Jackson Free Press

The New Orleans Saints won a game that might turn their fortunes around this season after using their rushing attack and a late defensive stand to defeat the Seattle Seahawks on Oct. 30.

There will be more talk about Seattle’s failure to close out the Saints than New Orleans’ win. Many fans and sports analysts expected the Seahawks to be one of the best teams in the league and in the race to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl.

Most people expected New Orleans to be an offensive juggernaut again but to come up short on defense. While that script has played out at times this year, the Saints’ defense has shown growth as the season has gone along.

The Saints’ defense sparked a comeback over the San Diego Chargers to get their first win of the season and racked up stops against the Carolina Panthers in the team's second win.

On defense, New Orleans has done enough to win games since beating the Chargers, even if it didn’t always go so well on the other side of the ball. For instance, on Oct. 23, the Kansas City Chiefs used two Saints turnovers to get past New Orleans with a pick-six early and a forced fumble late. Those turnovers cost the Saints a chance at a win.

Against Seattle, the Saints ran the ball 35 times for 123 yards, and New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees attempted 35 passes. It was a balanced attack for the Saints. New Orleans also saw running back Mark Ingram return a fumble for a touchdown but still end up in the doghouse since he fumbled for a second week in a row. The Saints trailed most of the game but only gave up 13 points on defense.

The Saints are now 20th in total defense instead of sitting at the complete bottom of the standings. They’re turning things around despite several key players still being out due to injuries.

This week, New Orleans travels to face the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday, Nov. 6. As the once-division rivals clash, this could be the game where the Saints reach .500, but can they keep pushing upward?

The Saints follow up the 49ers with a home game against the 6-2 Denver Broncos on Nov. 13. This will be a tough game to win but not impossible if the Superdome is truly returning to the home-field advantage that opposing teams once feared.

New Orleans finishes the season with seven winnable games: the 2-5 Carolina Panthers, the 3-4 LA Rams, the 4-4 Detroit Lions, the 3-4 Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the 3-4 Arizona Cardinals, Tampa again and the 5-3 Atlanta Falcons to end the season. That is just two teams at or above .500 at this moment for the rest of the season. There is nothing left on the schedule that should be impossible for this team to win.

There is no question whether …

The Dallas Cowboys got what could be a season-defining win. Dallas found a way to win on a night Dak Prescott looked every bit like a rookie quarterback.

After a good start in the first quarter, Prescott began to struggle. A lot of credit for those struggles should go to the Philadelphia Eagles defense, which found ways to confuse and put pressure on the rookie quarterback.

Prescott’s throws in the second and third quarter looked rushed, and his footwork was sloppy, as Philadelphia didn’t allow him to keep a clean pocket. With the help of his defense, he still ended up keeping the game close as it headed into the fourth quarter.

When it became winning time, Prescott led the Cowboys back from a double-digit deficit to beat the Eagles in overtime. He reached a new level of growth as a professional. He figured out a way to win when things weren’t going right for him. Any quarterback can win when everything goes perfect, but a real NFL quarterback finds ways to win a game when things aren’t going right.

This doesn’t mean that the Cowboys won’t use Tony Romo at some point this season. As teams get more tape on Prescott, they will find out what he is good at, what he struggles at, what plays he likes to run, what throws he struggles to make, and so forth.

It could mean that he will struggle more this season and might even need to be replaced. Or he could keep finding ways to learn and overcome what other teams will try each week.

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has said that Prescott will start this week. Jones is going to kick the can on the question of when or if Romo will return to the starting lineup, as long as he can keep kicking.

It makes sense if it doesn’t undermine Prescott’s development. At least in private, head coach Jason Garrett should go to both quarterbacks and give them the plan for the rest of this season.

Prescott is now 6-1 as a starter and has beat all three teams that, at this moment, have a losing record. In his first seven starts, Prescott has played four teams that currently have a winning record, and he is 3-1 in those games. He will have a chance to lead this team to a division title and a playoff berth, but the road is going to get rougher.

Dallas plays the Cleveland Browns this week as they play three straight games against AFC North foes. The Cowboys face the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Baltimore Ravens to finish their tour of the AFC North.

After this week, the Cowboys will face four out of five teams that currently have a winning record. Dallas faces the Steelers and Ravens, along with the Washington Redskins, Minnesota Vikings and New York Giants.

The team faces the 3-4 Buccaneers before finishing the season against …

Last week, a Jackson Free Press blog post listed all the players who made all-conference in various leagues that have Mississippi teams. That list didn’t include the SWAC teams from Mississippi, or Belhaven University, as the Blazers are still transitioning to Division III and not eligible to win the conference title or make the playoffs at DIII.

The SWAC released its first and second team all-conference players, and Grambling State University and Southern University dominated the selections. GSU had 14 players and SU had 10 players make either first- or second-team All-SWAC.

It is not surprising that the Tigers and Jaguars are so well featured since both teams were two of the best in the SWAC this season. Grambling State won the SWAC title game and will represent the conference in the Celebration Bowl.

Even with all the Grambling and Southern players on both the first and second team, Alcorn State University and Jackson State University landed players on both teams with ASU’s six and JSU’s three.

The Braves had two offensive linemen make second-team All-SWAC. Senior Detonio Dade earned his fourth all-conference honors, and junior Timothy Gardner helped make the ASU offensive line one of the best in the nation in pass protection and rushing.

Alcorn State had four players make either first or second team on defense with two on each team. The Braves were represented on each level with two linebackers, one defensive lineman and one defensive back.

Senior linebackers Darien Anderson on the first-team and Michael Hurns on the second-team were honored. Anderson earned his second All-SWAC honors after being second team last season, and he ranks fourth in the FCS in sacks. Hurns finished the season with 62 tackles and three sacks, and he was elected as the Student Government Association’s senior class president.

Senior defensive back Eric Foster, who racked up 41 tackles, two interceptions and a forced fumble while being ranked in the top 10 in the conference in passes defended, earned first-team honors. Junior defensive end Michael Brooks landed the second team after posting 29 tackles on the season.

Jackson State had three players make all-conference teams with all three on defense. JSU had just one first-team player and two second-team players.

Senior Javancy Jones earned first-team honors at defensive end and second-team honors at linebacker. Jones was the Tigers’ pick for the 2016 Conerly Trophy and was a finalist for the award, as he finished third in the conference in tackles with 82, second in tackles for a loss with 19.5 and 12 in sacks with four.

Senior defensive backs Justin Jemison and Zavian Bingham earned second-team honors. Jemison finished with 46 tackles for fourth on the team, two interceptions and five passes defended. Bingham notched 41 tackles, three interceptions, two forced fumbles, one punt block and one pick returned for a touchdown.

Mississippi Valley State University didn’t land a player on either the first …