NASHVILLE – They may be the defending Super Bowl champions, but the New Orleans Saints looked much more like the Ain’ts – as in the Not Theres – Thursday night against the Tennessee Titans inside LP Field.
With Saints quarterback Drew Brees and 18 of his fellow starters never leaving the bench, the Titans used a touchdown pass from starting quarterback Vince Young and a late scoring barrage from the third-teamers to overcome the New Orleans reserves 27-24.
“It appeared that both teams were staying kind of basic and just playing, but it was some good football,” said Titans coach Jeff Fisher. “It was good to get [Chattanooga High graduate] Tony Brown back. Overall, we made some plays.”
The Titans complete the preseason with a 2-2 record while New Orleans finishes 2-2.
The Saints had a sound reason for resting the vast majority of their starters. They open the regular season this coming Thursday against the Minnesota Vikings, while the Titans don’t begin play until three days later against Oakland.