The New Orleans Saints and Dallas Cowboys have rebounded from their respective sluggish starts to put together winning streaks.
Unfortunately for the Cowboys, their pronounced hiccup spanned over the first two months of the season and effectively put the kibosh on their dream of playing in front of their home fans in the Super Bowl.
As for the defending Super Bowl champion Saints (7-3), they'll vie for their fourth straight win when they cross the state border to face the Cowboys (3-7) on Thursday.
New Orleans is starting to resemble the team which hoisted the Lombardi Trophy in February, but it sure didn't look that way at the onset of the season.
After looking somewhat pedestrian by scoring 19.8 points in their first five games, the Saints jump-started their high-octane offense en route to winning four of their next five contests.
On Sunday, Drew Brees tossed four touchdown passes - two apiece to wide receivers Marques Colston and Robert Meachem - as New Orleans cruised to a 34-19 victory over the Seattle Seahawks.
Brees completed 29 of 43 passes and connected with 10 different receivers while amassing 382 yards. The Super Bowl MVP has thrown eight touchdowns during the team's three-game winning streak.
Colston, who reeled in a team-high eight receptions for 113 yards on Sunday, has been a familiar target of Brees. The 27-year-old Colston has reeled in 32 balls for 365 yards and four scores in the last three games.
Undrafted rookie Christopher Ivory added a 1-yard touchdown run as New Orleans remained hot on the heels of the Atlanta Falcons (8-2) in the NFC South.
Ivory may end up handing off some of the rushing responsibilities to Reggie Bush, who could make his return following an eight-game absence with a broken fibula. The electrifying back suffered the injury while attempting to field a punt in a Monday night game in Week 2 against the San Francisco 49ers.
Keeping the Saints' offense in check is the responsibility of interim coach Jason Garrett and the Cowboys, who have won two in a row since Wade Phillips was fired as the team's coach.
Veteran quarterback Jon Kitna has settled in quite nicely for the injured Tony Romo and posted a pair of three-touchdown performances.
On Sunday, Kitna tossed a pair of scoring strikes to Miles Austin and one to rookie Dez Bryant to propel Dallas to a 35-19 victory over the Detroit Lions. The triumph was the first in five tries at home this season for the Cowboys.
Dallas' leading rusher, Felix Jones (404 yards), is nursing a hip injury. The 22nd overall pick of the 2008 draft, Jones did not practice on Tuesday and is expected to be a game-time decision against the Saints.
The Cowboys have rushed for just 83.9 yards per contest this season, fourth worst in the NFL. The Saints aren't much better, rushing for 4.6 yards more per contest.