Wikipedia

2002 New Orleans Saints season

The 2002 season was the New Orleans Saints' 36th in the National Football League (NFL), their 27th playing home games at the Louisiana Superdome, and third under head coach Jim Haslett. They improved upon their previous season's performance of 7–9, winning nine games.[1] Despite the winning season, and ranking third in total offense in 2002, the team failed to qualify for the playoffs for the ninth time in the last 10 seasons. This was the first season in which the Saints wore gold jerseys. They did so during a home game against the Minnesota Vikings in week 15. They would not wear them again until the 2025 season

2002 New Orleans Saints season
General managerMickey Loomis
Head coachJim Haslett
Home stadiumLouisiana Superdome
Results
Record9–7
Division place3rd NFC South
PlayoffsDid not qualify
All-ProsDeuce McAllister (1st team)
Michael Lewis (ST)
Fred McAfee (ST)
Pro BowlersDeuce McAllister (RB)
Joe Horn (WR)
Michael Lewis (KR)
Fred McAfee (ST)

A bright moment during the season for the Saints was sweeping the eventual Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Those two wins were almost guaranteed to make New Orleans a playoff team; however, three consecutive losses, all to losing teams, including one to the 1–13 Cincinnati Bengals, knocked New Orleans out of playoff contention.

Offseason

edit
AdditionsSubtractions
WR Jerome Pathon (Colts)RB Ricky Williams (Dolphins)
TE David Sloan (Lions)T Willie Roaf (Chiefs)
CB Ken Irvin (Bills)DT La'Roi Glover (Cowboys)
WR Jake Reed (Vikings)CB Fred Weary (Falcons)
T Victor Riley (Chiefs)DE Joe Johnson (Packers)
CB Dale Carter (Vikings)T Daryl Terrell (Jaguars)

NFL draft

edit
2002 New Orleans Saints draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
1 13 Donté Stallworth  Wide receiver Tennessee
1 25 Charles Grant  Defensive end Georgia
2 44 LeCharles Bentley *  Guard Ohio State
3 82 James Allen  Linebacker Oregon State
4 125 Keyuo Craver  Defensive back Nebraska
5 150 Mel Mitchell  Defensive back Western Kentucky
6 186 J. T. O'Sullivan  Quarterback UC Davis
6 196 John Gilmore  Tight end Penn State
7 224 Derrius Monroe  Defensive end Virginia Tech
      Made roster    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

[2]

Undrafted free agents

edit
2002 undrafted free agents of note
Player Position College
Frank Cutolo Wide receiver Eastern Illinois
Todd Elstrom Wide receiver Washington
Chonn Lacey Safety Temple
Andrew LeClair Linebacker North Dakota State
Derrick Lewis Wide receiver San Diego State
Jerry Montgomery Defensive tackle Iowa
Jeff Reed Placekicker North Carolina
Rick Sherrod Safety West Virginia
Demetrius Smith Fullback Southwest Missouri State

Personnel

edit

Staff

edit
2002 New Orleans Saints staff

Front office

  • Owner – Tom Benson
  • Executive vice president/general manager – Mickey Loomis
  • Senior football administrator – Russ Ball
  • Director of player personnel – Rick Mueller
  • College scouting coordinator – Rick Thompson

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

 Defensive coaches

Special teams coaches

  • Special teams – Al Everest

Strength and conditioning

  • Strength and conditioning – Rock Gullickson
  • Assistant strength and conditioning – Evan Marcus

Roster

edit
2002 New Orleans Saints roster
Quarterbacks (QB)

Running backs (RB)

Wide receivers (WR)

Tight ends (TE)

 Offensive linemen (OL)

Defensive linemen (DL)

 Linebackers (LB)

Defensive backs (DB)

Special teams (ST)

 Practice squad

Reserve

Rookies in italics
53 active, 2 reserve, 4 practice squad

Regular season

edit

Schedule

edit

Under the NFL's new scheduling formula, the Saints' non-divisional conference opponents in 2002 were primarily from the NFC North, although they also played former divisional rival the San Francisco 49ers from the NFC West, and the Washington Redskins from the NFC East. Their non-conference opponents were from the AFC North.

Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance
1 September 8 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers W 26–20 (OT) 1–0 Raymond James Stadium 65,554
2 September 15 Green Bay Packers W 35–20 2–0 Louisiana Superdome 67,958
3 September 22 at Chicago Bears W 29–23 3–0 Memorial Stadium 63,216
4 September 29 at Detroit Lions L 21–26 3–1 Ford Field 60,023
5 October 6 Pittsburgh Steelers W 32–29 4–1 Louisiana Superdome 67,734
6 October 13 at Washington Redskins W 43–27 5–1 FedExField 80,768
7 October 20 San Francisco 49ers W 35–27 6–1 Louisiana Superdome 67,903
8 October 27 Atlanta Falcons L 35–37 6–2 Louisiana Superdome 67,883
9 Bye
10 November 10 at Carolina Panthers W 34–24 7–2 Ericsson Stadium 72,566
11 November 17 at Atlanta Falcons L 17–24 7–3 Georgia Dome 70,382
12 November 24 Cleveland Browns L 15–24 7–4 Louisiana Superdome 68,295
13 December 1 Tampa Bay Buccaneers W 23–20 8–4 Louisiana Superdome 68,226
14 December 8 at Baltimore Ravens W 37–25 9–4 Ravens Stadium 69,334
15 December 15 Minnesota Vikings L 31–32 9–5 Louisiana Superdome 67,851
16 December 22 at Cincinnati Bengals L 13–20 9–6 Paul Brown Stadium 43,544
17 December 29 Carolina Panthers L 6–10 9–7 Louisiana Superdome 66,946

Game summaries

edit

Week 2: vs. Green Bay Packers

edit
Week 2: Green Bay Packers at New Orleans Saints
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Packers 0 10 7320
Saints 7 14 7735

at Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana

Game information

First quarter

  • NO – Deuce McAllister 4-yard run (John Carney kick), 9:19. Saints 7–0. Drive: 11 plays, 68 yards, 5:41.

Second quarter

  • GB – Ryan Longwell 27-yard field goal, 10:23. Saints 7–3. Drive: 15 plays, 71 yards, 7:31.
  • NO – Jerome Pathon 5-yard pass from Aaron Brooks (John Carney kick), 5:12. Saints 14–3. Drive: 5 plays, 21 yards, 2:53.
  • NO – Donte Stallworth 34-yard pass from Aaron Brooks (John Carney kick), 2:03. Saints 21–3. Drive: 4 plays, 52 yards, 1:16.
  • GB – Terry Glenn 14-yard pass from Brett Favre (Ryan Longwell kick), 0:40. Saints 21–10. Drive: 1 play, 14 yards, 0:08.

Third quarter

  • NO – Keyuo Craver 28-yard fumble return (John Carney kick), 13:53. Saints 28–10.
  • GB – Donald Driver 26-yard pass from Brett Favre (Ryan Longwell kick), 0:31. Saints 28–17. Drive: 6 plays, 71 yards, 2:31.

Fourth quarter

  • GB – Ryan Longwell 36-yard field goal, 4:31. Saints 28–20. Drive: 12 plays, 61 yards, 6:03.
  • NO – Deuce McAllister 2-yard run (John Carney kick), 2:00. Saints 35–20. Drive: 4 plays, 73 yards, 2:31.

Top passers

  • GB – Brett Favre – 29/44, 270 yards, 2 TD, INT
  • NO – Aaron Brooks – 16/28, 217 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT

Top rushers

  • GB – Ahman Green – 17 rushes, 81 yards
  • NO – Deuce McAllister – 21 rushes, 123 yards, 2 TD

Top receivers

  • GB – Terry Glenn – 9 receptions, 81 yards, TD
  • NO – Joe Horn – 6 receptions, 120 yards

Week 3: at Chicago Bears

edit
Week 3: New Orleans Saints (2–0) at Chicago Bears (2–0) – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Saints 0 14 7829
Bears 10 10 0323

at Memorial Stadium, Champaign, Illinois

Game information

First quarter

  • CHI – Paul Edinger 31-yard field goal, 7:36. Bears 3–0. Drive: 10 plays, 38 yards, 4:01.
  • CHI – Dez White 10-yard pass from Jim Miller (Paul Edinger kick), 2:47. Bears 10–0. Drive: 6 plays, 52 yards, 3:10.

Second quarter

  • CHI – Marty Booker 22-yard pass from Jim Miller (Paul Edinger kick), 13:35. Bears 17–0. Drive: 6 plays, 56 yards, 3:05.
  • CHI – Paul Edinger 25-yard field goal, 11:47. Bears 20–0. Drive: 4 plays, 6 yards, 1:30.
  • NO – Jerome Pathon 16-yard pass from Aaron Brooks (John Carney kick), 7:21. Bears 20–7. Drive: 8 plays, 84 yards, 4:26.
  • NO – Aaron Brooks 7-yard run (John Carney kick), 6:23. Bears 20–14. Drive: 2 plays, 8 yards, 0:58.

Third quarter

  • NO – Joe Horn 5-yard pass from Aaron Brooks (John Carney kick), 8:15. Saints 21–20. Drive: 12 plays, 65 yards, 6:45.

Fourth quarter

  • CHI – Paul Edinger 25-yard field goal, 8:43. Bears 23–21. Drive: 11 plays, 70 yards, 5:59.
  • NO – Donte Stallworth 29-yard pass from Aaron Brooks (Aaron Brooks run), 1:11. Saints 29–23. Drive: 7 plays, 73 yards, 2:01.

Top passers

  • NO – Aaron Brooks – 22/34, 233 yards, 3 TD, INT
  • CHI – Jim Miller – 26/40, 236 yards, 2 TD, INT

Top rushers

  • NO – Deuce McAllister – 17 rushes, 45 yards
  • CHI – Anthony Thomas – 27 rushes, 111 yards

Top receivers

  • NO – Jerome Pathon – 5 receptions, 71 yards, TD
  • CHI – Marty Booker – 8 receptions, 97 yards, TD

Week 4: at Detroit Lions

edit
Week 4: New Orleans Saints at Detroit Lions
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Saints 0 7 8621
Lions 13 7 3326

at Ford Field, Detroit, Michigan

Game information

First quarter

  • DET – Jason Hanson 23-yard field goal, 12:03. Lions 3–0. Drive: 6 plays, 17 yards, 2:57.
  • DET – James Hall 22-yard fumble return (Jason Hanson kick), 10:31. Lions 10–0.
  • DET – Jason Hanson 34-yard field goal, 5:41. Lions 13–0. Drive: 7 plays, 36 yards, 3:42.

Second quarter

  • DET – Bill Schroeder 38-yard pass from Joey Harrington (Jason Hanson kick), 4:53. Lions 20–0. Drive: 3 plays, 80 yards, 1:30.
  • NO – Donte Stallworth 4-yard pass from Aaron Brooks (John Carney kick), 1:25. Lions 20–7. Drive: 12 plays, 91 yards, 3:28.

Third quarter

  • DET – Jason Hanson 23-yard field goal, 7:24. Lions 23–7. Drive: 7 plays, 36 yards, 2:27.
  • NO – Deuce McAllister 12-yard run (Aaron Brooks run), 3:41. Lions 23–15. Drive: 7 plays, 72 yards, 3:43.

Fourth quarter

  • DET – Jason Hanson 38-yard field goal, 11:47. Lions 26–15. Drive: 7 plays, 17 yards, 2:58.
  • NO – Jerome Pathon 6-yard pass from Aaron Brooks (Run Failed), 3:41. Lions 26–21. Drive: 9 plays, 82 yards, 2:22.

Top passers

  • NO – Aaron Brooks – 27/48, 269 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT
  • DET – Joey Harrington – 20/35, 267 yards, TD

Top rushers

  • NO – Deuce McAllister – 12 rushes, 61 yards, TD
  • DET – James Stewart – 18 rushes, 65 yards

Top receivers

  • NO – Joe Horn – 6 receptions, 87 yards
  • DET – Az-Zahir Hakim – 3 receptions, 98 yards

Week 15: vs. Minnesota Vikings

edit
Week 15: Minnesota Vikings (3–10) at New Orleans Saints (9–4) – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Vikings 14 10 0832
Saints 10 10 3831

at Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana

Game information

First quarter

  • NO – John Carney 40-yard field goal, 11:50. Saints 3–0. Drive: 5 plays, 17 yards, 3:10.
  • MIN – Daunte Culpepper 4-yard run (Gary Anderson kick), 8:21. Vikings 7–3. Drive: 6 plays, 69 yards, 3:29.
  • MIN – Daunte Culpepper 6-yard run (Gary Anderson kick), 1:01. Vikings 14–3. Drive: 11 plays, 71 yards, 5:42.
  • NO – Michael Lewis 97-yard kickoff return (John Carney kick), 0:48. Vikings 14–10. Drive: 0 plays, 0 yards, 0:13.

Second quarter

  • MIN – Gary Anderson 41-yard field goal, 11:59. Vikings 17–10. Drive: 9 plays, 57 yards, 3:49.
  • NO – John Carney 34-yard field goal, 5:25. Vikings 17–13. Drive: 12 plays, 44 yards, 6:34.
  • NO – Jake Reed 35-yard pass from Aaron Brooks (John Carney kick), 0:53. Saints 20–17. Drive: 8 plays, 65 yards, 1:28.
  • MIN – Randy Moss 33-yard pass from Daunte Culpepper (Gary Anderson kick), 0:12. Vikings 24–20. Drive: 5 plays, 80 yards, 0:41.

Third quarter

  • NO – John Carney 27-yard field goal, 0:55. Vikings 24–23. Drive: 14 plays, 75 yards, 8:06.

Fourth quarter

  • NO – Deuce McAllister 17-yard pass from Aaron Brooks (Aaron Brooks–Joe Horn pass), 5:21. Saints 31–24. Drive: 9 plays, 74 yards, 4:35.
  • MIN – Randy Moss 13-yard pass from Daunte Culpepper (Daunte Culpepper run), 0:05. Vikings 32–31. Drive: 13 plays, 73 yards, 5:16.

Top passers

  • MIN – Daunte Culpepper – 26/36, 312 yards, 2 TD
  • NO – Aaron Brooks – 21/33, 255 yards, 2 TD

Top rushers

  • MIN – Daunte Culpepper – 7 rushes, 73 yards, 2 TD
  • NO – Deuce McAllister – 18 rushes, 69 yards

Top receivers

  • MIN – Randy Moss – 11 receptions, 113 yards, 2 TD
  • NO – Joe Horn – 5 receptions, 60 yards

Standings

edit

Division

edit
NFC South
 W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
(2) Tampa Bay Buccaneers 12 4 0 .750 4–2 9–3 346 196 W1
(6) Atlanta Falcons 9 6 1 .594 4–2 7–5 402 314 L1
New Orleans Saints 9 7 0 .563 3–3 7–5 432 388 L3
Carolina Panthers 7 9 0 .438 1–5 4–8 258 302 W2

Conference

edit
NFC
# Team Division W L T PCT DIV CONF SOS SOV
Division leaders
1[a] Philadelphia Eagles East 1240.750 5–111–1.469.432
2[a][b] Tampa Bay Buccaneers South 1240.750 4–29–3.482.432
3[a][b] Green Bay Packers North 1240.750 5–19–3.451.414
4 San Francisco 49ers West 1060.625 5–18–4.504.450
Wild Cards
5 New York Giants East 1060.625 5–18–4.482.450
6 Atlanta Falcons South 961.594 4–27–5.494.429
Did not qualify for the postseason
7 New Orleans Saints South 970.563 3–37–5.498.566
8[c] St. Louis Rams West 790.438 4–25–7.508.446
9[c] Seattle Seahawks West 790.438 2–45–7.506.433
10[d] Washington Redskins East 790.438 1–54–8.527.438
11[d] Carolina Panthers South 790.438 1–54–8.486.357
12 Minnesota Vikings North 6100.375 4–25–7.498.417
13[e] Arizona Cardinals West 5110.313 1–55–7.500.400
14[e] Dallas Cowboys East 5110.313 1–53–9.500.475
15 Chicago Bears North 4120.250 2–43–9.521.430
16 Detroit Lions North 3130.188 1–53–9.494.375
Tiebreakers[f]
  1. 1 2 3 Philadelphia finished ahead of Tampa Bay and Green Bay based on conference record (11–1 vs 9–3/9–3).
  2. 1 2 Tampa Bay finished ahead of Green Bay based on head-to-head victory.
  3. 1 2 St. Louis finished ahead of Seattle based on division record (4–2 to 2–4).
  4. 1 2 Washington finished ahead of Carolina based on common games (2–3 to 1–4)
  5. 1 2 Arizona finished ahead of Dallas based on head-to-head victory.
  6. ↑ When breaking ties for three or more teams under the NFL's rules, they are first broken within divisions, then comparing only the highest-ranked remaining team from each division.

References

edit
  1. ↑ 2002 New Orleans Saints
  2. ↑ "2002 New Orleans Saints Draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved January 5, 2014.
edit
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=2002_New_Orleans_Saints_season&oldid=1361840860"