Saints Remain Defensive--and Unbeaten : NFC: New Orleans improves to 5-0 by limiting Atlanta to 162 yards of total offense in 27-6 win.

The New Orleans Saints completed the first perfect September in their 25-year history with a smothering defense.

On Sunday, for the third consecutive week, the Saints held their opponent to less than 200 total yards.

The result was a 27-6 victory over the Atlanta Falcons.

“They’re as good as everybody says they are,” Atlanta Coach Jerry Glanville said. “We made some mistakes, but I’m not so sure they don’t cause you to make them.”

The Saints (5-0) held the Falcons to a total of 162 yards and only 33 on the ground.

“We put a lot of pressure on them, and they got a little frustrated,” said Saint linebacker Rickey Jackson, who recovered a fumble and had three of the Saints’ five sacks on Chris Miller.

“We were trying to set the record straight. We were going to be the hardest and the cleanest team today.”

New Orleans quarterback Bobby Hebert completed 18 of 29 passes for 197 yards, including touchdown pass plays of 47 and 17 yards to Floyd Turner.

Dalton Hilliard completed the rout for the Saints with 8:36 left, running around right end and down the sideline for a 65-yard touchdown.

“Most of the people know about our linebackers, but you can’t play the type of great defense with just great linebackers,” Hebert said. “You have to have the total team concept on defense, and we have that with the defensive line and the secondary.”

The victory was the seventh in a row over two seasons for the Saints and their eighth in nine games with their biggest NFC West rival.

The Falcons (2-3) still hold a 25-19 series lead.

“They have got a great defense,” Atlanta receiver Andre Rison said, “but no defense should do to us what they did in stopping us all day.”

Morten Andersen kicked a 23-yard field goal in the first quarter and added a 31-yarder in the third quarter.

Andersen has converted 12 consecutive attempts over two seasons, including 10 this year.

Turner, scoring twice for the first time in his career, caught his first touchdown pass at Atlanta’s 40 and ran past William Evers. Turner then ran by defender Scott Case just inside the 40 and dragged Deion Sanders the last three yards for the score.

Sanders was playing in his second NFL game in eight days in Atlanta-Fulton County. He also stole a base as a pinch-runner for the Atlanta Braves on Wednesday.

Turner, who had four receptions for 90 yards, almost had a third touchdown. But he juggled and dropped a pass in the end zone in the third quarter just before Andersen’s second field goal.

Miller completed 14 of 30 passes for 163 yards.

Hilliard had 76 yards in five carries for the Saints.

The Saints scored first on Andersen’s 23-yard field goal with 2:23 left in the first quarter after Erric Pegram’s fumble.