Offense Gaining Respect After Struggling at Start : Saints: Unit is finally clicking, compiling 342 yards and 22 first downs in the first three quarters against the Rams.

Saints’ Coach Jim Mora took the podium after his team’s 37-14 rout of the Rams Sunday, squinted into the glare of the television lights and asked, “OK, what are your negative questions?”

“What happened on the missed extra point?” someone in the sea of note pads and microphones shouted.

Mora’s knees buckled, his eyes rolled back in his head and he pretended to faint. Everyone--even Mora--laughed.

Jim Mora mugging it up for the amusement of the media?

The Saints winning handily without the aid of even one sack?

A New Orleans offense scoring 37 points?

What’s going on here? What’s an NFL fan got left to believe in? When the subject of the playoffs came up at the office Christmas party, you used to be able to nod knowingly and say, “The Saints’ defense is awesome, but they’ll never get to the Super Bowl with that offense.”

These days, you might find someone who’ll want to argue, and they’ll probably point to Sunday’s game at Anaheim Stadium as part of the reason the Saints do indeed have what it takes to come marching into Pasadena in January.

The Saints racked up 342 yards and 22 first downs in the first three quarters, took a 37-0 lead early in the fourth quarter and looked a lot like a team that is more than just a collection of quarterback-bashing linebackers.

“Offensively, it was our best game of the year,” Mora said. “We ran and passed, we moved the ball well and we scored points. We did a good job in our goal-line offense and we did not turn the ball over.

“I feel like we’ve really made strides offensively as the season has gone on. We were struggling early, really struggling. But we’re improving, and you can see the progress.”

In the first six games of the season, the Saints managed only one rushing touchdown. In the next five, they scored three. Sunday, they got three in one game.

“Everybody always says, ‘Oh the Saints. Great special teams. Great defense. The offense? Well. . . . But once it all comes together, look out,” said fullback Craig Heyward, whose nine-yard touchdown run put the Saints ahead, 37-0.

“We couldn’t let ourselves get caught up in what the media thinks. If we did, we’d wake up and say, ‘Why go to work?’ ”

The Saints’ offensive unit has been working, however, in the shadow of the NFL’s No. 2 defense--No. 1 in fewest points allowed--but working and improving. The emphasis in New Orleans is always on ball control, and these Saints have been doing a very good job of hoarding the football. In each of the last four games, they have held onto the ball for more than 30 minutes.

And even a little bit of offense is exciting for Saint fans, who have seen their team fail in each of its three postseason appearances. A day like Sunday is almost too much to ask.

“I don’t think there’s been a Saints team that has established what we have been able to establish, except for in ’87 and that was the strike year, and I don’t think people consider that a real season,” Heyward said. “Now, people are looking at us as a complete team and they know they’re in for a tough ballgame.”

The Saints are 11-3 and headed for another playoff game this winter. They may not be the 49ers or Bills when it comes to offensive dominance, but they also no longer have to pray that their defense can make two field goals and a safety hold up.

“They have a very good defense and they’re going to go a long way just because of what they’ve got defensively,” Ram quarterback Jim Everett said. “Offensively, it looks like (quarterback Bobby) Hebert is playing well and now they’ve got the running game.

“So they’re going to match up well with anyone.”

Hebert, who completed 15 of 25 passes for 238 yards and two touchdowns Sunday, says the Saints have to quit worrying about what they perceive to be a lack of deserved respect and concentrate on winning in December and January.

“No, we don’t get the recognition of some teams, but we keep it in perspective,” he said. “New Orleans is a small market, so we just try to take care of our business on the field.

“Hopefully we can continue to play well and win a championship.”

That would pretty much take care of the Rodney Dangerfield gig, but Mora knows that once the regular season ends, every game means a battle with a proven winner.

“There are a lot of teams going into the playoffs that are winning football games now,” he said. “So when you get into the playoffs, it’s a completely different story.

“We’re still fighting for a division championship and we’ve got a shot at it, although every time San Francisco wins, it looks bleaker for us. We’ve still got two (regular-season) games and things can happen. I’ll just hold my breath and hope that no one gets injured.

“But I feel good about this football team right now. We’re playing well and we’re playing with a lot of confidence.”

The Saints, who play Buffalo next week in New Orleans, have the incentive down the stretch of ensuring a home-field advantage in early playoff games. But you can’t blame them if they take a few moments to daydream about the possibility of a Super Bowl berth and a couple of weeks in the limelight.

“I hope we’re peaking at the right time,” Heyward said, “but we certainly still have a lot to accomplish. Once we win a Super Bowl, then we can sit back and say, ‘We’re damn good,’ and there ain’t nobody who can argue.”