Lions vs Saints LIVE UPDATES: Drew Brees, New Orleans Battle Matthew Stafford, Detroit In NFL Playoffs

Lions vs Saints LIVE UPDATES

Elton John sang "Saturday night's alright for fighting" and it's a safe bet that Detroit Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh feels the same way heading into the night cap against the New Orleans Saints on the opening day of the 2012 NFL Playoffs.

While that John tune could set the mood for this Wild Card game, it may be the words of another John -- John Madden -- that decide the outcome. A football institution thanks to his time with the Raiders, in the broadcast booth and narrating video games, Madden once said, "when your arm gets hit, the ball is not going to go where you want it to."

Rare is it that truer words are spoken.

Seeing as how this game pairs two teams that plan on throwing their way to victory, it could very well be the team that has the most success hitting the arm of the opposing quarterback that emerges victorious. Certainly, Suh and the Lions' defense will need to bother Drew Brees to have any hope of advancing in the postseason. Brees is coming off a record-setting regular season in which he threw for more yards in a single season than any player in the history of the NFL. To make the task facing the Lions even more daunting, Brees and the Saints' prolific passing attack were undefeated in the Big Easy all season long. Among the eight wins for New Orleans at the Dome this season was a triumph over these same Lions, 31-17.

Can the Lions keep pace tonight? Will the Saints keep rolling?

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