Brees makes quick work of Eagles defense

Injured Eagles linebacker Stewart Bradley walked into the Philadelphia locker room and first went to defensive backs Sheldon Brown and Quintin Mikell.

Bradley, who is sitting out the season because of a knee injury, patted Brown on the back, and the dejected three talked quietly for a few minutes, Mikell occasionally making hand motions while trying to explain how Drew Brees and the Saints had rendered the Eagles' defense helpless.

"They executed," Brown told reporters later. "When you play that team, you have to create turnovers. And you can't have any. That's it."

Sounds simple until Brees is thrashing the secondary for 311 yards and three touchdowns. Taking advantage of every mistake made by the Eagles, the Saints' quarterback led what looked like effortless drives down the field in a 48-22 rout.

Brees has completed 75 percent of his passes this season for nine touchdowns, with two interceptions. The Saints are the first team since the 2001 Colts to score at least 40 points in its first two games. (It should be noted that Indianapolis finished 6-10.)

The Eagles defenders said Brees hadn't done anything unexpected. What he did just couldn't be stopped. Brees completed passes to nine different receivers, including eight catches by Marques Colston, who scored two touchdowns.

"I think with our group, each game you never know whose day it's going to be," Brees said. "Did we know it was going to be [Colston's] day? No. We get into the heat of it and all of a sudden he's got the hot hand, so we're feeding him."

Most emblematic of the Saints' ability to capitalize quickly were the three scoring drives that took a combined 3 minutes, 6 seconds off the clock late in the second quarter and early in the third. That flurry turned a tie score into an 18-point New Orleans lead.

On the first possession of the game, Brees was 5 for 5 on an eight-play, 74-yard drive that ended with a 15-yard TD pass to a wide-open Colston in a corner of the end zone.

"It is very important for this offense every game that we get off to a quick start," Saints running back Mike Bell said. "We want to start quick, and that way it will set the tempo for the game."

Part of what makes Brees and the Saints' offense so good is their speed. Last week, the Eagles forced five turnovers against Carolina starter Jake Delhomme, but Brees' quickness didn't allow the same amount of pressure in the backfield. Brees was sacked only twice - once by Juqua Parker, resulting in a fumble that Saints tight end Jeremy Shockey recovered for a loss of 14 yards.

"He gets the ball off quick," Eagles cornerback Joselio Hanson said. "It seemed like we were a step behind. He knows where he wants to go with the ball.

"Drew Brees is an animal. He's one of the best."

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