In a surprising rout, the New Orleans Saints defeated the New England Patriots 38-17, allowing the Saints to maintain their winning streak as they faced their last serious contenders of the regular season. New Orleans, 11-0, hasn’t lost a game since the beginning of the season; that season record is tied by the Indianapolis Colts. This is the first time in NFL history that two teams hold an 11-0 record during the same season.

The Saints’ quarterback Drew Brees was the star of the game; Brees threw five touchdowns to five different players, ending the game with an impressive record of 371 yards and almost no errors. He went 18 of 13 and finished with a perfect passing rating of 158.3. His average of 161.1 yards per passing attempt was also a team record.

“It only counts for one win on the stat sheet, but emotionally, those types of wins can mean a little more,”  Brees said. “Anytime you can win, and win that way, it builds confidence for you. We were able to accomplish something offensively tonight that was pretty special.”

The New England Patriots had a chance in the first half to dominate the game, ahead by 7-3, but Brees took it from there: he completed a touchdown in less than two minutes to grab a lead in the game.

Tom Brady was not in the best shape, and he certainly did not give one of his best performances of the season. He may be one of the most solid quarterbacks in the NFL, but Monday was not his day.

In fact, Brady hardly had time to shine; he hit the dust when he was intercepted twice in the game and was pulled out in the fourth as the Saints were ahead by three touchdowns. He finished 21 of 36 for 237 yards and didn’t make any touchdown passes.

The Patriots may have had more time with the ball, but it was easier for the Saints to put their plays together and finish with a touchdown – something that took only a few minutes off the clock. The Patriots, on the other hand, just couldn’t get their plays together, and that, combined with their numerous defensive errors, left them unable to put up much of a fight.

Coach Bill Belichick lamented the Patriots’ game and the team’s many defensive mistakes. He also pointed to a lack of concentration as part of the problem.

“We had several blown coverages and they took advantage,” he said. “There were enormous mistakes on our part. You can’t make those mistakes against a good team.”

This is the second time in several weeks that New England took a road loss to an unbeaten team.

The Saints are trying to get to the 16-0 mark set by the Patriots back in 2007; thus far, New England is the only team to maintain that record. However, now both the Saint and the Colts are looking like close contenders. It looks like the Patriots may lose their throne.