Regardless of whether the Saints head back to Green Bay for the NFC championship game in January, they will definitely make a return trip to Lambeau Field later in 2012.

All 16 of the Saints’ 2012 opponents have been locked in now that they have clinched the NFC South division. In addition to the 14 games that were predetermined for next season, the Saints now know that they will play at Green Bay and host San Francisco, based on where those teams finished in their divisions this season.

The dates and times won’t be released until next spring. But here is the complete list of New Orleans’ 2012 opponents:

Home: Atlanta, Carolina, Tampa Bay, San Francisco, Philadelphia, Washington, Kansas City and San Diego.

Away: Atlanta, Carolina, Tampa Bay, Green Bay, Dallas, the New York Giants, Denver and Oakland.

The Green Bay trip will be unique because the Saints could play three times at Lambeau Field within 16 months. But those quirks come up from time to time in the NFL schedule, especially when playoff games are involved. It would be similar to when the Saints played at Chicago in three straight years from 2006 to 2008.

The other quirk is that the pattern has changed with the Saints’ AFC West opponents. Starting last season, the NFL changed its rotation regarding West Coast trips so that teams would no longer have to play at San Diego and Oakland in the same year (or at San Francisco and Seattle in the same year). That’s why the Saints are scheduled to play at Denver instead of at San Diego in 2012.

INGRAM SUFFERS SETBACK: Saints tailback Mark Ingram missed practice Thursday after suffering a setback with his lingering turf toe injury, according to Coach Sean Payton. Ingram has missed the past three games with the injury, and it now appears he could miss the remainder of the season.

“We’ve just got to wait until it’s healthy. It’s real simple,” Payton said.

There still is time for Ingram to return to the lineup if needed. But based on the way his replacement, Chris Ivory, has performed the past three weeks, it seems unlikely the Saints would change after Ingram has missed so much time.

Ingram returned to practice last week, participating only in individual drills. Then Wednesday, he participated in team drills on a limited basis for the first time. But Payton said he aggravated the injury during Wednesday’s practice.

Receiver Lance Moore (hamstring) and tight end John Gilmore (toe) also missed practice Thursday, making them questionable for Sunday’s game against the Carolina Panthers.

Safety Malcolm Jenkins (neck) and linebacker Jonathan Vilma (knee) returned to practice on a limited basis.

SPROLES, MORSTEAD CHASE HISTORY: New Orleans’ offense isn’t the only unit rewriting the NFL’s record book. The Saints set the league record for most touchbacks on kickoffs in a season with 62 so far. Now tailback and kick returner Darren Sproles and punter Thomas Morstead are within range of breaking NFL records as they head into Sunday’s regular-season finale against Carolina.

Sproles has a league-leading 2,528 all-purpose yards, the combined total of his rushing, receiving, kick returns and punt returns. He needs 163 yards to break the season NFL record of 2,690 set by the Tennessee Titans’ Derrick Mason in 2000.

Sproles needs 120 all-purpose yards to break the franchise record of 2,647 set by Michael Lewis in 2002. Lewis’ total ranks second in NFL history.

Asked how long he has known about his record pace, Sproles said, “since just now when you said it.”

“That would be cool, but it’s not on my mind,” Sproles said. “That’s not my main focus. My main focus is just to help this team win. And that’s all that’s on my mind when I go out there and play.”

Sproles has 563 yards rushing, 681 yards receiving, 1,035 yards on kickoff returns, 249 yards on punt returns and nine touchdowns.

Sproles said he always admired all-purpose stars such as former New York Giants dynamo Dave Meggett. But in his heart, he’s a tailback first and foremost.

“But my all-time favorite is Barry Sanders,” Sproles said. “That’s who I always tried to be like.”

Morstead, meanwhile, is well aware of his shot at the NFL’s all-time mark for net punting average. That’s the number that all NFL punters and special teams coverage units care most about because it takes into account return yardage.

The current record-holder, Shane Lechler, set the record with a net average of 43.85 yards for the Raiders in 2009. Morstead’s net average this season is 43.1 yards. And the San Francisco 49ers’ Andy Lee has a net average of 43.5.

Morstead broke the NFL record for touchbacks last week, though that tally is inflated a bit because the NFL pushed kickoffs up 5 yards to the 35 this season and because the high-scoring Saints kick off so often. The net punting record would be even more special, though.

“That would be really cool,” Morstead said. “We have a chance. We’ve had a couple real good games in a row.”

MORE MARKS FOR BREES: As you may have heard, Saints quarterback Drew Brees set the NFL record for passing yards in a single season Monday night. But that’s not all he did.

With his 307 yards and four touchdowns against the Atlanta Falcons, Brees moved up the all-time NFL charts in both categories. He passed Johnny Unitas on the yardage chart and now ranks 12th all-time with 40,353 yards passing. He passed both Joe Montana and Vinny Testaverde on the touchdown chart and now ranks ninth all-time with 276 passing touchdowns.

Brees also remains on pace to break the NFL records for completions and completion percentage in a season. He needs 11 completions to break the mark of 450, which was set by Peyton Manning last season. His completion percentage of 70.74 ranks ahead of his NFL record of 70.62 set in 2009.

•••••••

Staff writer Jeff Duncan contributed to this report. Mike Triplett can be reached at mtriplett@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3405.

WEEK 17 FLEX SCHEDULING UPDATE:

Chicago Bears vs. Minnesota Vikings remains at noon on Fox.

New Orleans Saints vs Carolina Panthers scenarios:

The Week 17 Chicago Bears at Minnesota Vikings game on Sunday, January 1 will be played at 1:00 PM ET on FOX, the NFL announced today. Following are the game time possibilities for the Week 17 Carolina Panthers-New Orleans Saints game to be determined based on tonight’s Atlanta-New Orleans game (ESPN, 7:30 p.m.):

If Saints win or tie:

Carolina at New Orleans will be played at Noon on FOX.

If Falcons win:

Carolina at New Orleans will be played at 3:15 p.m. on FOX.

Following is the Week 17 NFL schedule (asterisk and bold/italics represents changed game time, **denotes game time pending outcome of Monday night game):

SUNDAY, JANUARY 1 (WEEK 17)

The NFL utilizes “flexible scheduling” on Sundays in Weeks 10-15 and 17 to ensure quality matchups in all NFL Sunday time slots.

There won’t be much in this game that the New Orleans Saints haven’t seen from Atlanta, and vice versa. The teams know each other very well and are bound to play a close game. With both teams playing at a high level, it is becoming one of the most recognizable rivalries league-wide.

This time around, the Saints are playing for a chance to clinch the NFC South championship for the second time in three seasons and the third time under Coach Sean Payton. A New Orleans victory would also keep intact that no team in NFC South history has won back-to-back division crowns.

Payton has had much success against the Falcons, going 9-2 against the Dirty Birds since becoming the Saints’ coach in 2006, and New Orleans has taken five of the past six meetings. The Saints look to have an advantage because the game is being played on Monday night. The teams have played five times on “Monday Night Football,” and the Saints are 4-1. This is the third consecutive season the teams are playing on “MNF.”

FALCONS OFFENSE

Matt Ryan passed for 351 yards the last time they met, but historically Ryan hasn’t been at his best against the Saints. In six career starts against New Orleans, Ryan is 2-4, and the Saints are one of the two teams Ryan has played more than once against whom he doesn’t have a winning record (Philadelphia is the other).

Still, Ryan is having a career season and has more than receiver Roddy White to thank for it. In the offseason, the Falcons gave up a lot in the draft to get Julio Jones, and the rookie receiver is paying off. He has 42 catches for 755 yards and five touchdowns and is developing into a deep threat. And Tony Gonzalez, the ageless wonder at tight end, is second on the team in receptions (74), yards (755) and touchdown catches (seven).

White is again looking like one of the top receivers in the game. He has had three 100-yard receiving games in his past five after having just one such game in his first nine. In his past five games, White has 38 receptions for 537 yards and five touchdowns. He had 10 catches for 135 yards and two scores in last week’s 41-14 win against Jacksonville. He’s third in the league in catches (85), eighth in yards (1,100) and ninth in touchdowns (eight).

But running back Michael Turner is still the key figure in the Falcons’ attack. In Atlanta’s nine wins this season, Turner has averaged 90.3 yards per game and scored eight touchdowns. However, in the Falcons’ five losses, he only has averaged 63.2 yards per game and scored one touchdown. Taking out a 10-carry, 100-yard performance in Week 1 against Chicago, Turner is only averaging 3.4 yards per carry in the losses. Turner did rush for 96 yards the last time he played the Saints.

FALCONS DEFENSE

John Abraham is coming off one of his best games after posting 3.5 sacks and two forced fumbles against the Jaguars. He was the NFC Defensive Player of the Week. Abraham needs just 1.5 sacks to have his seventh season of 10 sacks or more. He anchors a defense that is ninth in the league in yards allowed per game and fourth against the run. The Saints struggled in this aspect last game, gaining only 41 yards.

Sean Witherspoon, a player many Saints fans coveted in the 2010 draft, has 107 tackles and is tied with Lawrence Sidbury for second on the team, with four sacks. Curtis Lofton leads the team in tackles with 124, fifth in the league. Lofton finished with nine tackles against the Saints last time and has made 10 or more tackles six times.

Atlanta’s secondary is primed to get a boost, as Brent Grimes and Kelvin Hayden are looking to return from injury. Grimes has missed three games because of a knee injury, and Hayden has been out since Nov. 20 with a toe injury. Grimes has one interception but leads the team with 12 pass deflections.

FALCONS SPECIAL TEAMS

Eric Weems was one of the best return men in the league last season but has been mediocre this season, as the Falcons rank 18th in punt-return and kick-return averages. Weems is averaging 23.3 yards per kick return and 9.9 yards per punt return and has yet to return one for a touchdown.

Kicker Matt Bryant has been a steady force this season. After making 90.3 percent of his field-goal attempts last season, Bryant is hitting 92 percent (23-of-25) this season. Bryant, who once kicked a 62-yarder with Tampa Bay, has a long this season of 50.

Matt Bosher has placed 26 punts inside the opponent’s 20-yard line, sixth-most in the NFL. He’s averaging 42.1 yards per punt and a 39.1 net averag,e and only three of his punts have been touchbacks. Opponents are only averaging 4.7 yards a return against Atlanta this season.

LAST TIME THEY MET

Nov. 13, 2011, Georgia Dome

John Kasay kicked a 26-yard field goal in overtime to give the Saints a 26-23 victory. New Orleans seemingly had things in control when Kasay kicked a 44-yarder to give the Saints a 23-13 lead with 7:13 remaining, but the Falcons stormed back. Ryan threw a career-high 52 passes for 351 yards and two touchdowns. Harry Douglas gave the Saints’ defense fits and finished with eight receptions for 133 yards. Saints safety Roman Harper finished with a season-high 13 tackles, including a sack, two tackles for losses and one pass deflection and was credited with two quarterback hits. 

NFL winning streaks

Every year, the truly great NFL teams play their best football in December. It is certainly not a surprise to me that my favorite team, the New Orleans Saints, is carrying a six-game winning streak. But how does the Saints winning streak stack up against the rest of the NFL? Take a closer look at the five longest active winning streaks in the NFL.

4. (tie) San Diego Chargers: three straight

Only three things in this world are certain: death, taxes and the Chargers winning in December. Since 2007, San Diego is a ridiculous 18-2 in December. I’m sure their fans wish they could have winnings streaks in other months as well. Despite their three-game NFL winning streak, the Chargers are on the outside looking in at the NFL Playoffs.

4. (tie) Seattle Seahawks: three straight

The next two NFL teams with winning streaks are quite surprising. Unfortunately, they are also longshots to make the NFL Playoffs. The Seahawks winning streak came via wins over the Philadelphia Eagles, St. Louis Rams and Chicago Bears. I hope the Seahawks extend their winning streak to four with a victory over the San Francisco 49ers.

3. Arizona Cardinals: four straight

Although the margin of victory during the Seahawks winning streak has been 19.3 points per game, the Cardinals have won four straight by an average of 3.3 points per game. Not only that, but they are 4-1 with John Skelton as their starting QB. After an awful 2010 NFL season, the NFC West could have three non-losing teams in 2011.

1. (tie) New England Patriots: six straight

After a decade of NFL excellence, the Patriots just keep on winning. Their current winning streak is tied for the longest in the NFL. Because the other so-called elite AFC teams are so inconsistent, the Patriots are poised to garner home field advantage. Tom Brady may be lying in wait in when the NFC champions show up at Super Bowl 46.

1. (tie) New Orleans Saints: six straight

Now that the Green Bay Packers über winning streak is history, the Saints are the hottest NFC team. However, if they are to secure a first round bye in the NFL Playoffs, they will need help from the Seahawks and they’ll probably need an eight-game winning streak. I can’t wait to turn the calendar so we can start an NFL winning streak in January.

Patrick Michael was born and raised in New Orleans and currently resides in the Big Easy. As such, he is a lifelong, diehard New Orleans Saints fan. His highlight as a Saints fan was experiencing the magical Super Bowl season of 2009.

Source

“NFL Standings,” nfl.com

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The New Orleans Saints enter December eyeing a run at the Super Bowl behind the sharp passing of their star quarterback Drew Brees.

“What it comes down to is we have a lot of confidence and we play very aggressive,” said Brees, whose streak of 38 straight games with a touchdown pass is second-longest in league history behind Johnny Unitas (47).

Brees is looking to lead New Orleans to a fourth consecutive victory Sunday when they host the Detroit Lions, who are fighting for a playoff spot.

To make matters worse for Detroit’s postseason chances, they will likely be without star defensive end Ndamukong Suh because of suspension.

New Orleans (8-3) heads into the game after an impressive 49-24 victory over the New York Giants on Monday.

Brees threw for 363 yards and four touchdowns and had an eight-yard touchdown run as the Saints finished with a whopping 577 yards. It was their second most yards in franchise history.

In another key matchup Sunday, the next stop for the Green Bay Packers in their pursuit of perfection is an opponent that has a reputation of ruining unbeaten seasons — the New York Giants.

In a battle of teams headed in opposite directions, the Packers travel to New York to face the Giants at MetLife Stadium.

New York ended Denver’s 13-0 start in 1998 although the Broncos went on to win the Super Bowl. The Giants also snapped New England’s attempt at a 19-0 season with a 17-14 win in Super Bowl XLII.

“It is different circumstances but it is the challenge of playing a team that is obviously a very good football team,” Giants head coach Tom Coughlin said.

Green Bay is five games away from a perfect regular season. The Packers will wrap up the NFC North title with a win and a loss by Detroit at New Orleans on Sunday.

“It is motivating to go out every week and compete better than you did the previous week,” quarterback Aaron Rodgers said.

“We have been able to play the way we wanted to play consistently the first 11 games. We will see what happens when we get down this road a little bit.”

The Packers’ win streak began with a 45-17 home rout of the Giants in the next-to-last week of the 2010 regular season.

The NFL week got started with the Seattle Seahawks defeating the Philadelphia Eagles 31-14 on Thursday night.

Marshawn Lynch ran for 148 yards and a pair of first-half touchdowns for the Seahawks who posted their third victory in the past four games.

The Dallas Cowboys look to win five straight for the first time in nearly four years when they visit the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday.

The Cowboys have not won five in a row since a seven-game run October 21-December 9, 2007.

While it has not always been pretty, the Cowboys have climbed their way to the top of the NFC East. They face Arizona before their schedule gets much tougher.

Dallas endured a disappointing 3-4 start to the season but rebounded to reach 7-4 thanks in part to a favorable schedule.

“The teams that play in the playoffs and win in the playoffs are the teams that get better,” coach Jason Garrett said.

“We believe that if you improve over the course of the season, week-to-week, you are going to be playing well when you need to be playing really well, and that’s the end of the year.”

Quarterback Tony Romo said: “We needed to get going. We had some tough losses earlier in the year, and we were in position to win some games. At some point you’ve got to get on a roll and stack the wins together. Getting these four wins was very big.”

In other games Sunday, Indianapolis is at New England, Denver at Minnesota, Atlanta at Houston, New York Jets at Washington, Kansas City at Chicago, Cincinnati at Pittsburgh, Oakland at Miami, Tennessee at Buffalo, Carolina at Tampa Bay, Baltimore at Cleveland, and St. Louis at San Francisco.