alvin Kamara
4 Attempts 20
19 Yards 83
4.8 Avg Yards 4.2
0 Touchdowns 0
6 Long 14
Receiving
Green Bay   New Orleans
Davante Adams Player Deonte Harris
5 Receptions 2
56 Yards 72
11.2 Avg Yards 36.0
0 Touchdowns 1
31 Long 55
Team Stats Summary
 
  Yards Scoring Defense
Team Tot Rus Pas TD FG INT Sck FF
Green Bay 229 43 186 0 1 0 0.0 0
New Orleans 322 171 151 5 1 2 2.0 1
Upcoming Games
  • New Orleans will play their next game on the road against Carolina. The Saints have a W/L % of 1.000 after a win and .000 after a loss.
  • Green Bay will play their next game at home against Detroit. The Packers have a W/L % of .000 after a win and .000 after a loss.