Saints Punish Cowboys

NEW ORLEANS —  Just when the Dallas Cowboys were regaining their old strut, the New Orleans Saints knocked them flat.

The Saints held the Cowboys without a touchdown, Troy Aikman to 16 completions and Emmitt Smith to six yards rushing in a 22-3 victory on Sunday.

“We got the dog beat out of us,” Cowboy Coach Chan Gailey said. “We’ve got a lot of work to do to get ourselves back to where we think we’ve got a chance to compete in the playoffs.”

The victory kept the Saints (6-7), who lost seven of their previous nine games, alive in the NFC playoff race. The Cowboys (8-5) could have clinched the 25th playoff berth in their 39-year history with a victory.

Dallas converted only four of 14 third downs.

“This is the best defensive game I’ve seen in a long time,” New Orleans Coach Mike Ditka said after the Saints held Dallas to eight yards rushing. “You’d have to take me back to the ‘50s or the ‘80s. This is the best I’ve seen.”

Aikman completed only 16 of 32 passes for 192 yards and was sacked twice. Smith was held to six yards in 15 carries. It was Smith’s worst game with 10 or more rushes since he had 18 yards in 11 carries against the New York Giants in 1996.

In the second quarter, quarterback Kerry Collins put the Saints ahead, 9-3, with a four-yard touchdown pass to Aaron Craver.

With 1:49 left in the half, Collins connected with Andre Hastings with an 89-yard touchdown--the second-longest scoring pass against the Cowboys. Doug Brien had a 53-yard field goal with no time left on the clock for a 19-3 halftime lead.

Brien’s second 53-yard field goal accounted for the only score of the second half.

Collins completed 16 of 28 passes for 239 yards with one interception.