Saints Lack One Key Player: Joe Montana : Football: When looking for a weak link in New Orleans, all fingers point to quarterback John Fourcade.

Please, someone tell the New Orleans Saints one more time about how a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. They saw the 49ers breathe life into that cliche Monday night, but somehow the realization couldn’t quite sink below the surface.

The Saints have that defense, a swarming mass that squeezed the 49ers until they very nearly popped. That link, for one night, proved to be as strong as graphite.

Then there is that offense. And to get right to it, that quarterback, John Fourcade. That’s the frayed-twine link, the broken seam in a 13-12 loss to the 49ers.

The Saints’ defense did everything it could to keep the offense propped up. Faced with the circumstances, it really had no choice.

The Saints sacked Joe Montana six times and continually forced him out of the pocket. They held Roger Craig to 23 yards in 12 carries. They held Jerry Rice to two catches for 26 yards. And they wound up watching Mike Cofer kick a 38-yard field goal to beat them with nine seconds left.

“I think the 49ers seriously thought they were gonna lose,” Saints cornerback Toi Cook said. “I think all 68,000 people here thought they were gonna lose. But they didn’t lose.”

Enter Fourcade. He completed 12 of 34 passes for 186 yards and three interceptions. But the numbers, stark as they are, don’t even touch on the details.

Fourcade threw into coverage. He threw off the wrong foot. He threw about six weird kind of passes that wobbled long enough for every 49er to come over and slap them away. One of those had the misfortune of landing in the hands of cornerback Darryl Pollard in the Saints’ end zone. The 49ers scored their only touchdown nine plays later.

“We didn’t play great offense,” Fourcade said. “When you get down there as often as we did and only get four field goals, then that’s my fault. I’m the quarterback and I have to lead the team. The quarterback has to get them there. You just can’t get four field goals and expect to beat a team like San Francisco.

“You know, I’m not Joe Montana. I’m not the greatest quarterback who ever lived, but I’m out there trying.”