The last time the Saints played the Cardinals was Week 15 of the 2007 season. Both teams were flirting with finishing .500 but destined for second place finishes in their respective divisions.

Kurt Warner (233 yards, three touchdowns) and the Cardinals couldn’t overcome a big day from Drew Brees (315 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions), as the Saints won, 31-24. But unlike this Saturday’s Divisional round matchup, the game had little impact on the Super Bowl.

Some things are the same – both Larry Fitzgerald and Marques Colston caught touchdown passes – but the teams are both far more dangerous than they were a few years ago.

Drew Brees and Kurt Warner chat after their teams faced off during the 2007 regular season. The two squads will play again Saturday at the Superdome, this time with a berth in the NFC Championship game at stake.

As we anticipate Saturday’s showdown, we’ll look back at some of the most memorable games between these two new powers of the NFC.

The Saints and Cardinals have never played in the playoffs. It would be unlikely, given the limited postseason tradition of the two franchises. The Cardinals have only made the playoffs eight times, including the past two seasons, and the Saints have only made it six times. They have, however, played games with playoff implications.

On December 20, 1998, the Cardinals hosted the Saints with both squads harboring postseason aspirations. Chris Jacke hit a 36-yard field goal, one of his four field goals in the game, as time expired to give Arizona a 19-17 victory. The loss eliminated New Orleans from a possible playoff berth and propelled the Cardinals to a 9-7 record and a win over Dallas in the first round of the playoffs.

While both franchises have toiled in mediocrity or worse for most of their existences, they have played some memorable games during such times.

On October 31, 1993, the Saints entered the game with a 6-2 record against a 2-6 Cardinals team looking to turn the season around. After Aeneas Williams returned both a fumble and an interception for touchdowns, the Saints rallied back from a 17-7 deficit to win, 20-17. The Saints would struggle the rest of the way, though, winning only one of their remaining seven games to finish 8-8. Arizona, on the other hand, improved to 7-9 by season’s end.

In 1992, The Saints and Cardinals finished with opposite records: 12-4 for New Orleans and 4-12 for the Cards. When they met in Week 7, though, it looked like Arizona was the playoff contender. The Saints fumbled three times in the first half to go with an interception and some costly penalties, but in the end, Bobby Hebert’s 355 yards and three TDs were enough to give the Saints a 30-21 win.

And in the matchup that the Saints hope repeats itself, on Dec. 8, 1974, New Orleans shut out the Cardinals, 14-0, in their final game at Tulane Stadium, their home for the first eight years as a franchise.

-- CHARLIE WIDDOES