With New Orleans poised to score on its opening possession, Donte Whitner delivered a crushing blow that knocked out running back Pierre Thomas and forced the first of five Saints turnovers. 
 
 New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees (9) hits the ground in front of San Francisco 49ers defensive tackle Ricky Jean-Francois (95) during the second quarter of an NFL divisional playoff football... (Associated Press) 
 
 San Francisco 49ers defensive tackle Justin Smith (94) sacks New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees (9) during the third quarter of an NFL divisional playoff football game Saturday, Jan. 14, 2012,... (Associated Press) 
 
 New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees (9) flips the ball away before hitting the ground in front of San Francisco 49ers defensive tackle Ricky Jean-Francois (95) during the second quarter of an NFL... (Associated Press) 
 
 San Francisco 49ers safety Donte Whitner, right, is called for pass interference while defending New Orleans Saints tight end Jimmy Graham during the first quarter of an NFL divisional playoff football... (Associated Press) 
 
 San Francisco's hard-hitting, opportunistic defense set the tone in the 49ers' thrilling 36-32 playoff win the same way it has all season. 
 
 From Justin Smith and Aldon Smith harassing Drew Brees all day, to Patrick Willis and NaVorro Bowman shutting down the running game and Dashon Goldson making punishing hits and key plays from the secondary, the defense is the biggest reason for the resurgence in San Francisco that has the 49ers (14-3) back in the NFC championship for the first time since the 1997 season. 
 
 They will play the Giants next Sunday at Candlestick Park after New York defeated the defending Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers 37-20 on Sunday. San Francisco beat Eli Manning and the Giants 27-20 at home Nov. 13. 
 
 "It's a lot better than traveling to Wisconsin. More importantly, we're playing a team we've already faced," cornerback Carlos Rogers said Sunday. "It's not as hard as preparing for another team we haven't faced yet." 
 
 "Home game huh?" Whitner tweeted Sunday once his opponent had been determined. 
 
 An offensive show featuring four lead changes defined the final five minutes of the Niners' win Saturday, capped by Alex Smith's 14-yard touchdown pass to Vernon Davis with 9 seconds remaining. But Whitner got things going in the franchise's first postseason appearance in nine years. 
 
 "It let the (Saints) offense know we were going to be physical all day," Whitner said of the hit on Thomas, who left with a head injury and never returned. 
 
 Whitner was unfazed by his pass interference penalty moments earlier that briefly sent shaken-up tight end Jimmy Graham to the sideline. Whitner's jarring, legal helmet-to-helmet hit on Thomas was a blow to the Saints' psyche as well as to their depth chart. 
 
 The 49ers defense has been so stingy this season they didn't allow a 100-yard runner or a rushing touchdown until the second-to-last game of the year Dec. 24 at Seattle. Hall of Famer Ronnie Lott, part of plenty of top-notch defenses himself, has praised these men for not "giving up inches." 
 
 "We've got a great defense. We feel like we can stop anyone," Bowman said. "When it's not working for our offense, it's our job to get the ball back for them as many times as we can. That's all it was. If those guys aren't doing well it's our job to pick it up. That's what a team is and I think we have a great one here." 
 
 First-year coach Jim Harbaugh brought defensive coordinator Vic Fangio along with him from Stanford when he was hired last January _ and Fangio has developed his unit into one of the NFL's best. 
 
 "We like to think that we play defense the right way," Fangio said. "We play physical, we play with our hands. We run to the ball. We don't try and do anything too fancy, although we do have our changeups here and there. We try and play defense the old-fashioned, hard school way." 
 
 The Niners had 38 takeaways during the regular season to only 10 turnovers. Their plus-28 turnover differential matched the 2010 Patriots for the second-best mark in NFL history since 1941. 
 
 They forced five more Saturday, and only had one turnover themselves. 
 
 San Francisco's determined defenders heard all week how difficult it would be to stop Brees and Co., knowing many figured they'd fail. 
 
 "We got tired of it throughout the week. They gave us no chance," Goldson said. "They kept talking about the Saints, the Saints, where they stand against us and what they were going to do. We ignored everything and focused on us and what we had to do to come win this game." 
 
 Goldson had six interceptions for the NFC West champions during the regular season, then his biggest yet Saturday. That first-quarter pick snapped Brees' NFL-record streak of 226 postseason passes without an interception dating to the NFC championship game against Chicago five years ago. 
 
 Tarell Brown had the other interception, while special teams standouts Blake Costanzo and Madieu Williams each forced a fumble. 
 
 "Our guys were humming. We were able to pry a couple out and that was big," Fangio said. "The interceptions were big also." 
 
 The Niners were No. 1 in the NFL in stopping the run during the season and didn't allow a rushing TD on Saturday after the Saints scored three on the ground in a 45-28 win over the Detroit Lions in the Superdome in last weekend's wild-card round. 
 
 The Saints produced a playoff-record 626 yards against the Lions, with Brees throwing for 466 yards while completing 33 of 43 passes. 
 
 "I had figured coming into this game they would feel like, `Let's keep everything in front of us, let's not give up big plays and obviously do a good job against the rush and try to put them in third-and-long situations,'" Brees said. "They did, yet again, a great job stopping the run in a lot of cases which we felt like in order to really get chunks, we would have to throw it. Obviously that's a great defense. It's one of the best defenses in the league." 
 
 Goldson was re-signed to a one-year contract as a free agent in August to complement newcomers and fellow defensive backs Whitner and Carlos Rogers. Against the Saints, Goldson had a team-leading 11 tackles to go with the first-quarter interception and two passes defensed. Bowman also made 11 tackles, 10 of those solo. 
 
 "We got some spectacular stops," Harbaugh said. "On third down, I thought they were outstanding. Five takeaways in the game. I know the special teams contributed to that as well. Very opportunistic today. Got pressure on their quarterback. Made plays on the ball, and made them when they were there to be made. Our guys in the secondary made them. It was a terrific job by our defense, once again. You just love the way they play. You love the way they compete. Love how hard they work on the field." 
 
 The 49ers sacked the record-setting Brees three times, including rookie Aldon Smith's pounding for an 11-yard loss on third down in the first quarter. All-Pro defensive tackle Justin Smith brought Brees to the ground for a 9-yard loss in the third quarter and Ahmad Brooks added a fourth-quarter sack on which Brees lost 7 yards. 
 
 "We wanted to come out and play our style of football, which is playing physical, being a great tackling team, and playing with good fundamentals which has carried us all year," Fangio said. "We just wanted to play the way we've played all year, particularly starting early in the game." 
 
 Whitner definitely did his part. 
 
 "I told myself that I was going to hit anything moving today and that I was going to be extremely physical, even if I hit my own guys," he said. "Luckily, I didn't hit too many of my own guys." ||||| Tom Brady led the New England Patriots back from a three-touchdown deficit as they scored 49 straight points and clinched home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs with a 49-21 win over the Buffalo Bills on Sunday. 
 
 New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez celebrates a long gain to near the goal line, which set up a touchdown, against the Buffalo Bills in the fourth quarter of an NFL football game in Foxborough,... (Associated Press) 
 
 New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez (81) tries to break free of Buffalo Bills linebacker Chris Kelsay (90) during the fourth quarter of an NFL football game in Foxborough, Mass., Sunday Jan.... (Associated Press) 
 
 New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, right, hugs Buffalo Bills linebacker Kirk Morrison after an NFL football game in Foxborough, Mass., Sunday, Jan. 1, 2012. The Patriots won 49-21 to clinch home-field... (Associated Press) 
 
 New England Patriots' Devin McCourty (32) and Kyle Arrington (24) break up a pass to Buffalo Bills wide receiver Ruvell Martin (82) during the fourth quarter of an NFL football game in Foxborough, Mass.,... (Associated Press) 
 
 New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez (81) steps into the end zone for a touchdown during the second quarter of an NFL football game against the Buffalo Bills in Foxborough, Mass., Sunday Jan.... (Associated Press) 
 
 New England Patriots defensive end Mark Anderson (95) breaks free from Buffalo Bills tackle Chris Hairston (75) and sacks quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick (14) during the second quarter of an NFL football... (Associated Press) 
 
 Brady finished the regular season with the second most yards passing in NFL history, 5,235, after throwing for 338. Drew Brees, who last week broke Dan Marino's record of 5,084 with the Miami Dolphins in 1984, added 389 Sunday for the New Orleans Saints and ended with 5,486. 
 
 The Patriots (13-3) finished the season with eight straight wins. But for the second straight game, they fell behind early. They beat the Miami Dolphins 27-24 after trailing 17-0 at halftime then rallied after the Bills (6-10) scored touchdowns on their first three possessions, drawing boos from the home fans. 
 
 ___ 
 
 SAINTS 45, PANTHERS 17 
 
 At New Orleans, _ Drew Brees threw for 389 yards and five touchdowns as New Orleans set a slew of NFL and club records. 
 
 The NFL single-season records set by the Saints (13-3), who head into the playoffs on an eight-game winning streak, included offensive yards with 7,474, team yards passing with 5,347 and first downs with 416. 
 
 Brees, who was 28 of 35, finished with a record 468 completions this season, breaking Peyton Manning's 2010 mark of 450. He finished the season completing 71.6 percent of his passes, breaking his own 2009 NFL record 70.6 completion percentage. 
 
 Tight end Jimmy Graham had 97 yards receiving, finishing with an NFL record 1,310 for a tight end. 
 
 The Panthers finished 6-10. 
 
 ___ 
 
 JAGUARS 19, COLTS 13 
 
 At Jacksonville, Maurice Jones-Drew ran for a season-high 169 yards, clinching the NFL rushing title and breaking Fred Taylor's single-season franchise record in the Jaguars' victory. 
 
 The Jaguars (5-11) became the first AFC South opponent to sweep Indianapolis (2-14) since 2002 and gave outgoing owner Wayne Weaver a victory in his final game. 
 
 The Colts may have been the big winners, though. Indianapolis locked up the top pick in April's NFL draft, setting the stage to select Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck. 
 
 Indy would have dropped to the No. 2 spot in the draft with a victory in Jacksonville. Instead, owner Jim Irsay will have the choice to draft Luck and give the team a young quarterback to join four-time MVP Peyton Manning. 
 
 ___ 
 
 TITANS 23, TEXANS 22 
 
 At Houston, Matt Hasselbeck threw two touchdown passes as the Titans kept alive their playoff hopes. 
 
 The Titans (9-7) have their first winning record since 2008 in Mike Munchak's first season, but their postseason fate depended on the outcome of later games in Cincinnati, Oakland and Denver. Tennessee got some early help when the Jets lost in Miami. 
 
 Houston (10-6) will head into its first postseason on a three-game losing streak. The Texans were locked into the No. 3 seed in the AFC playoffs and coach Gary Kubiak played mostly reserves in the second half. 
 
 Rookie starter T.J. Yates left the game after one series with a shoulder injury and was replaced by Jake Delhomme. Kubiak said Yates could have returned if necessary. 
 
 The Texans pulled within a point late in the game on a 5-yard TD pass by Delhomme, but failed on a 2-point conversion that would have won it. 
 
 ____ 
 
 DOLPHINS 19, JETS 17 
 
 At Miami, Mark Sanchez threw three interceptions and the Jets were eliminated from the AFC wild-card playoff race. 
 
 Each turnover led to a field goal, and the Jets gave up six third-down conversions during the Dolphins' 21-play, 94-yard drive for their only touchdown. 
 
 The Jets (8-8) came into the game needing a win along with losses by three other teams to reach the playoffs. Instead, they finished the season with three consecutive defeats, a big step backward for a team that reached the AFC title game each of the past two years. 
 
 The Dolphins (6-10) completed their third consecutive losing season, their longest such stretch since the 1960s. 
 
 ___ 
 
 PACKERS 45, LIONS 41 
 
 At Green Bay, backup quarterback Matt Flynn threw a touchdown pass to Jermichael Finley with 1:10 left to finish off his record-setting day of 480 yards and six TD passes. 
 
 With Aaron Rodgers resting for the playoffs, Flynn set club single-game records for yards passing and touchdowns. It was an ideal afternoon for the Packers (15-1) who got to rest their starting quarterback and several other big-name players without losing momentum. 
 
 Flynn barely got the Packers past Matthew Stafford, who threw for 520 yards with five touchdowns and two interceptions. Playoff-bound Detroit (10-6), has lost 21 straight road games to the Packers, including the postseason. 
 
 ___ 
 
 BEARS 17, VIKINGS 13 
 
 At Minneapolis, Charles Tillman's interception return in the second quarter gave Chicago (8-8) the lead, allowing the Bears to stop their five-game losing streak despite 3 1/2 sacks by Jared Allen. 
 
 Allen finished the season with 22 sacks, behind Michael Strahan's NFL mark of 22 1/2 for the Giants in 2001. 
 
 Joe Webb relieved Christian Ponder at quarterback for the Vikings (3-13) for the third time in the last month, but the scrambling Webb wasn't able to keep the Vikings from matching the worst record in franchise history. 
 
 ___ 
 
 EAGLES 34, REDSKINS 10 
 
 At Philadelphia, Michael Vick threw three touchdown passes, including a 62-yarder to DeSean Jackson, as the Eagles closed the season with four straight wins. 
 
 The Eagles (8-8) are hoping to carry the momentum from their strong finish into next season. But they can't be satisfied after entering the year with Super Bowl aspirations. 
 
 It's the first time since 2007 that Philadelphia didn't qualify for the postseason and just the fourth time in coach Andy Reid's 13 seasons. The Eagles set a franchise record for total yards on offense with 6,386. 
 
 The Redskins (5-11) finished in last place in the NFC East for a franchise-worst fourth straight year. It was Mike Shanahan's worst full season in 18 years as a coach. 
 
 ___ 
 
 49ERS 34, RAMS 27 
 
 At St. Louis, Michael Crabtree caught two touchdown passes, one from kicker David Akers on a perfectly executed trick play, as San Francisco wrapped up the No. 2 playoff seed in the NFC and a first-round bye. 
 
 Crabtree and Vernon Davis had big days for a team short of pass catchers and Tarell Brown had a pair of interceptions that led to touchdowns as the 49ers (13-3) beat the Rams (2-14) for the second time the last five games.
– For Eli Manning and the New York Giants, Lambeau Field has become a familiar launching pad. After beating the Green Bay Packers at home for the second time in four years, they only hope this trip ends the same way—at the Super Bowl. Manning threw three touchdown passes and the Giants shocked the Packers 37-20 in an NFC divisional playoff game today. Manning threw for 330 yards, sending the Giants to San Francisco for the NFC championship game next Sunday night. More from today's football games: The San Francisco 49ers beat the New Orleans Saints in a thrilling 36-32 game today. With New Orleans poised to score on its opening possession, Donte Whitner delivered a crushing blow that knocked out running back Pierre Thomas and forced the first of five Saints turnovers. San Francisco's hard-hitting, opportunistic defense set the tone the same way it has all season, putting the 49ers back in the NFC championship for the first time since the 1997 season. If style points and offensive fireworks meant anything, the Baltimore Ravens wouldn't stand a chance of making it to the AFC championship. Playing defense and protecting the football are what they do best, and that formula led to a 20-13 victory over the Houston Texans today, putting Baltimore in the AFC title game against the New England Patriots next Sunday, with the winner advancing to the Super Bowl in Indianapolis on Feb. 5.