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Saints All-Pro defensive end Cameron Jordan grinned playfully as he glanced up at a bottle of red wine in the top shelf of his locker and asked if anyone knew Carolina quarterback Cam Newton’s address.

A bottle with the name ”Jordan” on the label – even if it isn’t made by the Saints star’s family – might be the last thing Newton wants right now.

Drew Brees and his receiving corps came through when Carolina stifled New Orleans’ prolific backfield Kailer Yamamoto Jersey , and a relentless Jordan spearheaded a late defensive stand to seal a 31-26 an NFC wild-card round victory on Sunday.

”You can’t be more happy about the way we played in terms of how we finished the game,” Jordan said. ”We almost let them back in the game, but here I am standing as winner. Here I am, as a Cam Jordan, sending Cam Newton a bottle of Jordan wine.”

Brees passed for 376 yards and two touchdowns, but one more completion would have considerably lowered the stress level on the Saints’ sideline. Coach Sean Payton kept the offense on the field on fourth-and-short with two minutes remaining and Carolina out of timeouts, hoping for one more first down that would have allowed New Orleans to run out the clock.

But Brees couldn’t find an open receiver, was flushed out of the pocket and decided his best option was to throw it up for grabs. It was intercepted by safety Mike Adams, which turned out better for New Orleans than an incompletion because it meant the Panthers had to start from their own 31 instead of mid-field.

Still, Newton completed three straight passes to move the Panthers to the Saints 26-yard line with 58 seconds left before New Orleans’ resistance stiffened.

”I’m frustrated,” Newton said. ”I hate that I couldn’t do enough to get a win today for a lot of guys that I think so highly of.

”I just have to be better,” he added. ”I’m not going to take the cowardly way and point somebody else out.”

The comeback bid began to fizzle when Jordan induced an intentional grounding penalty on Newton, making it third-and-25 on the Saints 34 and a requiring 10-second runoff that left 20 seconds on the clock.

After an incompletion in the end zone, Vonn Bell sacked Newton on a safety blitz , ensuring the Saints (12-5) swept all three meetings with Carolina (11-6) this season, in addition to winning the first postseason game they’ve played in four seasons.

”The coaches wanted to get the ball out of the quarterback’s hands fast,” Bell said. ”They dialed it up and I said, `Go make a play.”’

Brees’ touchdowns went for 80-yards to Ted Ginn and 9 yards to tight end Josh Hill. Fullback Zach line and running back Alvin Kamara each ran for short touchdowns, the latter set up by Michael Thomas’ 46-yard reception .

”What we’ve shown offensively is we have a lot of ways to be effective,” Brees said, mentioning clutch first-down catches by Brandon Coleman and Willie Snead in addition to the big plays by Ginn and Thomas. ”The ball was spread around quite a bit and guys were making plays when they had the chances.”

Thomas caught eight passes for 131 yards on a day when the Saints needed the passing game to compensate for a ground game that struggled to get going. Thomas said when he noticed the Panthers playing with one safety deep instead of their usual two, ”you’re licking your chops with a quarterback like Drew Brees and the talent we have. We knew what we had to do and it was on the receivers.”

Ginn, a former Panthers receiver, celebrated the sweep of his former team by holding up a broom in the locker room.

MISSED OPPORTUNITIES

Helped by the presence of tight end Greg Olsen – who did not play in the teams’ previous two meetings – Newton marched Carolina into Saints territory more often than not. But the Panthers stalled four times inside the New Orleans 25 in the first three quarters. They settled for four field goal attempts on those drives, one of which kicker Graham Gano surprisingly missed from 25-yards.

Jordan called the Saints’ red-zone stops ”huge.”

”Had half of those been touchdowns, we’d be sitting in a different spot,” Jordan said.

KEY STATS

Olsen had eight catches for 107 yards and a touchdown.

Newton finished 24 of 40 passing for 349 yards and two touchdowns, including a 56-yard scoring strike to Christian McCaffrey that pulled the Panthers within a touchdown with 4:09 left.

Saints running backs Mark Ingram and Alvin Kamara, who combined for more than 3,000 yards from scrimmage this season, were held to 68 total yards.

RUSHING THE PASSSER

Newton was sacked four times, once each by Bell, Jordan, Jonathan Freeney, and David Onyemata. The sack by Onyemata came as Newton tried to spin away from Tyeler Davison and slammed his head into Onyemata’s chest. Newton appeared to be checked for a concussion Rasheem Green Color Rush Jersey , but missed only one play before returning to the game on Carolina’s next possession

Newton sat on the field near the sideline after the play, and while a new NFL rule calls for players to be taken to the locker room to be evaluated for concussions if they appear to be struggling to stand, Newton said part of his helmet got pushed into his eyelid. Panthers coach Ron Rivera offered a similar explanation and added that Newton only sat down to give backup Derek Anderson more time to warm up.

The NFL said it planned to discuss the matter with the Panthers medical staff before commenting further.

INJURIES

Panthers: Cornerback Dary In early April, Chris Herrmann was a free-agent catcher sitting on his couch at home wondering if he was going to play baseball again.

Now he is. And the Mariners are glad they found him.

Herrmann hit his first home run for Seattle, and Marco Gonzales pitched six solid innings to lead the Mariners to a 4-1 victory over the Los Angeles Angels on Thursday night.

Gonzales (9-5) gave up five hits while striking out seven in a 102-pitching outing. The lone run he gave up was Kole Calhoun’s sacrifice fly in the fourth inning to tie the game at 1.

Considering how rough a first inning the left-hander had, Gonzales gladly took the outcome.

”It was a constant chess game,” Gonzales said.

He had no control over his sinker. His changeup wasn’t getting over the plate. And he was working with a catcher in Herrmann – called up from the minors in late-May – with whom he had no familiarity.

But after regular catcher Mike Zunino was placed on the 10-day disabled list Thursday with a bruised left foot, it was up to Herrmann and Gonzales to figure things out.

”In that first inning, (Gonzales) did not have it. He really didn’t,” Mariners manager Scott Servais said. ”I’ve been around a long time, and you see pitchers with six-to-seven years’ experience in this league that panic. They don’t have it, and they throw in the towel.

”It says a lot about his maturity and where he’s at.”

Gonzales escaped a bases-loaded jam in the first by getting Albert Pujols to ground into a double play.

”Give Gonzales some credit,” Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. ”He made some pitches and got out of it.”

In the fifth, Guillermo Heredia’s line drive went over Justin Upton’s head in left field for an RBI double gave Seattle the lead back at 2-1.

In the seventh inning, Herrmann’s solo blast off reliever Miguel Almonte carried deep into the right-field bleachers. Not a bad ending for a guy who did not find out he was in the starting lineup until five hours before first pitch.

”I know a lot of pitchers here have a lot of confidence behind Mike behind the plate, and I hope I can gain that confidence from these guys as well,” said Herrmann, who was signed by the Mariners to a minor league deal in early April after being designated for assignment by Arizona at the end of spring training. ”I am trying to do my part and fill in while he is gone.”

Dee Gordon tripled into the right-field corner with two outs, and Jean Segura greeted reliever Cam Bedrosian with a high-chopping RBI single to third baseman David Fletcher to extend Seattle’s lead to 4-1.

Gordon also saved a run in the eighth with his highlight-reel diving catch of Ian Kinsler’s line drive behind second base.

”It was just instincts. I just jumped as far as I could,” Gordon said.

Edwin Diaz struck out the side in the ninth to lock up his major league-leading 34th save.

The Mariners have not lost a home series since May 6, when they dropped two of three games to the Angels. They are 6-0-3 during that span.

Angels starter Jaime Barria (5-5) gave up two runs in 5 1/3 innings.

HERNANDEZ BACK `BETTER’

Seattle right-hander Felix Hernandez insists he feels much better before his scheduled start Friday against Colorado than he did nearly a week ago.

Hernandez tweaked his back during a workout in Baltimore. It tightened on him before his start Saturday against Kansas City – one in which he surrendered three earned runs before recording an out in a 6-4 victory. With the help of heat and ice packs, and more stretching, Hernandez’s back has felt better this week. He even threw an abbreviated bullpen session.

”I am better today, more loose,” Hernandez said. ”I will be fine.”

BIRTHDAY BOY

What did Japanese star Shohei Ohtani get on the day of his 24th birthday Thursday in Seattle? He got a seat on the bench against Gonzales, a left-hander. With Albert Pujols serving as the designated hitter, Jefry Marte got the start at first base after being activated from the 10-day disabled list earlier in the day.

Ohtani struck out in the ninth inning as a pinch hitter against Diaz.

ROSTER RESHUFFLING

Angels: To make room for Marte, the Angels sent outfielder Jabari Blash to Triple-A Salt Lake.

Mariners: Left-handed pitcher Ariel Miranda, who started 29 games last season, was granted his unconditional release from Triple-A Tacoma to pursue playing opportunities in Japan.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Angels: Outfielder Chris Young (left hamstring) had an MRI test on his hamstring Thursday. Results weren’t revealed, but he is still expected to be out past the All-Star Break. … Right-hander Nick Tropeano (right shoulder) will pitch Saturday as part of a rehab assignment. He will be limited to 60 pitches, Scioscia said. … Right-hander Jim Johnson (back) threw a bullpen session and is approaching a rehab assignment as well.

Mariners: Zunino (left ankle) was placed on the 10-day disabled list with a bruised left foot. He rolled his ankle late in Seattle’s 7-4 loss Wednesday running the basepaths and was walking around in a boot in the clubhouse Thursday. David Freitas was recalled from Tacoma to serve as the backup catcher behind Herrmann. … Outfielder Mitch Haniger was scratched from the starting lineup because of a bruised right knee. Heredia took his place.

UP NEXT

Rockies: Right-hander German Marquez (6-8, 5.14 ERA) faces off against one of his famous Venezuelan countrymen in Hernandez. He has never faced the Mariners, but is 2-0 in