GREEN BAY, Wis. — New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees tied a 52-year-old NFL record Sunday with the first of his three touchdown passes in a 28-27 loss to the Green Bay Packers.
Brees’ 20-yard TD pass to wide receiver Marques Colston in the first quarter, which tied the game at 7-7, marked the 47th consecutive game in which he’s had a scoring pass.
That tied him with Pro Football Hall of Famer Johnny Unitas, who set the record with the Baltimore Colts from 1956-1960.
Brees’ three scoring passes gave him 291 for his career, moving him past Unitas (290) and into a tie for seventh place with Warren Moon on the NFL’s all-time list.
At the start of the game, the crowd of more than 70,000 in Lambeau Field had a huge ovation for referee Jeff Triplette and his officiating crew six days after replacement refs blew a call that cost the Packers a win at Seattle.
Triplette later was booed by the fans in the third quarter when he upheld a call and awarded a catch to Saints tight end Jimmy Graham even though it looked like the ball hit the ground.
In the fourth quarter, Saints running back Darren Sproles appeared to lose the ball on a kickoff return, but a member of Triplette’s crew ruled the play dead even though replays showed the ball was clearly out before Sproles hit the ground.
Packers coach Mike McCarthy couldn’t use his red flag, however, because he was out of challenges.
Saints right guard Jahri Evans, a three-time All-Pro pick, made the 100th start of his seven-year career Sunday.
Evans, who was selected in the fourth round of the 2006 draft, has not missed a start in his career. His 100th straight start to open a career is a franchise record, surpassing linebacker Rickey Jackson’s old mark of 91 games last season.
The Saints’ inactives were LB David Hawthorne (hamstring), LB Jonathan Casillas (neck), DE Turk McBride (ankle), RB Chris Ivory, CB Elbert Mack, DT Tyrunn Walker and T Bryce Harris.
Inactives of note for the Packers were S Sean Richardson (hamstring), CB Davon House (shoulder) and RB James Starks (toe).
Because of the injuries to Hawthorne and Casillas, the Saints had just five healthy linebackers — including Ramon Humber, who was activated this week after serving a three-game NFL suspension.
Veteran Will Herring started at weakside linebacker with Hawthorne and Casillas both down.
The Saints reported no injuries.
Packers QB Aaron Rodgers suffered an eye injury in the third quarter, but returned on the next series. … Also, WR Greg Jennings left with a groin injury, while CB M.D. Jennings and DT Ryan Pickett left with shoulder injuries. Pickett was able to return, however.
Brees connected on 35 passes, pushing his NFL-record streak to 40 games with at least 20 completions. … Colston’s 20-yard touchdown catch in the first quarter was the 49th scoring grab of his career, leaving him one shy of Joe Horn’s club record for receiving touchdowns. … The 12-yard TD pass from Rodgers to James Jones in the first quarter was the first points in the opening period for the Packers this season. e_SClB… The Saints are now 2-10 all-time in the state of Wisconsin. They are 1-4 in Lambeau Field and were 1-6 in Milwaukee’s County Stadium.
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