Miami Gardens, Fla. -- The New Orleans Saints have won Super Bowl XLIV.
They beat the Indianapolis Colts 31-17 here at Sun Life Stadium in South Florida.
Saints quarterback Drew Brees was 32-of-39 for 288 yards and two touchdowns.
But it was the big 75-yard interception return for a touchdown by cornerback Tracy Porter that sealed the deal.
"I studied and knew their tendencies," Porter said. "I just jumped around and the ball went right into my hands."
Porter's teammate Darren Sharper, who was on the Green Bay Packers as a rookie when they lost to Denver, said this was a game that nobody had faith in the team except for the team.
"Man this is unbelievable," Sharper said. "I don't know of anyone who gave us a chance, but when you get here, anyone can win."
Saints receiver Marques Colston was philosophical.
"We did this for the city of New Orleans," Colston said.
Owner Tom Benson said when given the trophy that "New Orleans is back." When asked about his coach Sean Payton, Benson said, "I might kiss him."
Quarterback Drew Brees was named MVP.
Here are the in-game updates:
0:27 4Q: It's not over officially. But it's over.
The Indianapolis Colts missed on a fourth-and-goal on the 3-yard line and the Saints took over on downs, leading 31-17.
Jabari Greer almost had an inerception in the end zone, but he had one foot out of bounds. The Colts Pierre Garcon was called for offensive pass interference on the play to back up the Colts to the 13.
But Manning hit Joseph Addai for 10 yards to get them back within range.
Manning hit Austin Collie for a 47-yard pass that was perfectly thrown where Darren Sharper couldn't get to it that really kicked in the drive.
3:12 4Q: Saints defensive back Tracy Porter intercepted Peyton Manning's short pass across the middle intended for Reggie Wayne and returned it 75 yards for a touchdown.
And just like that, the New Orleans Saints might just be about to make history.
The Saints lead 31-17.
After the Colts were called for procedure, Manning had about eight seconds to find a man, and hit Pierre Garcon for 17 yards. Malcolm Jenkins almmost got an interception on the next play.
5:46 4Q: The Saints took the ball after the missed Matt Stover field goal and went right at the Colts.
Drew Brees hit Jeremy Shockey for a 2-yard pass and the New Orleans Saints scored to take the lead. Shockey was one-on-one with defensive back Jacob Lacey. Saints coach Sean Payton challenged the ruling that Lance Moore had not scored on the 2-point conversion, it was overturned and the Saints take a 24-17 lead.
After a 12-yard run by Reggie Bush on the first play, then it was all Drew Brees.
Brees completed five consecutive passes and marched the Saints to the 5-yard line.
An injury note: Dwight Freeney left the field after the touchdown.
10:44 4Q: In the battle of the kickers, the Indianapolis Colts have the seasoned veteran Matt Stover and the Saints have a young guy in Garrett Hartley.
But so far in the Super Bowl, Hartley is winning that battle. Stover missed a 51-yarder and the Saints defense can breathe a sign of relief for now by getting a big stop. Hartley is 3-of-3 in the game, all of those have been more than 40 yards. Stover hit the ground with his foot before hitting the ball.
Jonathan Vilma almost got an interception, on a deep pass down the middle to Austin Collie.
Big play of he game, fourth and 2 at the 46 yard line and Manning hit Reggie Wayne for a short pass for a first down. Manning had called some signals, the Saints then adjusted, got set up in their defense, and Manning changed the play when seeing the Saints were in man coverage. This play is a reason Manning is so good.
Manning had two big passes early in the drive, but there was one that got away, a long pass down the left sideline that fell short of Reggie Wayne. Wayne had beaten Tracy Porter on the play.
2:06 3Q: Garrett Hartley hit a 47-yard field goal -- and became the first kicker ever in a Super Bowl to hit three 40-plus field goals in a game -- and the New Orleans Saints closed the gap against Indianapolis, trailing 17-16.
Quietly Devery Henderson has had a good game, with six catches for 57 yards. He has yet to hit for a big play, but he has been dependable for Brees so far.
Drew Brees hit Reggie Bush for 13 yards when Bush came out of the backfield and was covered by a linebacker. Just like the Saints can't cover Dallas Clark with a linebacker, neither can the Colts cover Bush the same way.
Saints return man Courtney Roby set up the drive with a 34-yard kickoff return out of the end zone.
6:21 3Q: Joseph Addai broke a couple of tackles and spun his way to a 4-yard touchdown and the Indianapolis Colts come back on the Saints and take a 17-13 lead.
The big play on the drive was Peyton Manning hitting tight end Dallas Clark for 27 yards in triple coverage. The ball was placed perfectly where one of the defenders couldn't get a hand on it. Scott Shanle made a big play on an pass attempt to Clark on the next play.
At this point in the game, both quarterbacks are playing fantastic. On that drive, Manning wasa 5-of-6 and was superb and calling the right play at the right time.
11:50 3Q: OK, forget the running game. The New Orleans Saints came out and passed four consecutive times to start the third quarter before handing off to Pierre Thomas for an 8-yard gain.
Then on the next play, Drew Brees hit Thomas for a screen pass that he turned into a 16-yard touchdown, breaking tackles, weaving left and diving into the end zone for a 13-10 lead.
Saints coach Sean Payton called an onside kick to start the second half and it was recovered by Chris Reis. It's the first time in Super Bowl history that there was an onside kick before the fourth quarter.
That was the kind of start the Saints needed.
And the Ying Yang Twins come blaring from the loudspeakers. Now it appears to be a game.
Second quarter
Garrett Hartley hit his second field goal of the first half, a 44-yarder and the New Orleans Saints trail the Indianapolis Colts 10-6 at halftime of the Super Bowl.
Brees started the drive with a 19-yard pass to Devery Henderson. But they stalled on the next four downs.
The Saints looked better in the second quarter, but just can't seem to get really clicking, falling short of making consistent big plays like they did in the regular season.
0:35 2Q: The Saints stopped the Colts inside the 15 after the goalline fiasco and will get the ball back around midfield.
1:55 2Q: Pierre Thomas was stopped at the 1-yard line by Gary Bracket and Clint Session and the Saints got nothing on a long drive near the end of the first half.
There were some good plays by the Saints on the drive, but the two plays from the 1 were disasterous. Mike Bell slipped and fell on the first, then Thomas.
The forgotten man Lance Moore got wide open in the left flat and picked up 19 yards. It was blown coverage by Indy defenders and Drew Brees took advantage.
Then Sean Payton called an end around. First, it was bad timing to make the call -- it was a loss of seven yards on the play, right after a big one from Moore. Secondly, the Colts are too fast to the outside for that kind of play.
They were lucky Brees and Marques Colston bailed them out with a 27-yard pitch and catch to the 3-yard line.
After that drop earlier, Marques Colston has started making some big catches.
9:32 2Q: Well, turnabout is fair play. Indianapolis Colts receiver Pierre Garcon dropped a sure first down catch, much like the one Marques Colston dropped earlier for the Saints, and killed the Colts drive.
It was the first time the Saints have held the Colts on downs so far in the game.
9:45 2Q: Garrett Hartley hit a 46-yard field goal and the Saints are on the board and trail the Indianapolis Colts 10-3. Hartley was the hero two weeks ago, hitting the game-winner against the Minnesota Vikings in the NFC championship game. It was good for him that he hit that kick, he will probably be relaxed now later.
It was a good drive by the Saints, who appeared to relax finally after an anxious start. The only down side was a sack of Drew Brees by Dwight Freeney, who was dangerously close to a horse-collar tackle.
A big play on the drive was a personal foul on Eric Wheeler against Reggie Bush out of bounds. It wa the second straight play Bush carried the ball, he had a nice 9-yard run on the play before.
Marques Colston is trying to make up for a shaky first quarter with a nice catch in double coverage on the first play of the second quarter.
First Quarter
Well the first quarter didn't go like the New Orleans Saints and their championship-starved fans wanted.
The Indianapolis Colts dominated the quarter on both sides of the ball and the one time the Saints appeared to have something going, their most reliable receiver Marques Colston let a ball pop right off his shoulder on a play that could have been big.
Well, we've got a long way to go, but the Saints really need to get something going on their first series of the second quarter.
0:36 1Q: Getting pinned deep was no issue for Indianapolis. The Colts drove 96 yards and finished it off when Peyton Manning hit Pierre Garcon for a 19-yard touchown pass and the Colts are on top 10-0. Usama Young was in the game on that play and was the guy burned by Garcon.
Starting at their 4-yard line, they immediately got a first down on a screen pass from Manning to Donald Brown.
The Colts have so far mixed up their offensive plays very well with a mix of running and passing. Former LSU standout Joseph Addai has run the ball very well. It was supposed to be the Saints that could run the ball better.
Addai ran for 16, 11 and 26 yards on the drive.
This tied the longest drive in Super Bowl history and the longest drive by the Colts this season.
5:30 1Q: Drew Brees looked a little uptight in the early going, not his usual self. The big play that finally got the Saints a first down was a short pass to Reggie Bush, who broke it for 18 yards.
With 5:28 left in the quarter, on a second and long, Brees hit Marques Colston right in the hands with a pass that Colston dropped. He was so open on the play he could have run for another 15-20 yards most likely.
To the Saints credit, they went right back to Colston who was covered.
Thomas Morstead boomed a 46-yard punt that was spotted just inside the 4-yard line. Morstead had a huge game against the Minnesota Vikings in the NFC championship game. The Saints might need him to come up big again.
7:29 1Q: The Indianapolis Colts take a 3-0 lead on the New Orleans Saints in the Super Bowl on a 38-yard kick by Matt Stover, the oldest man playing in the game.
The Colts came out firing and Peyton Manning hit Dallas Clark for an 18-yard completion on the first play. He beat linebacker Scott Shanle on the play.
Right after that play, the Saints moved safety Roman Harper to cover Clark.
The Colts came out in a no-huddle offense on their first series.
The Colts got a penalty on second down, a false start, that moved them back a little on starting right guard Kevin DeVan, who is a former substitute teacher who was cut by the Jets three times.
15:00 1Q: The New Orleans Saints got the opening kickoff and Courtney Roby returned it to the 23 yard line. So it's really happening. The Saints are really in the Super Bowl.
The bad news for the Saints is that they went three and out on their first series. You don't need to do that very much against the Indianapolis Colts.