2006 New Jersey state government shutdown, The shutdown
According to The Philadelphia Inquirer, "New Jersey Transit, prisons, state police, developmental centers, veterans' homes, mental hospitals, health and disease-prevention offices, child welfare, work on transportation safety, response to environmental contamination, [and] inspectors of amusement parks" were not affected by the order to shut down.


2006 New Jersey state government shutdown, Post-shutdown governmental action
To restore government services, on July 3, 2006, Corzine signed an executive order calling for an unprecedented Independence Day session of the General Assembly to work on presenting him with a budget. Immediately after listening to the governor's speech, the legislature voted by voice vote to adjourn the session. The General Assembly met again, without proposing a budget, the following day.


2006 New Jersey state government shutdown, Post-shutdown governmental action
Meeting on the third day of the special session, Democratic factions within the General Assembly reached a compromise budget. That tentative budget proposed an increase in the state sales tax from 6% to 7%, which was estimated to generate an additional $1.1 billion in revenue. The plan also included a requirement to use half of that for direct relief toward New Jersey's property tax—highest of all states. The plan also called for the same dedicated purpose for all of the money raised by this sales tax increase in subsequent years. The new budget law included a provision for a constitutional amendment which was required, like all such amendments in the state, to be approved in an Election Day referendum. On November 7, 2006, New Jersey voters approved this measure by a two to one margin statewide.


2006 New Jersey state government shutdown, Post-shutdown governmental action
Early in the morning of July 8, 2006, both houses of the legislature passed the proposed budget. At 6:00 am that day, Corzine signed executive order number 19 to restore government services. The casinos in Atlantic City opened for business at 7:00 am Remaining government services, including race tracks and the state lottery, also reopened on July 8, 2006. State courts and motor vehicle offices resumed normal operations on July 10, 2006, fully ending the shutdown.


2006 New Jersey state government shutdown, Post-shutdown governmental action
Corzine used his line-item veto authority to reduce the budget by over $51.3 million by eliminating or reducing over 50 spending items.


2006 New Jersey state government shutdown, Effects
During the casino shutdown, 36,000 casino workers were given leave. The shutdown of casinos resulted in lost revenue for the state, as an estimated $1.3 million per day was collected in gambling taxes plus an additional $2 million per day due to the closure of the lottery system. However, the sum of revenue not collected during the shutdown from gambling amounted to just a small fraction of the state's annual budget. Atlantic City's 12 casinos suffered losses estimated at $16–20 million per day during the shutdown. Revenue losses to lottery vendors and casino employees have not been calculated.


2006 New Jersey state government shutdown, Effects
Legislation signed by Governor Corzine in June 2008 would keep casinos and racetracks open in the event of a future budget showdown, with the Governor noting that the casino industry is vital to the New Jersey economy and that it should not operate under the threat of closure as it did in 2006.


2006 New Jersey state government shutdown, Effects
All driver's licenses and vehicle registrations that were to expire at the end of July were extended one month.


2006 New Jersey state government shutdown, Effects
The increase in the rate of the state sales tax from 6% to 7% took effect on July 15, 2006, and also increased the sales tax rate in the state's Urban Enterprise Zones (UEZs) from 3% to 3.5%. A significant change was made in the payment of sales taxes by businesses operating in the UEZs in that they would be required to pay the entire amount of the full tax rate to the state on all appropriate purchases, and wait for the state to rebate them the difference.


2006 New Jersey state government shutdown, Effects
The budget also included changes to products and services that are subject to the sales tax, effective October 1, 2006. The newly taxable items included downloaded music, ringtones, movies and books; shipping and handling; drapery and carpet dry cleaning; floor installation; contracted landscaping; self-storage; tanning; massages; tattooing; magazines; investigation and security services such as armored cars and alarm systems; limousines, except for those used in funerals; memberships in health, athletic and shopping clubs; and parking, except for employee parking, parking at municipal meters and parking already subject to municipal parking taxes.


2006 New Jersey state government shutdown, Effects
Other immediate tax increases in the budget included an increase in the cigarette tax by $0.175 per pack; a 0.4% surcharge on automobile purchases of over $45,000.00 and on vehicles with an average combined city highway miles per gallon 19 or less; a new 6% tax on fur clothing; an increase in the rental-car tax from $2 to $5 per day; and increases on several business taxes.


2006 New Jersey state government shutdown, Effects
These additional revenues were expected, when combined with spending cuts including a reduction of $200 million in higher education spending, to meet the state's balanced-budget requirement. A clause was also inserted into the budget cutting state aid for schools that hold over $1 billion in endowments. The only school in New Jersey that fell into this category was Princeton University, which had an endowment with assets over $11 billion in 2006. The university that had the largest endowment next to Princeton at the time was Drew University which had a $225 million endowment fund.


2006 New Jersey state government shutdown, Political influences
Corzine's shutdown of state government had some effect on New Jersey and national politics. According to Clay F. Richards, assistant director of a poll by the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute, Corzine had a 44% approval rating, his highest since January 2006. The poll also indicated that 71% of respondents disapproved of the legislature's handling of its job. According to Richards, "New Jersey voters clearly blame the state legislature for the budget crisis, and say the property-tax relief that the legislature insisted on in the compromise is more politics than real reform." Of those polled, 23% indicated that they would not vote for those representatives who voted for the sales-tax hike in the future. The legislature's next election was in November 2007, but Corzine did not face re-election until 2009.


2006 New Jersey state government shutdown, Political influences
There was also speculation that the U.S. Senate race, already seen as tight, would be affected. Republican candidate Thomas Kean, Jr. said Democratic Senator Bob Menendez did not oppose Corzine's tax hike because Corzine appointed Menendez to serve out the remainder of his own term in the Senate.


2006 New Jersey state government shutdown, Political influences
According to Peter Woolley, director of Fairleigh Dickinson University's PublicMind poll, the situation of the election was similar to the 1990 election, when underdog Senate candidate Christie Whitman, a Republican, nearly defeated well-known Senator Bill Bradley due to Democratic Governor Jim Florio's sales- and income-tax increases. By August, Woolley concluded that the tax increase had had no effect on Menendez's re-election chances.


2006 New Mexico Bowl
The 2006 New Mexico Bowl was a postseason American college football bowl game held on December 23, 2006 at University Stadium on the University of New Mexico campus in Albuquerque as part of the 2006–07 NCAA football bowl games. The game, telecast on ESPN, featured the San Jose State Spartans from the WAC and the hometown New Mexico Lobos from the Mountain West Conference. The game was the inaugural New Mexico Bowl and the first bowl game held in the state.


2006 New Mexico Bowl
San Jose State controlled the action all game long, jumping out to a 20–3 lead before New Mexico tacked on 9 points in the final few minutes. Spartan quarterback Adam Tafralis threw three touchdown passes, two to offensive MVP James Jones, in a dominant performance. With the loss, New Mexico's postseason drought was extended to 45 years.


2006 New Mexico Bowl, Game summary, First Quarter
The game was scoreless through the first quarter with each team punting on all of their three possessions.


2006 New Mexico Bowl, Game summary, Second Quarter
On the first play of the second quarter, San Jose State quarterback Adam Tafralis threw a 76-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver John Broussard who was wide open on a blown coverage. The nine second scoring drive gave San Jose State a 7–0 lead they would not relinquish. On the ensuing kickoff, New Mexico return man DeAndre Wright took the kickoff to the San Jose State 40-yard line.


2006 New Mexico Bowl, Game summary, Second Quarter
The Lobos used the field position to set up a first and goal at the one-yard line but fumbled on third down in the endzone after San Jose State linebacker Matt Castelo put his helmet on the ball and knocked it loose from the Lobos' Rodney Ferguson. Spartan Damaja Jones caught the ball out of the air and returned  it 57 yards to the New Mexico 43, changing momentum for good in the game.


2006 New Mexico Bowl, Game summary, Second Quarter
After a pair punts, Tafralis connected with wide receiver James Jones who made a man miss on the sideline and went in for a 36-yard touchdown to give San Jose State a 13–0 lead. The PAT was missed. New Mexico kicker Kenny Byrd got the Lobos on the board on the following drive with a 40-yard field goal to make the score 13–3.


2006 New Mexico Bowl, Game summary, Third Quarter
After two punts to start the second half, New Mexico fumbled again on a crucial 4th and 1 run on their own side of the field and did not convert. On the fourth play of the ensuing Spartan drive, Tafralis took advantage with his third scoring toss of the day, connecting with James Jones for a 24-yard jump ball to increase his team's lead to 20–3. Spartans All-American defensive back Dwight Lowery returned an interception for a touchdown late in the quarter but it was wiped away by a pass interference call.


2006 New Mexico Bowl, Game summary, Fourth Quarter
San Jose State's defense held New Mexico's offense in check after recovering three more Lobo fumbles, and looked poised to run out the clock. Backed up deep in their end zone and leading by 17, San Jose State coach Dick Tomey elected to have punter Waylon Prather take a safety rather than risk a turnover or blocked punt, bringing the score to 20–5.


2006 New Mexico Bowl, Game summary, Fourth Quarter
With only 58 seconds remaining after a squib kick, New Mexico quarterback Chris Nelson - who replaced freshman starter Donovan Porterie for the second half - led his team down the field with three first down throws and a 15-yard scoring strike to wideout Marcus Smith, cutting the deficit to 20–12. San Jose State recovered the ensuing onside kick with 15 seconds left and knelt on the ball, capturing the inaugural New Mexico Bowl.


2006 New Mexico Lobos football team
The 2006 New Mexico Lobos football team represented the University of New Mexico during the 2006 NCAA Division I FBS football season. New Mexico competed as a member of the Mountain West Conference (MW), and played their home games in the University Stadium. The Lobos were led by ninth-year head coach Rocky Long.


2006 New Mexico State Aggies football team
The 2006 New Mexico State Aggies football team represented New Mexico State University in the 2006 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Aggies were coached by head coach Hal Mumme and played their home games at Aggie Memorial Stadium in Las Cruces, New Mexico. They participated as members of the Western Athletic Conference.


2006 New Mexico gubernatorial election
The 2006 New Mexico gubernatorial election was a race for the Governor of New Mexico held on November 7, 2006. Incumbent Democratic Governor Bill Richardson was running for re-election. He faced Republican John Dendahl in the general election and won by a landslide. As of 2021, this is the last time a man was elected Governor of New Mexico.


2006 New Mexico gubernatorial election, General election, Campaign
Damron defeated Bailey in the Republican primary, but withdrew from the race on June 17, 2006 due to a lack of fundraising. John Dendahl was appointed by the Republican State Central Committee to replace him. There were no general election debates between the two candidates.


2006 New Orleans Bowl
The 2006 R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl featured the Troy Trojans and the Rice Owls. Rice was making its first bowl appearance since the 1961 Bluebonnet Bowl.


2006 New Orleans Bowl
Troy quarterback Omar Haugabook started the scoring with a 2-yard touchdown run to give Troy an early 7–0 lead. Less than a minute later, Haugabook hooked up with Gary Banks for a 3-yard touchdown pass to give Troy a 14–0 lead. With 5:12 left in the 1st quarter, Rice got on the board with an 11-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Joel Armstrong to wide receiver Mike Falco, making the score 14–7, Troy.


2006 New Orleans Bowl
With just 2 seconds left in the 1st quarter, Haugabook connected with wide receiver Mikeal Terry for a 56-yard touchdown pass, and a 21–7 lead. Clark Fangmeier connected on a 43-yard field goal to cut the lead to 21–10. Omar Haugabook later found Andrew Davis for a 7-yard touchdown pass to give Troy a 28–10 lead.


2006 New Orleans Bowl
Late in the third quarter, Greg Whibbs hit a 25-yard field goal to increase the lead to 31–10. He connected on a 26-yard field goal in the fourth quarter to increase the lead to 34–10. Wide receiver Jarett Dillard caught a 1-yard touchdown pass from Joel Armstrong to bring Rice to within 34–17. With two minutes left in the game, Haugabook connected with Toris Rutledge for a 5-yard touchdown pass to close the scoring, 41–17.


2006 New Orleans Saints season
The 2006 season was the New Orleans Saints' 40th in the National Football League.


2006 New Orleans Saints season
The season began with the team returning to New Orleans after a year in exile from the city, and trying to improve on their 3–13 record in 2005. All of the team's 2006 regular season home games were played in the Louisiana Superdome, which had been unplayable for the entire 2005 season after being damaged during Hurricane Katrina. Led by a new coach, Sean Payton, and a new quarterback, Drew Brees, the Saints enjoyed their most successful season up to that time, reaching the playoffs for the first time since 2000 and the NFC Championship Game for the first time in franchise history.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Offseason
On January 17, the Saints made their first step in the 2006 offseason by hiring Sean Payton, the former assistant head coach for the Dallas Cowboys, as their new head coach.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Offseason
On March 14, 2006, the Saints signed former Chargers quarterback Drew Brees, a free agent, to a six-year deal. This signing is believed by many as the greatest free agency signing in NFL history, tied with the Denver Broncos' signing of Peyton Manning 6 years later.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Offseason, Return to New Orleans
The NFL announced on February 5, 2006, that the Superdome would reopen on September 24 when the Saints hosted the Atlanta Falcons.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Offseason, Return to New Orleans
Sites for the team's 2006 preseason games were announced on March 23. They were Shreveport, Louisiana, for an August 21 game against the Dallas Cowboys, and Jackson, Mississippi, for an August 26 game against the Indianapolis Colts.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Offseason, Return to New Orleans
On April 6 the Saints released their 2006 schedule. All home games were scheduled to be played at the Superdome. The home opener against the Atlanta Falcons was moved from September 24 to September 25 and was shown on ESPN's Monday Night Football.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Offseason, NFL Draft
In the 2006 NFL Draft, the Saints used their first pick (the second pick overall) on USC running back Reggie Bush, the 2005 Heisman Trophy winner (an award later vacated in 2010). Bush had been passed over by the Houston Texans, who instead selected North Carolina State defensive end Mario Williams with the first overall pick.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 1: at Cleveland Browns
The Saints opened the regular season on the road against the Cleveland Browns on September 10. In the first half, kicker John Carney provided all of the Saints' first 9 points. He put up a 43-yarder in the first, along with a 25 and a 21-yarder in the second quarter. In the third quarter, the Browns offense finally got going as Cleveland quarterback Charlie Frye hooked up with TE Kellen Winslow on an 18-yard touchdown pass. The Saints responded with a 12-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Drew Brees to WR Marques Colston. In the fourth quarter, the Browns came close with Frye getting a 1-yard touchdown run. However, the Saints put the game away with Carney kicking a 20-yard FG to give the Saints the win.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 1: at Cleveland Browns
Despite not scoring a touchdown, RB Reggie Bush had a sound NFL debut, as he ran 14 times for 61 yards, caught 8 passes for 58 yards, and returned three punts for 22 Yards. In total, he piled up 141 all-purpose yards.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 2: at Green Bay Packers
For Week 2, the Saints traveled to take on the Packers at Green Bay's Lambeau Field, where they had lost 52-3 last season. The Saints trailed in the first quarter, on a 22-yard touchdown pass to opposing WR Greg Jennings and two Dave Rayner field goals (a 24-yarder and a 36-yarder). The Saints began their scoring in the second quarter, as RB Deuce McAllister got a 3-yard touchdown run and quarterback Drew Brees threw a 26-yard touchdown strike to WR Devery Henderson.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 2: at Green Bay Packers
In the third quarter, the punishing continued, as kicker John Carney kicked a 45 and a 47-yard field goal to further New Orleans' lead. In the fourth quarter, Green Bay tried to come back with quarterback Brett Favre throwing a 4-yard pass to WR Robert Ferguson. The Saints managed to put the game away with a 25-yard touchdown pass to WR Marques Colston and a 23-yard run by McAllister. The Packers scored once more, on a 6-yard touchdown pass to RB Noah Herron, but the damage was done.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 3: vs. Atlanta Falcons
Riding high from their two-straight road wins, the Saints returned home to the Louisiana Superdome for the first time since December 26, 2004 for a special Monday Night game against their fellow NFC South division rival, the Atlanta Falcons, in front of a jubilant sold-out crowd of 70,003 and ESPN's largest-ever audience, with about 10.8 million households viewing, at the time the second-largest cable audience in history (behind the 1993 North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) debate between Al Gore and Ross Perot on CNN).


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 3: vs. Atlanta Falcons
On just the fourth overall play of the game, Safety Steve Gleason blocked a punt and DB Curtis Deloatch managed to land on the ball in the end zone for the Saints first score of the game. (At this point, the game paused to allow the cameras to show the crowd cheering for a few minutes.) Former Saints kicker Morten Andersen helped Atlanta get its only score of the game, from a 26-yard field goal. From there, the Saints dominated the rest of the game.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 3: vs. Atlanta Falcons
For the final score of the first quarter, WR Devery Henderson ran 11 yards for a touchdown on a reverse. Kicker John Carney provided the scoring for the rest of the game, as he kicked two-second-quarter field goals (a 37-yarder and a 51-yarder), and one third-quarter field goal (a 20-yarder) to essentially wrap up the game. From there, the Saints defense continued to put pressure on Falcons quarterback Michael Vick, as they sacked him five times, while limiting the running duo of Vick and Dunn to just a combined total of 101 rushing yards. With their dominating performance, the Saints took the lead in the NFC South with a 3–0 record.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 3: vs. Atlanta Falcons
Green Day and U2 performed jointly on the field before the game, while the Goo Goo Dolls held a concert outside the Dome earlier in the evening. Former President George H. W. Bush, who won the Republican nod for the presidency in the Superdome back in 1988, was part of the coin toss ceremony.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 4: at Carolina Panthers
Following their dominant home game at the Louisiana Superdome, the Saints traveled to Bank of America Stadium for an NFC South battle with the Carolina Panthers. From the get-go, the Saints trailed early, as quarterback Jake Delhomme completed a 9-yard touchdown pass to WR Steve Smith for the only score of the period. In the second quarter, the Saints managed to get a field goal, as kicker John Carney nailed one from 31 yards out. After a scoreless third quarter, RB Deuce McAllister managed to help New Orleans take the lead, as he got a 3-yard touchdown run.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 4: at Carolina Panthers
That was the only time that the Saints saw the lead, as the Panthers slashed away, with Delhomme completing a 4-yard pass to WR Drew Carter and RB DeShaun Foster running 43 yards for a touchdown. New Orleans tried to come back, as quarterback Drew Brees completed an 86-yard touchdown pass to WR Marques Colston, but that was as close as they got, as Carolina held on to win, while the Saints got their first loss of the year dropping to 3–1.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 5: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The second game back in the Superdome was not marked by the media attention of the Saints' home opener, but fans in attendance were not disappointed. The sold-out crowd was treated to a dramatic contest between the Saints and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Though Tampa Bay proved to be a formidable opponent despite their season-long losing streak, the Saints won 24–21. The win was capped off by a fourth quarter punt return by Saints rookie Reggie Bush.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 5: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Prior to the play, Bush roused the notoriously raucous New Orleans audience to their feet; by the time the ball was snapped, the cheers had reached a tremendous level. The noise only increased as Bush raced past the Bucs' special teams for 65 yards and scored the game-winning touchdown, his first as an NFL player. After the game, the traditional "Who Dat?" cheer was punctuated by spontaneous chants of "Reggie, Reggie" as the Saints claimed their fourth win of the season while improving to 4–1.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 6: vs. Philadelphia Eagles
Hoping to build on their win over Tampa Bay, the Saints stayed at home for a Week 6 fight with the Philadelphia Eagles. In the first quarter, New Orleans jumped out to an early lead with kicker John Carney kicking a 39-yard field goal and quarterback Drew Brees completing a 14-yard touchdown pass to WR Joe Horn. In the second quarter, Philadelphia got on the board with a 47-yard field goal by David Akers. The Saints managed to further themselves, as Brees completed a 7-yard touchdown pass to WR Marques Colston.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 6: vs. Philadelphia Eagles
However, in the third quarter, the Eagles started to get back into the game, as quarterback Donovan McNabb completed two touchdown passes (a 60-yarder to WR Reggie Brown and a 4-yard to TE L.J. Smith). In the fourth quarter, Philadelphia took the lead on a 15-yard touchdown run by Brown. After Brees completed a 48-yard touchdown pass to Horn, Carney helped give New Orleans the win as he kicked a 31-yard field goal as time ran out on the game. With the win, the Saints maintained their lead in the NFC South with a 5–1 record going into their bye week.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 8: vs. Baltimore Ravens
Coming off their bye week, the Saints stayed at home for their Week 8 fight with the visiting Baltimore Ravens. From the get-go, New Orleans trailed as quarterback Steve McNair got a 5-yard touchdown run for the only score of the quarter. In the second quarter, things only got worse for the Saints, as McNair completed a 4-yard touchdown pass to WR Clarence Moore, while rookie DB Ronnie Prude returned an interception 12 yards for a touchdown.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 8: vs. Baltimore Ravens
New Orleans got on the board, as quarterback Drew Brees completed a 32-yard touchdown pass to WR Joe Horn, yet Baltimore increased their lead with McNair completing a 6-yard touchdown pass to TE Todd Heap. In the third quarter, the Ravens got another 12-yard touchdown interception return with rookie Strong Safety Dawan Landry making the pick for the only score of the period. In the fourth quarter, the Saints tried to mount a comeback, as Brees completed a 47-yard touchdown pass and a 25-yard touchdown pass to rookie WR Marques Colston. However, the Saints comeback drive ended there, as New Orleans fell to 5–2.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 9: at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Hoping to rebound from their home loss to the Ravens, the Saints flew to Raymond James Stadium for an NFC South rematch with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In the first quarter, quarterback Drew Brees completed a 15-yard touchdown pass to rookie WR Marques Colston and a 52-yard touchdown pass to WR Devery Henderson. In the second quarter, kicker John Carney made a 46-yard field goal to give New Orleans a 17–0 lead. Yet, the Bucs started to fight back, as quarterback Bruce Gradkowski completed two touchdown passes to WR Joey Galloway (a 44-yarder and a 17-yarder). In the third quarter, the Saints took over, as RB Deuce McAllister completed a 3-yard touchdown run, while Brees completed a 45-yard touchdown pass to Henderson. After a scoreless fourth quarter, New Orleans got the sweep over Tampa Bay and improved to 6–2.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 10: at Pittsburgh Steelers
Coming off their sweeping win over the Bucs, the Saints flew to Heinz Field for a match-up with the defending Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers. In the first quarter, the Saints trailed early as quarterback Ben Roethlisberger completed a 37-yard touchdown pass to WR Hines Ward and a 2-yard touchdown pass to TE Heath Miller. Afterwards, New Orleans got on the board with quarterback Drew Brees completing a 3-yard touchdown pass to WR Terrance Copper.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 10: at Pittsburgh Steelers
In the second quarter, the Saints started to take command as kicker John Carney completed a 20-yard field goal, while rookie RB Reggie Bush got a 15-yard touchdown run on a reverse. Pittsburgh got a 32-yard field goal from kicker Jeff Reed, but New Orleans responded with RB Deuce McAllister getting a 4-yard touchdown run. In the third quarter, the Steelers started to fight back as Roethlisberger completed a 38-yard touchdown pass to WR Cedrick Wilson for the only score of the period.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 10: at Pittsburgh Steelers
In the fourth quarter, RB Willie Parker followed up two 70+ yard runs with a 3-yard and a 4-yard touchdown run to give Pittsburgh the lead. The Saints tried to fight back with McAllister getting a 4-yard touchdown run, but Pittsburgh held on to win. With the loss, the Saints fell to 6–3.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 11: vs. Cincinnati Bengals
Coming off a road loss to the Steelers, the Saints went home for an interconference fight with the Cincinnati Bengals. In the first quarter, Cincinnati struck first with quarterback Carson Palmer completing a 41-yard touchdown pass to WR Chad Johnson. Afterwards, New Orleans responded with quarterback Drew Brees completing a 72-yard touchdown pass to WR Joe Horn. In the second quarter, the Bengals took the lead with kicker Shayne Graham getting a 21-yard field goal for the only score of the period. After a scoreless third quarter, kicker John Carney began the fourth quarter with 24-yard field goal.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 11: vs. Cincinnati Bengals
However, things went downhill with Cincinnati's most dominant part of the game. Palmer completed a 60-yard touchdown pass and a 4-yard touchdown pass to Chad, while rookie DB Ethan Kilmer returned an interception 52 yards for a touchdown. Afterwards, New Orleans could only muster a 27-yard touchdown pass from Brees to WR Terrance Copper. With the loss, the Saints fell to 6–4.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 12: at Atlanta Falcons
Trying to snap a two-game skid, the Saints flew to the Georgia Dome for an NFC South rematch with the Atlanta Falcons. In the first quarter, New Orleans started off strong with quarterback Drew Brees completing a 76-yard touchdown pass to WR Devery Henderson, while RB Deuce McAllister got a 1-yard touchdown run. Afterwards, Falcons kicker Morten Andersen completed a 22-yard field goal for Atlanta. In the second quarter, Andersen made a 30-yard field goal, while on the final play of the half, Brees threw a spectacular 48-yard "Hail Mary" touchdown pass to WR Terrance Copper.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 12: at Atlanta Falcons
In the third quarter, Atlanta tried to fight back, as RB Warrick Dunn got a 1-yard touchdown run for the only score of the quarter. In the fourth quarter, New Orleans managed to put the game away with kicker John Carney completing a 25-yard field goal and McAllister getting a 9-yard touchdown run. With the season sweep over the Falcons, the Saints improved to 7–4.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 13: vs. San Francisco 49ers
Attempting to capitalize on their decisive victory at Atlanta, a revitalized Saints team entered the game with high hopes. In the first quarter, 49ers kicker Joe Nedney kicked a 29-yarder for the 49ers only score of the half. Reggie Bush exploded in the second quarter with a 1-yard run touchdown and, after an interception returned to the 7-yard line by Mike McKenzie, a sneak-around touchdown late in the quarter. Coming into the third quarter, Alex Smith completed a 48-yard touchdown pass to Antonio Bryant, but that was the final score for the 49ers.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 13: vs. San Francisco 49ers
After a John Carney field goal, Reggie Bush took hold of a five-yard shovel pass from Drew Brees and scored his third touchdown of the night. In the fourth quarter, Bush ran down the sidelines and appeared to be heading for a fourth touchdown after a quick pass that he turned into a 74-yarder, but he fumbled the ball out of bounds. However, he scored on a ten-yard run a few plays later, and kicker John Carney sent the game away with a 33-yard field goal. With the win, the Saints improve to 8–4.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 14: at Dallas Cowboys
After a spectacular offensive performance all around by the Saints against the 49ers, they headed to Dallas to face off against their NFC rivals the Cowboys. The Cowboys started off strong with a 77-yard Julius Jones run, but they were silent for the rest of the quarter.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 14: at Dallas Cowboys
In the second quarter, a shaky Saints team suddenly scored on all three of their drives: a 2-yard run from Mike Karney, a 3-yard pass from Drew Brees to Karney, and a 27-yard pass from Brees to WR Jamal Jones; and to cap it all off, Dallas kicker Martin Gramatica missed a field goal at the end of the half. A surprising Saints team stymied the Cowboys to a field goal by Gramatica, and Reggie Bush quickly answered with a 61-yard catch for a touchdown. Terrell Owens answered with a 34-yard touchdown catch.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 14: at Dallas Cowboys
Mike Karney struck again with a 6-yard catch, and after a challenge by Sean Payton it was ruled a touchdown. The Saints recovered an onside kick at the 40, and Devery Henderson caught a 42-yard pass and crawled in for a touchdown. With the blowout against the Cowboys, the Saints improved to 9–4 and are one game away from clinching the NFC South. Mike Karney was called by Drew Brees 'Mr. Touchdown,' because he had three touchdowns.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 15: vs. Washington Redskins
The Washington Redskins entered the game strongly, with a solid drive straight down the field, but blitz, a fumble, and a penalty all worked against the Redskins, and forced a 37-yard field goal. However, they stifled the Saints offense and scored a quick touchdown later. The Saints answered back with a touchdown from the goal line, and limit the Redskins to a field goal. The surprising Redskins offense was hindered in the second quarter, as were the Saints, but in the beginning of the fourth, the Saints opened up with a field goal, which the Redskins quickly answered.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 15: vs. Washington Redskins
In a key play, the Saints converted a 4th-and-5 play late in the fourth quarter, down 16–10, which led to another key 16-yard throw on third down on the 2-minute warning. Reggie Bush made a dash to the twenty-yard line two plays later, and the Saints took their second time out with 1:01 left in the 4th quarter. On 4th and 8 with 53 seconds left, Carlos Rogers knocked the ball down and sealed the Saints' fate. With the loss, the Saints fell to 9–5, but because the Carolina Panthers fell to the Pittsburgh Steelers (along with the Atlanta Falcons falling to the Dallas Cowboys), they clinched the NFC South and a spot in the playoffs.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 16: at New York Giants
Despite the loss the previous week, the Saints could clinch a first-round bye with a win and help. They entered the Meadowlands against a New York Giants team trying to gain momentum that could lead them to a playoff spot. Hoping they could capitalize off the Saints loss, the Giants' first drive saw a 55-yard touchdown pass from Eli Manning to Plaxico Burress. The Saints' offense opened with a three-and-out, but they successfully recovered their punt. A field goal narrowed the score to 7–3. A subsequent Saints drive ended with another field goal.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 16: at New York Giants
With 10:30 left in the second quarter, the Saints directed a huge, time-eating drive that ended with a touchdown on fourth-down with just 1:56 left in the half. Seven minutes into the third quarter, Reggie Bush sped past the Giants' linebacker corps and scored on a one-yard touchdown, to lengthen the score to 20–7. In the middle of the third quarter, Reggie Bush returned a punt, fell onto his knees (but because nobody touched him he was not down by contact), and he then ran the ball in for a touchdown.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 16: at New York Giants
However, a challenge revealed that the Giants' punter just barely nicked the leg of Bush, and he was ruled down by contact. Early in the fourth quarter, Deuce McAllister ran it in for the final touchdown of the day, and John Carney sealed it with a 38-yard field goal. The Saints defense was stout throughout the game, shutting out the Giants after their opening touchdown, and never allowing the Giants to run a play in their territory. With the win, the Saints improved to 10–5. The following day, the Dallas Cowboys fell to the revitalized, Jeff Garcia-led Philadelphia Eagles, and the Saints secured the #2 spot in the NFC, and a first-round bye.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 17: vs. Carolina Panthers
The New Orleans Saints hosted the final game in their regular season against their NFC South Rivals, the Carolina Panthers at 12:00 Central Time in the Superdome. On December 29, 2006, the Friday before the game, the Saints announced several roster moves. Players, such as RB Jamaal Branch, were activated from the practice squad. It was widely speculated that this was to help give some of the full-time starters rest before the post-season.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Regular season, Week 17: vs. Carolina Panthers
The Saints allowed the starters to play in the first drive on offense, which ended up in a quick touchdown, and for the first two plays of the second drive, before resting all of the starters. The head coach of the Saints, Sean Payton, did this to prevent injuries before the playoff game. The Carolina Panthers ended up scraping together a victory against the second and third stringers of the Saints 31–21.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Postseason, NFC Divisional Round: vs. Philadelphia Eagles
Being in the divisional round for only the second time in franchise history, the second-seeded Saints began their playoff run against the third-seeded Philadelphia Eagles. With both teams coming into the game with the NFL's best offenses, the outlook was a high-scoring shootout. In the first quarter, New Orleans drew first blood with kicker John Carney nailing a 33-yard field goal for the only score of the period. In the second quarter, the Saints increased its lead with Carney kicking a 23-yard field goal.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Postseason, NFC Divisional Round: vs. Philadelphia Eagles
However, the Eagles took the lead with quarterback Jeff Garcia completing a 75-yard touchdown pass to former Saints wide receiver Donte' Stallworth. New Orleans retook the lead with rookie RB Reggie Bush ramming a 4-yard touchdown run; yet Philadelphia regained the lead with RB Brian Westbrook diving for a 1-yard touchdown run to exit the second quarter with a 14–13 lead. In the third quarter, the Eagles jabbed at the Saints' once-stoic running defense with another Westbrook touchdown run, this one for 62 yards.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Postseason, NFC Divisional Round: vs. Philadelphia Eagles
The Saints countered with RB Deuce McAllister shoving his way in with a 5-yard touchdown run; and finally, the Saints scored their final touchdown for the lead with a knockout 11-yard touchdown pass from Drew Brees to McAllister. In the fourth quarter, the Eagles drove down to the red zone and threatened to strike, but the Saints' defense stepped up and forced kicker David Akers to kick his only score for the Eagles, a 24-yard field goal.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Postseason, NFC Divisional Round: vs. Philadelphia Eagles
Suddenly it looked grim for the Saints when, on the ensuing drive, a pitch-out from Brees to Bush bounced off the running back's hands and the Eagles recovered. However, the Saints defense forced a 4th-and-10, and an 18-yard pass that seemed keep the Eagles alive was called back on a false start penalty. The Eagles punted with 1:39 remaining, and the Saints converted a first down on a run by McAllister to end the game.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Postseason, NFC Divisional Round: vs. Philadelphia Eagles
During the game, the Saints made a franchise playoff record with 435 total yards of offense. Deuce McAllister gained a franchise playoff record 143 yards on 21 carries with 1 touchdown, along with 4 catches for 20 yards and 1 touchdown. Additionally, this is one of the very rare occasions where a team beats another in the same matchup in both the regular season and the playoffs with exactly the same score both times, as they won against the Eagles at home 27-24 in Week 6.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Postseason, NFC Divisional Round: vs. Philadelphia Eagles
With the win, New Orleans improved its overall record to 11–6 and advanced to its first NFC Championship Game appearance in the team's 40-year franchise history, where they took on the Chicago Bears.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Postseason, NFC Championship Game: at Chicago Bears
Following their divisional win over the Eagles, the Saints flew to Soldier Field for their very first NFC Championship Game, where they took on the top-seeded Chicago Bears. In the first quarter, New Orleans trailed early with Bears kicker Robbie Gould getting a 19-yard field goal for the only score of the period. In the second quarter, the Saints continued to trail as Gould gave Chicago a 43-yard and a 23-yard field goal, while RB Thomas Jones got a 2-yard touchdown run.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Postseason, NFC Championship Game: at Chicago Bears
New Orleans managed to get some momentum for the second half as quarterback Drew Brees completed a 13-yard touchdown pass to rookie WR Marques Colston. In the third quarter, the Saints started to get more momentum as Brees completed an 88-yard touchdown pass to rookie RB Reggie Bush to make the score 16–14.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Postseason, NFC Championship Game: at Chicago Bears
However, that was as close as the Saints got, as the Bears took over the game with safety when Brees was called for intentional grounding while in his own end zone, followed in the fourth quarter by Chicago quarterback Rex Grossman completing a 33-yard touchdown pass to WR Bernard Berrian, Bears RB Cedric Benson scoring on a 12-yard touchdown run, and Jones wrapping up the game with a 15-yard touchdown run.


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Postseason, NFC Championship Game: at Chicago Bears
Pundits felt that the New Orleans' loss was the fact that they were a "dome" team and were forced to play in snowy conditions while committing five turnovers (three lost fumbles, an interception, and one on downs).


2006 New Orleans Saints season, Postseason, NFC Championship Game: at Chicago Bears
With the loss, the Saints season ended with an overall record of 11–7.


2006 New Orleans city council election
New Orleans' city council elections were held on April 22, 2006, and runoff elections were held on May 20, 2006.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election
The first round of the New Orleans mayoral election of 2006 took place on April 22, 2006; a runoff between incumbent Mayor Ray Nagin and Louisiana Lieutenant Governor Mitch Landrieu took place on May 20, resulting in reelection for Mayor Nagin. The Mayor of New Orleans is the top official in New Orleans' mayor-council system of government.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Background
Elections in Louisiana, with the exception of presidential elections, follow a variation of the open primary system called the jungle primary. All candidates, including those running with a political party and independents, are listed on one ballot. Voters may vote for any candidate regardless of what party they are registered.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Background
If no candidate wins a majority (50 percent plus one vote) in the first round, a second round (run-off) is then held between the top two candidates, who may be members of the same party. As this occurred, the runoff took place on May 20, 2006.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Background
This election was previously scheduled to be held on 4 February 2006 (along with elections for other local offices, including City Council members) but was postponed due to the devastation in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina (see: Effect of Hurricane Katrina on New Orleans), and the fact that large numbers of New Orleanians are displaced and still unable to return home. Since this election would determine who would lead the city during its rebuilding process, the election was widely seen as one of the most important elections in the history of New Orleans and it was watched nationally to a degree uncommon for most mayoral races.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Candidates
In the primary campaign, incumbent mayor Ray Nagin faced a record 21 challengers for his position. Many were political novices without significant financial backing. In addition to Nagin, two candidates in particular were considered by political pundits to be "major candidates" because of their name recognition and financing—Ron Forman and Mitch Landrieu. Others preferred not to distinguish between 'major' and 'minor' candidates, noting that, in the 2002 election, these same pundits considered Nagin a long-shot. The top-financed candidate in that election, two-term city councilman Troy Carter, came in fifth.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Issue of displaced voters
At the time of the election, at least two-thirds of the city's residents were still displaced, scattered across the country facing serious obstacles (such as severely damaged houses, neighborhoods without reliable utilities, and financial constraints) to returning. The state legislature passed legislation allowing for absentee voting in polling places in 10 parishes, but there was still concern about the difficulty displaced residents outside Louisiana may have faced in placing their votes. With the majority of the displaced residents staying outside Louisiana and outside the reach of local New Orleans media outlets, their ability to obtain information about the campaign remained open to question.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Issue of displaced voters
No reliable figures currently exist for the size and ethnic makeup of New Orleans's current population. It is widely recognized, however, that the current demographics of New Orleans are on average more white and more affluent than they were before Katrina. This made it very hard to predict the outcome of the election. This new demographic reality encouraged many candidates that might not have considered entering the race before the storm. New Orleans has not had a white mayor since 1978, but a large number of candidates - including every candidate considered to have a 'serious' chance of winning other than incumbent Nagin - were white.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Issue of displaced voters
On February 24, a federal judge rejected a lawsuit by the NAACP, ACORN, and the Grassroots Legal Network seeking to set up physical polling places in cities like Houston, Texas and Atlanta, Georgia, which have large numbers of displaced New Orleanians. An appeal in this case was likewise rejected on March 27.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Issue of displaced voters
On March 25, a study of change-of-address forms found that 80 percent of the city's registered voters either did not file for a change of address or have listed a new address within the greater New Orleans area. If accurate, these findings would indicate that with most voters still in the area, absentee voters would not be as significant a factor in the election as previously believed. The NAACP and other civil rights groups disputed these findings, arguing that they do not take into account people who are dispersed but have not filled out change-of-address paperwork.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Issue of displaced voters
On April 1, thousands of civil rights demonstrators marched across the Crescent City Connection calling for satellite voting locations to be set up outside the state to give displaced New Orleanians the same voting rights as those who have returned to the city. The march - the largest New Orleans has seen in several years - was organized by Jesse Jackson and the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition, and prominent speakers included Bill Cosby, former mayor Marc Morial, Al Sharpton, U.S. Rep. Bill Jefferson, and Mayor Ray Nagin.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Issue of displaced voters
Satellite voting stations opened on April 10 in nine parishes in order to allow displaced New Orleans residents to cast votes. ACORN organized buses to transport out-of-state displaced voters to these stations, which remained open until April 15. A total of 10,585 votes were cast at these satellite polls in the five allotted days.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Campaign timeline, Primary
December, January, and February saw intense speculation among political observers as to who would emerge as Nagin's main rival in the upcoming campaign. It was expected that either Ron Forman or Mitch Landrieu would run with the support of much of the city's business and political communities. After months of private discussion and negotiation, both candidates decided to run; an unexpected development which had the potential to split the support of voters opposed to Nagin.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Campaign timeline, Primary
On January 24, Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco ended months of public debate and legal wrangling by signing Secretary of State Al Ater's plan to reschedule the primary election for April 22 and the runoff for May 20.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Campaign timeline, Primary
Ron Forman officially declared his candidacy on February 14 at the Audubon Tea Room in front of a crowd of business leaders and other supporters.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Campaign timeline, Primary
On February 22, Mitch Landrieu made his long-anticipated official campaign announcement, with players in the city's hospitality and tourism industry and powerful real estate developer Pres Kabacoff featured prominently among his supporters.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Campaign timeline, Primary
On February 23, Nagin held a public reconciliation with Bishop Paul Morton, a prominent black pastor who publicly criticized Nagin in 2004 for failing to provide enough city contracts to black-owned businesses, and had called Nagin "a white man in black skin."


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Campaign timeline, Primary
On February 24, the first public poll of the election was released. Conducted between January 26 and February 13, the poll showed Mitch Landrieu leading with 35% of the vote and Ray Nagin trailing with 25%. Ron Forman received 9% and Peggy Wilson stood at 7%. However, only residents who had returned to the city were polled; without the input of absentee voters, the pollster acknowledged that the results could not be considered representative.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Campaign timeline, Primary
March 2 saw the release of the election's second poll, conducted by CNN, USA Today, and Gallup. 19% of  those polled said they would definitely vote for Ray Nagin, while 44% said they would definitely not vote for him. Mitch Landrieu received 18% definite support, while 29% would definitely not vote for him. Ron Forman stood with 12% of those polled certain to vote for him, and 35% unwilling to consider voting for him. Peggy Wilson received the definite support of 7%, and 62% would not vote for her. 4% would definitely vote for Tom Watson, while 63% would not vote for him. Other candidates were not mentioned in the poll, and only voters currently living within the city were polled.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Campaign timeline, Primary
March 3 was the deadline for mayoral candidates to file their qualification papers. In addition to the expected candidates, a large number of newly announced candidates emerged. The most notable surprise announcement was that of Clerk of Criminal Court Kimberly Williamson Butler, who emerged from a week of hiding from an arrest warrant for contempt of court in order to announce her candidacy for mayor. A record number of 23 candidates have declared their intention to challenge Nagin.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Campaign timeline, Primary
On March 4 Nagin appeared before an audience of New Orleans evacuees at an event organized by the NAACP, where he made the statement that "there was all this talk about this being an opportunity to change New Orleans forever and maybe everybody shouldn't come back, and maybe this is an opportunity to kind of change New Orleans and go back to what it used to be. I have 23 candidates running for mayor and very few of them look like us. There's a potential to be a major change in the political structure of New Orleans."


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Campaign timeline, Primary
Some perceived these comments to be a divisive follow-up to his "Chocolate City" remarks, while others point out that the fact that Nagin is the only major African-American candidate in a field of 23 is a sign of the demographic shift in a city that was over two-thirds black before Katrina.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Campaign timeline, Primary
Newly announced candidate Kimberly Williamson Butler, the Clerk of Criminal Court, was jailed for contempt of court on March 6 after a court appearance in which she refused to admit guilt and instead criticized the judges.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Campaign timeline, Primary
The first mayoral debate of the campaign was held on March 7 at Loyola University. The debate was attended by Ray Nagin and 8 of his challengers:   James Arey, Virginia Boulet, Rob Couhig, Ron Forman, Mitch Landrieu, Leo Watermeier, Tom Watson, and Peggy Wilson. Kimberly Williamson Butler was invited, but could not attend due to her jail sentence. The candidates discussed levees and hurricane evacuation plans, housing and redevelopment of neighborhoods, the role of the state and federal government in the rebuilding of the city, and the issue of race in a city with drastically altered demographics. The two main challengers, Forman and Landrieu, were perceived as largely playing safe, while other candidates, particularly Couhig and Wilson, were more combative. Ray Nagin focused on defending his record and emphasizing the need for experienced leadership in a time of crisis.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Campaign timeline, Primary
State campaign finance reports were released on March 25 showing candidates' finances as of March 13. The major candidates had amassed campaign funds several times greater than those raised in recent elections, making this mayoral election the city's most expensive in history. Incumbent mayor Nagin had the most well-financed campaign, with $1,182,776 available; Ron Forman followed closely with a $1,002,692 war chest. Mitch Landrieu had the third largest campaign fund, at $547,003. Rob Couhig had raised a significant amount - $131,535 - but had already spent it.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Campaign timeline, Primary
The second mayoral debate was held on March 27. Only the perceived front-runners - Nagin, Forman, Landrieu, Watson, Wilson, Boulet, and Couhig - were invited. Discussion was focused on housing restoration, fiscal management, flood protection, and crime. The second debate was more combative than the first, with the three leading candidates facing strong criticism from the others.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Campaign timeline, Primary
A new poll released on April 7 reinforced the common perception that the election is shaping up to be a three-way race. Landrieu and Nagin appeared to be in a dead heat, with the lieutenant governor leading with 27% over the incumbent mayor's 26%. Forman remained in third place with 16%, but he appeared to be rapidly closing the gap between himself and the front-runners when compared with previous polls. Like previous polls, these latest numbers only included current residents of New Orleans; without taking displaced voters into account, their accuracy remained questionable.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Campaign timeline, Primary
In the final days of the primary campaign, a wave of negative campaign ads emerged. The clash began on April 7 with Forman accusing Landrieu of supporting tax increases; Landrieu countered with criticisms of Forman's handling of public money and of his high salary at the Audubon Institute. Forman continued his attacks by accusing Landrieu of being soft on crime. These attacks have been interpreted as efforts by Landrieu and Forman to position themselves to win a slot in the runoff against Nagin.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Campaign timeline, Primary
Meanwhile, Wilson accused both Landrieu and Forman of being 'liberal Democrats' and of being complicit in the corruption of former mayor Marc Morial. Couhig, Watson, and Forman battled over the support of conservative and Republican voters; Forman urged voters not to waste their votes on minor candidates, while Couhig stepped up his attacks on Forman, painting him as a liberal no different from Landrieu or Nagin.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Campaign timeline, Primary
As of April 14, the Forman campaign had raised the most money, with over $2.1 million in his campaign chest. Landrieu had raised just under $2 million, while Nagin had raised $1.46 million. Couhig had raised $395,000, Boulet had amassed $268,000, Wilson had $101,000 and Watson $85,000.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Campaign timeline, Primary
On April 17, the major candidates—Boulet, Couhig, Forman, Landrieu, Nagin, Watson, and Wilson—appeared on a nationally televised debate co-hosted by Chris Matthews and New Orleans newsanchor Norman Robinson. The debate was televised nationally over MSNBC, an exceedingly rare occurrence for a local mayoral campaign; this was done because of many New Orleans voters still living elsewhere in the aftermath of Katrina and due to national interest.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Campaign timeline, Primary
On 22 April preliminary results showed Nagin with 38%  of the vote, with 41,489 votes, and Landrieu with 29% and 31,499. On May 20, a runoff election between Nagin and Landrieu took place. Forman with 17% and 18,734 votes conceded defeat; Couhig came in fourth with 10% and 10,287 votes.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Campaign timeline, Runoff
In the runoff campaign, few substantive policy differences emerged between Landrieu and Nagin. Instead, the main issues in the runoff campaign were differences in personality and governing styles.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Campaign timeline, Runoff
Alongside stressing his accomplishments in bringing jobs to New Orleans before the storm, Nagin's campaign emphasized the decisive role the mayor played in the aftermath of Katrina and the importance of the relationships he has built with state and federal leaders. The incumbent also stressed the risk of "experimenting" with a new mayor at the start of another hurricane season. Nagin criticized Landrieu's "old-style politics" and implied that he had ties to past politicians like Marc Morial.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Campaign timeline, Runoff
Landrieu emphasized his record in the state legislature and as Lieutenant Governor, and his ability to build consensus among a broad range of political players. For their part, the Landrieu campaign criticized Nagin's go-it-alone governing style as alienating to New Orleans's potential allies, and his frequent gaffes as embarrassing to the city. Landrieu said he would restore credibility to city government and jump-start a lethargic rebuilding process: a major Landrieu slogan was "What was OK before Katrina isn't OK after Katrina." Landrieu ads featured shots of the city's abandoned flooded cars and blamed Nagin for his lack of leadership.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Campaign timeline, Runoff
In the runoff, Landrieu received endorsements from third-place primary finisher Ron Forman, as well as the city's police and fire organizations and District Attorney Eddie Jordan. Nagin was endorsed by Rob Couhig, who appeared in Nagin ads praising the mayor's pro-business credentials. Other Nagin endorsements included defeated candidates Virginia Boulet and Tom Watson (who vehemently criticized Nagin in the primary), as well as congressman Bill Jefferson and state senator Cleo Fields.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Campaign timeline, Runoff
The runoff campaign was also affected by the May 9 release of the first major book about Katrina: historian Douglas Brinkley's The Great Deluge. The book offers a scathing portrayal of Nagin's performance in the week after Katrina, describing him as a man on the verge of breakdown, hiding in the Hyatt hotel and refusing to emerge to take decisive action. Nagin described the book as a "political satire" that twisted the facts, and criticized the timing of its release as politically motivated.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Opinion polls
As polls were largely based on New Orleanians still reachable by their pre-Katrina telephone numbers, pollsters admitted they were subject to an unusually large margin of error, and declined to speculate exactly how large that margin of error was.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Opinion polls, Primary
X = This candidate was not included in this poll


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Results, Mayoral primary, April 22
As the top two vote-getters, Nagin and Landrieu entered the runoff election held on May 20. All 442 precincts were reported in the official results.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Results, Mayoral primary, April 22
Nagin won 289 of the city's 442 precincts; overwhelmingly in sections of the city which have a black majority. This is a marked difference from Nagin's 2002 showings, when the bulk of his support came from white precincts. In 2006, Nagin received only 6% of the white vote.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Results, Mayoral primary, April 22
Landrieu won 87 precincts, primarily in Uptown, Mid-City,  the French Quarter, the Faubourg Marigny, and Bywater neighborhoods. He attracted 24% of black votes and 30% of white votes.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Results, Mayoral primary, April 22
The two front runners did better at attracting voters from outside of their own race than any of the other candidates.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Results, Mayoral primary, April 22
Forman won 57 precincts, almost exclusively in the wealthiest and whitest sections of the city: the university section of Uptown, Lakeview, the Garden District, and the lower coast of Algiers. He received more support from white voters than any other candidate, but got only 4% support from black voters.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Results, Mayoral primary, April 22
Couhig won only 6 precincts, in the Lakeview, Lake Vista, and lower coast of Algiers. Many observers speculated that Couhig served to split the conservative vote and prevented Forman from making the runoff, while others pointed out that even if Couhig's and Forman's votes were combined the total is still almost 2500 short of the amount which would have been required to beat Landrieu.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Results, Mayoral primary, April 22
The very poor showing of Peggy Wilson surprised some of her supporters. She finished behind candidates with much less local name recognition who spent far less on their campaigns. Formerly a well-known and powerful figure on the city council, some saw Wilson's failure to get significant voter support as the end of her career in local politics.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Results, Mayoral Runoff, May 20
With unofficial results showing 53% of the vote for Nagin, Landrieu conceded defeat shortly before 10:30 pm on election night. Nagin gave an acceptance speech shortly thereafter, at about 10:35 pm. Nagin won by the slimmest margin for an incumbent facing re-election since the mayoral election of 1965, in which mayor Victor Schiro's handling of Hurricane Betsy also affected his poor showing. Nagin also won with a dramatic shift in the racial breakdown of his voter base; in this election he received the support of about 80% of black voters and 20% of white voters, a reversal of his support base in the 2002 election.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Post election analysis
Some outside observers were shocked that Nagin defeated Landrieu, assuming that the embattled and controversial incumbent would not be able to muster the votes required to keep his position. Due to the high percentage of black voter support for Nagin, there were some accusations of racialized 'bloc voting.' Others noted that Landrieu's support was also lopsided in favor of white voters, although he received a significant minority of African American voters. The racial breakdown of votes was roughly equal for the two candidates; each won roughly 80% of the votes of the members of their own race, and 20% of the votes from the other race.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Post election analysis
Nagin's chief campaign strategist Jim Carvin attributed Nagin's victory to a number of factors, including competition between Forman and Landrieu for the anti-Nagin vote in the primary, the lack of a well-funded and well-known black challenger, and Landrieu's unwillingness to make strong attacks on Nagin. Taking these factors into account, Carvin and the Nagin campaign took a strategy of building a biracial coalition consisting of the large majority of black voters plus enough white conservatives to bring the mayor over 50%.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Post election analysis
A main Nagin campaign theme, centered around the slogan "Re-elect our mayor:  Re-unite our city," was supplemented with targeted ads touting Nagin's pro-business and conservative credentials and criticizing Mitch Landrieu as a career politician and member of a powerful political family. His criticism of  Landrieu as a representative of "old politics" was able to appeal to both white voters wary of a potential return to patronage politics and to black voters unwilling to return to the days of white political domination of a majority-black city.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Post election analysis
Some analysts attributed Nagin's victory to a black turnout which was much larger than expected, mobilized by worries about the threat of a white political takeover and anger over what they perceived as an effort to disenfranchise dispersed voters who were unable to return to the city to vote. One political commentator made links between the mobilization of support for Nagin and the Civil Rights Movement, and noted the contrast between the 2006 election and previous perceptions of Nagin as the "white candidate."


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Post election analysis
The strong white conservative and Republican Party turnout for Nagin, however, may have been the factor that tipped the balance. Defeated primary candidate Rob Couhig led the Republican rally behind Nagin. The Nagin campaign sent out flyers to heavily white Republican neighborhoods quoting some local black leaders calling him "Ray Reagan", a reference to Ronald Reagan intended to be insulting, but which was seen more sympathetically among Republicans.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Post election analysis
Other factors cited by some were the fond memory of Nagin's famous "get off your asses" radio interview during the worst days after Katrina, and what some saw as Landrieu's cautiously dispassionate campaigning style which some found uninspiring. In particular, Landrieu was criticized for not focusing on Nagin's shortcomings in the post-Katrina recovery, and in not sufficiently differentiating his policy proposals from Nagin's.


2006 New Orleans mayoral election, Post election analysis
In New Orleans politics, incumbency is a large advantage; an incumbent mayor has not been defeated in an election since deLesseps Morrison beat sitting mayor Robert Maestri in the election of 1946. In contrast to the mayoral election, the simultaneous City Council election results were strongly anti-incumbent, with three established well-known Council members losing to newcomers promising reform.


2006 New Year Honours
The New Year Honours 2006 in some Commonwealth realms were announced (on 31 December 2005) in the United Kingdom,New Zealand, Grenada, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize, and Saint Christopher and Nevis to celebrate the year past and mark the beginning of 2006.


2006 New Year Honours
The recipients of honours are displayed here as they were styled before their new honour, and arranged firstly by the country whose ministers advised the Queen on the appointments, then by honour, with classes (Knight, Knight Grand Cross, etc.) and then divisions (Military, Civil, etc.) as appropriate.


2006 New Year Honours (New Zealand)
The 2006 New Year Honours in New Zealand were appointments by Elizabeth II in her right as Queen of New Zealand, on the advice of the New Zealand government, to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by New Zealanders, and to celebrate the passing of 2005 and the beginning of 2006. They were announced on 31 December 2005.


2006 New Year Honours (New Zealand)
The recipients of honours are displayed here as they were styled before their new honour.


2006 New York Attorney General election
The New York Attorney General election, 2006 took place on November 7, 2006. Democrat Andrew Cuomo was elected to replace Eliot Spitzer (who became Governor) as the Attorney General of New York.


2006 New York City Marathon
The 2006 New York City Marathon was the 37th running of the annual marathon race in New York City, United States, which took place on Sunday, November 5. The men's elite race was won by Brazil's Marílson Gomes dos Santos in a time of 2:09:58 hours while the women's race was won by Latvia's Jeļena Prokopčuka in 2:25:05.


2006 New York City Marathon
In the wheelchair races, Australia's Kurt Fearnley (1:29:22) and America's Amanda McGrory (1:54:17) won the men's and women's divisions, respectively. In the handcycle race, Lebanon's Edward Maalouf (1:25:36) and Monique van der Vorst (1:35:48) were the winners.


2006 New York City Marathon
A total of 37,936 runners finished the race, 25,607 men and 12,329 women.


2006 New York City plane crash
On October 11, 2006, a Cirrus SR20 aircraft crashed into the Belaire Apartments in the Upper East Side of Manhattan, New York City, at about 2:42 p.m. EDT (18:42 UTC). The aircraft struck the north side of the building causing a fire in several apartments, which was extinguished within two hours.


2006 New York City plane crash
Both people aboard the aircraft were killed in the accident: New York Yankees pitcher Cory Lidle and his certificated flight instructor Tyler Stanger. Twenty-one people were injured, including eleven firefighters. An apartment resident, Ilana Benhuri, who lived in the building with her husband, was hospitalized for a month with severe burns incurred when the post-impact fire engulfed her apartment.


2006 New York City plane crash
The Cirrus SR20 aircraft, tail number N929CD, was owned by Lidle. On May 1, 2007, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) stated that the probable cause of the crash was pilot error. The NTSB was unable to determine which person was flying the aircraft at the time of the crash.


2006 New York City plane crash, Flight
The aircraft departed from Teterboro Airport in Teterboro, New Jersey, at 2:29 pm EDT (18:29 UTC). Lidle planned to fly to Nashville, Tennessee, where he had a hotel room booked for the night, then to Dallas, Texas, and finally on to his home in California.


2006 New York City plane crash, Flight
Radar measurements show that, immediately before the crash, Lidle's aircraft was flying at 112 mph (180 km/h) at 700 feet (210 m) altitude in the East River VFR corridor, an area which former NTSB official Peter Goelz described as "very tricky" due to its narrow width and frequent congestion. The VFR corridor ends abruptly at the northern tip of Roosevelt Island. Aircraft must receive an air traffic control clearance to proceed beyond the boundaries of the corridor, or else make a sharp U-turn and return the way they came. Lidle's plane flew north along the corridor almost to the end before executing a turn and hitting the north face of the building along the river.


2006 New York City plane crash, Crash
The airplane struck the Belaire, a 42-story condominium tower at 524 East 72nd Street, at approximately 30 stories above the ground. The plane hit the apartment owned by Dr. Parviz Benhuri and his wife Ilana, the latter of whom was seated in the room when the plane crashed and sustained shrapnel injuries and burns. Her housekeeper was also present and helped her escape.


2006 New York City plane crash, Crash
The aircraft's Ballistic Recovery Systems emergency parachute, designed to bring the small plane down safely from altitudes above 500 ft, was not deployed. The plane circled the Statue of Liberty before flying north up the East River and disappeared from radar near the Queensboro Bridge. It was flying under visual flight rules (VFR) and had attracted no special attention from air traffic controllers or NORAD before the crash. The aircraft took a hard U-shaped turn before it hit the building.


2006 New York City plane crash, Reactions
In an interview Lidle gave about a month earlier, he stated he had been a pilot for seven months and had flown about 95 solo hours. The crash garnered extra attention because of superficial similarities to the September 11 attacks in New York City, which had occurred five years earlier. U.S. officials said that NORAD scrambled fighter aircraft over numerous American and Canadian cities for Combat Air Patrol, and that U.S. President George W. Bush was informed about the situation, but that these were precautionary measures only. The FBI quickly announced there was no reason to suspect that the crash was an act of terrorism.


2006 New York City plane crash, Reactions
LaGuardia Airport and John F. Kennedy International Airport did not experience delays from the crash. Police cordoned off several blocks at the peak of the confusion, but subway and NY Waterway ferry services continued without interruption. The FAA initially imposed a temporary flight restriction on an area within one nautical mile (1.9 km) of the scene, from ground level to 1,500 feet (460 m) altitude. This restriction was lifted the next day, though New York Governor George Pataki called for permanent restrictions.


2006 New York City plane crash, Reactions
On October 13, 2006, two days after the crash, the FAA banned all fixed-winged aircraft from the East River corridor unless in contact with local air traffic control. The new rule, which took effect immediately, required all small aircraft (with the exception of helicopters and certain seaplanes) to seek the approval of and stay in contact with air traffic control while in the corridor. The FAA cited safety concerns, especially unpredictable winds from between buildings, as the reason for the change.


2006 New York City plane crash, Investigation
On October 11, the National Transportation Safety Board dispatched a six-member "Go Team" from Washington, D.C. to New York City, which arrived at the scene in the evening to take fuel samples and examine clues found in the debris. These included the aircraft's bent propeller, a charred memory chip, the undeployed parachute, and Lidle's flight log book.


2006 New York City plane crash, Investigation
The NTSB's final hearing on May 1, 2007, determined that "the pilots' inadequate planning, judgment, and airmanship in the performance of a 180-degree turn maneuver inside of a limited turning space" caused the crash. The investigation was unable to determine whether Lidle or his flight instructor Stanger was at the controls. Although there was 2,100 feet (640 m) of space available, the aircraft used only about 1,700 feet (520 m) of width in which to make the 180-degree turn—but this distance was effectively reduced to 1,300 feet (400 m) by the 13-knot (24 km/h) easterly winds that day.


2006 New York City plane crash, Investigation
A bank angle of at least 53 degrees would be required to successfully execute a 180-degree turn in this distance. If the required bank was not initiated early then, as the turn progressed, the bank angle would have needed to have been increased, possibly resulting in an aerodynamic stall. The investigation was unable to determine if the plane stalled at the time of the crash. An animation of the flight path combining radar data with a Coast Guard video of the East River was also presented.


2006 New York City plane crash, Investigation
A lawsuit brought by Lidle's family against the manufacturer of the aircraft, Cirrus Design, alleging a mechanical defect, was rejected by a jury in May 2011.


2006 New York Dragons season
The 2006 New York Dragons season was the 11th season for the franchise. They looked to make the playoffs again after finishing 2005 with a 10–6 record. They went 10–6 and made the playoffs.


2006 New York Film Critics Circle Awards
The 72nd New York Film Critics Circle Awards, honoring the best in film for 2006, were announced on 11 December 2006 and presented on 7 January 2007.


2006 New York Giants season
The 2006 New York Giants season was the franchise's 82nd season in the National Football League.


2006 New York Giants season
The season began with the team trying to improve on their 11–5 record in 2005, which saw them win the NFC East. They did not win the NFC East or improve on that record, falling to 8–8 on the season after starting 6–2. However, head coach Tom Coughlin became the first Giants head coach since Bill Parcells to lead the team to consecutive playoff berths as the team qualified as one of two NFC wild card teams. This was Tiki Barber's final season in the NFL.


2006 New York Giants season, Offseason
In the 2006 off-season, the Giants acquired 3 time Pro Bowl linebacker LaVar Arrington as a free agent. Arrington previously played for the Redskins for six seasons. The Giants also acquired cornerback Sam Madison as a free agent. Madison played nine seasons with the Dolphins and went to the Pro Bowl four straight times from 1999 to 2002. Other notable free agent signings for the Giants included free safety Will Demps from the Ravens, cornerback R.W. McQuarters from the Lions, and linebacker Brandon Short from the Panthers.


2006 New York Giants season, Offseason
In the 2006 NFL Draft, the Giants used their first pick (acquired from the Pittsburgh Steelers) on Boston College DE Mathias Kiwanuka. They then used their next pick (acquired from the Baltimore Ravens) on University of Miami(FL) WR Sinorice Moss. The rest of their picks included Georgia Tech LB Gerris Wilkinson, Northwestern University DT Barry Cofield, East Carolina OT Guy Whimper, Alabama Safety Charlie Peprah, and Maryland CB Gerrick McPhearson.


2006 New York Giants season, Offseason
The Giants posted a 4–0 record in the preseason, their first undefeated preseason since 1990, the same season they won Super Bowl XXV.


2006 New York Giants season, Results
The Giants opened the season with a 6–2 record, but went 2–6 in the final half, barely making the playoffs. Inconsistent play by the whole team hurt the organization all season long and fans and sports analysis became irate with coach Tom Coughlin, calling for his firing. The team won five consecutive games following a 1–2 start to gain a two-game advantage in the NFC Eastern Division, but key injuries to the offense and defense took their toll.


2006 New York Giants season, Results
Tiki Barber had created controversy in the middle of the season by announcing his retirement to start a career in the media, which apparently was a distraction for many Giants players. The most embarrassing loss was a 24–21 defeat by Tennessee, in which the team surrendered a 21-point fourth quarter advantage, and which could have been averted had Mathias Kiwanuka finished tackling Titans QB Vince Young rather than letting him go and run for a first down. Following a season ending win at Washington, the Giants claimed a wild card berth in the NFC playoffs, but were eliminated in the first round by Philadelphia on a last second field goal.


2006 New York Giants season, Results
Barber led the Giants with 1,662 yards and over 2,000 yards from scrimmage again, Eli Manning threw for 3,244 yards and 24 touchdowns, and Jeremy Shockey led the team in receptions. Defensively the team struggled all season long with pass defense (28th in the league).


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 1: vs. Indianapolis Colts
The Giants opened the regular season against the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday night, September 10. In a highly anticipated matchup that was nicknamed "Manning Bowl I", quarterback Eli Manning had to lead his Giants against his older brother, quarterback Peyton Manning, and the Colts. The Giants fell behind early as Peyton led the Colts on a 17-play, 58-yard drive that ate up 8:53, ending with kicker Adam Vinatieri hitting a 26-yard field goal.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 1: vs. Indianapolis Colts
In the second quarter, the Colts built their lead with a 32-yard Vinatieri field goal, and after Jay Feely missed a 40-yard field goal wide left for the Giants, Peyton Manning found tight end Dallas Clark on a 2-yard touchdown pass. Down 13–0, and starting at their own 14-yard line with 2:18 to play in the half, the Giants' offense woke up, with Eli completing a 34-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Plaxico Burress with 40 seconds to play in the half. But that was a little too much time left on the clock: The Colts ended the first half with Vinatieri kicking a 48-yard field goal.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 1: vs. Indianapolis Colts
On the opening drive of the second half, the Giants continued their momentum from the first half, as Eli completed a 15-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jeremy Shockey, completing an 11-play, 69-yard drive that ate up 7:50. After the teams traded punts, Peyton Manning was intercepted by R.W. McQuarters, but Eli Manning fumbled, and the ball was recovered by Robert Mathis. On the ensuing drive, running back Dominic Rhodes scored from 1 yard out to open up a 23–14 lead with 13:21 to play.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 1: vs. Indianapolis Colts
Undaunted, the Giants responded with a 1-yard touchdown run of their own from running back Brandon Jacobs. The Giants forced a punt on the next possession, but longtime Indianapolis punter Hunter Smith pinned the Giants at their own 7 with 4:58 to go. On that drive, Tim Carter was whistled for a questionable pass-interference call, negating a 19-yard reception for a first down. On the next play, Eli Manning was picked off by Nick Harper. Vinatieri kicked a 32-yard field goal with 1:16 to play to cap the scoring.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 1: vs. Indianapolis Colts
With the loss, the Giants started the season at 0–1.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 2: at Philadelphia Eagles
In a Week 2 road matchup that pitted the Giants against the Philadelphia Eagles (the former NFC East champs), this game turned out to be a close one. The Giants drew first blood when Eli Manning threw a 37-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Amani Toomer. The Eagles tied the game up when running back Brian Westbrook ran 12 yards for a touchdown. This was followed by a 20-yard touchdown pass to Donte' Stallworth and a 37-yard field goal by kicker David Akers, and the Giants trailed 17–7 at halftime. The Eagles' offense continued to pound the Giants as quarterback Donovan McNabb threw a 23-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Reggie Brown to open up a 24–7 lead with 10:55 to play in the third quarter.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 2: at Philadelphia Eagles
However, the momentum suddenly turned in the Giants' favor in the fourth quarter. It started with Manning completing a 23-yard pass to wide receiver Plaxico Burress, who fumbled the ball after being hit by Brian Dawkins; fortunately, wide receiver Tim Carter recovered the ball in the Eagles' end zone for a touchdown. The teams traded possessions, with Manning being intercepted by Jeremiah Trotter, and then the Giants' defense made a huge stop when they stopped Correll Buckhalter on a 4th-and-1 from the New York 38-yard line with 8:49 to play. Gibril Wilson made the stop there, and after the Giants punted, Wilson came up big again, forcing a fumble from Westbrook that was snatched up by Will Demps.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 2: at Philadelphia Eagles
Manning then completed a 22-yard touchdown pass to Toomer with 3:33 to play, cutting the deficit to 24–21. After the Giants forced the Eagles to punt two minutes later, the Giants got the ball back at their own 20-yard line with 58 seconds left in regulation. With 15 seconds to play and the Giants on the Philadelphia 40-yard line, Manning completed a pass to Jeremy Shockey, who was run out of bounds at the Eagles' 32 for an eight-yard gain.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 2: at Philadelphia Eagles
However, after the play, Eagles lineman Trent Cole drew a personal foul for kneeing Giants tackle Kareem McKenzie in the groin, moving the ball to the Philadelphia 17. Jay Feely was sent in to tie the game, 24–24, with a 35-yard field goal. The Giants had completed an amazing comeback, scoring 17 points in under fourteen minutes to tie the game.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 2: at Philadelphia Eagles
After the teams traded punts, the Giants took over at their own 15 with 9:55 to play in overtime. Manning completed a 13-play, 85-yard drive with a 31-yard strike to Burress with 3:18 to play, and the Giants had the miracle victory.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 2: at Philadelphia Eagles
Manning completed 31 of 43 passes for 371 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. He completed 21 of his last 26 passes in the fourth quarter and in overtime, including all eight of his passes in overtime. Manning was selected the NFC Offensive Player of the Week for his outstanding performance against the Eagles.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 3: at Seattle Seahawks
In a rematch of a bitter 2005 loss for the Giants, when kicker Jay Feely missed three game-winning field goal attempts at the end of regulation and overtime in a 24–21 loss, the Seahawks made sure this game wasn't as close. After trading interceptions, with Corey Webster picking Matt Hasselbeck and Ken Hamlin intercepting Manning, the Seahawks jumped out to a 7–0 lead on a 2-yard touchdown run by Shaun Alexander. After forcing a punt, Hasselbeck tossed a 12-yard touchdown to Nate Burleson. Manning was intercepted again by Hamlin on the ensuing drive, leading to a 4-yard touchdown pass from Hasselbeck to Darrell Jackson, and in eleven minutes, Seattle had a 21–0 lead.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 3: at Seattle Seahawks
Manning had the ball on his own 43 with 10:43 left in the half when he threw his third pick of the game, this time to Michael Boulware. The Seahawks converted, going on a 12-play, 63-yard drive, capped off by a ten-yard touchdown pass from Hasselbeck to Will Heller. The game got worse for the Giants, as Plaxico Burress fumbled following a reception, with Leroy Hill recovering for Seattle. Hasselbeck then threw his fourth touchdown pass of the first half, this one going 21 yards to Bobby Engram. The Giants finally got on the board with a 46-yard field goal by Jay Feely as time expired.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 3: at Seattle Seahawks
Seattle pushed the lead to 42–3 in the third quarter with a 17-play, 70-yard drive that ate up 9:58, capped by a 12-yard touchdown pass from Hasselbeck to Jackson. The Giants' offense, dormant all game, finally sprang to life in the fourth quarter. Manning found Amani Toomer on a 13-yard touchdown strike. After Fred Robbins intercepted Hasselbeck, Manning wasted no time finding Tim Carter on a 25-yard touchdown pass. When R.W. McQuarters intercepted Hasselbeck for a 27-yard touchdown return, the once-enormous Seattle lead was suddenly cut to 42–24, with 9:30 to play. The Giants inched closer after forcing a punt, and Manning found David Tyree on a 9-yard touchdown pass, cutting the lead down to 42–30. The two-point conversion failed, however, and Seattle recovered the ensuing onside kick with less than three minutes remaining, effectively ending the game.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 5: vs. Washington Redskins
The Giants' defense was trashed by the media during Week 4, their bye week, as they had allowed a whopping 92 points in their first three games. After forcing a punt, the Giants drove to the Washington 29, but Jay Feely was wide left on a 47-yard attempt. Aided by a William Joseph roughing-the-passer penalty on a 3rd-and-11 pass that was incomplete, Mark Brunell drove the Redskins to the Giants' 21, where John Hall nailed a 39-yard field goal.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 5: vs. Washington Redskins
Manning was unfazed, finding Amani Toomer on a 44-yard completion to move the ball to the Washington 10, and apparently finding him for a touchdown pass of 5 yards three plays later, but the score was nullified by a Jeremy Shockey pass-interference penalty. Feely knocked in a chip shot of 24 yards to tie the score, 3–3, early in the second quarter.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 5: vs. Washington Redskins
Manning again used the big play to help the Giants to their next score, finding Plaxico Burress on a 46-yard completion that gave the Giants the ball at the Redskins' 22. Soon after, Feely hit a 34-yard field goal to give the Giants their first lead since Week 2. After forcing a punt, Manning led the Giants on a 14-play, 84-yard drive, capped by a 32-yard field goal by Feely, his third of the quarter and half.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 5: vs. Washington Redskins
The Giants' offense finally ground into gear on the first possession of the second half, going on a 15-play, 69-yard drive that ate up 8:05 of the clock, capped by a 2-yard touchdown toss from Manning to Burress. The Redskins could muster only one scoring opportunity the rest of the way (Hall missed a 42-yard field goal wide left the possession after Burress' touchdown), and Feely added a 40-yard field goal with 2:58 to play, capping the scoring.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 6: at Atlanta Falcons
The Giants and Falcons got off to a rough start, as each team turned the ball over twice in the first quarter. After Atlanta punted to start the game, Manning was intercepted by Demorrio Williams, but two minutes later, Michael Vick was intercepted by Sam Madison. After forcing a Giants punt, Vick fumbled, with Madison recovering. Manning threw another pick on the next drive, this time to DeAngelo Hall.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 6: at Atlanta Falcons
Looking to break the game open in the second half, the Falcons turned to Warrick Dunn, who busted through a huge hole en route to a 90-yard touchdown run, the longest in Atlanta history. The score put the Falcons up 14–3, but Big Blue took command after that. Seizing control, the Giants used the legs of Barber and some fine passing from Manning to get back into the game. An 84-yard drive was finished with a two-yard plunge by Brandon Jacobs. After an Atlanta three and out, the Giants again drove the length of the field, with Barber leading the charge. Eli Manning finished off the 91 yard scamper with a short play-action touchdown to tight end Jeremy Shockey.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 6: at Atlanta Falcons
The Giants utilized a heavy pass rush to force the Falcons to punt again and after a Jay Feely field goal from 39 yards, the offense put the game away. Manning hit Shockey on another touchdown late, finishing off the Falcons. For the day, Manning was 17 of 30 for 180 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. Barber rushed for 185 yards and Jacobs added 53. Shockey re-emerged in this game with six receptions, including the two touchdowns. Defensively, the Giants recorded seven sacks including two from Osi Umenyiora and linebacker Brandon Short. Cornerback Sam Madison who had a rough start to the season had the interception against Vick and recovered his fumble in the first quarter. The constant pressure and containment on Vick was the key to the Giants 27–14 victory.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 7: at Dallas Cowboys
The Giants started off hot right away against the Cowboys on Monday Night Football. Eli Manning hit Plaxico Burress deep down the field for a touchdown and linebacker Lavar Arrington sacked quarterback Drew Bledsoe for a safety and a 9–0 lead. However, Arrington was lost for the season, tearing his Achilles tendon in the 2nd quarter. The Cowboys got back into the game on a one-yard run by Bledsoe, but gave the momentum back as cornerback Sam Madison made a big play, intercepting Bledsoe at the goalline late in the half, keeping the Giants ahead 12–7.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 7: at Dallas Cowboys
In the second half, Bill Parcells relieved Bledsoe with young backup Tony Romo. The Giants intercepted Romo right away as linebacker Antonio Pierce caught a deflected ball. The Giants cashed in as Manning hooked up with Jeremy Shockey for a short touchdown. Following a Brandon Jacobs touchdown run on 4th down, the Giants opened up a 26–7 lead. Although the Cowboys threatened, the defense preserved the victory as reserve cornerback Kevin Dockery intercepted Romo and ran 96 yards for the clinching score. The Giants also held Terrell Owens to under 100 yards receiving.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 7: at Dallas Cowboys
The Giants defense was the story however, notching six more sacks including two from Strahan, and one apiece from Arrington and Osi Umenyiora. On offense, Tiki Barber shined again, rushing for 114 yards, while Brandon Jacobs added 40 yards. Quarterback Eli Manning maintained his poise to overcome a shaky game to throw for 189 yards and two touchdowns. The win moves the Giants to 4–2 and one half a game ahead of the Philadelphia Eagles.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 7: at Dallas Cowboys
The game drew the biggest audience in the history of cable television with an average viewership of 16,028,000, besting the previous high-water mark set during a 1993 the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) debate between vice president Al Gore and presidential hopeful H. Ross Perot. Also notably, DE Michael Strahan managed to tie with the legendary LB Lawrence Taylor for the most official sacks in franchise history (132.5).


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 8: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Giants and Bucs were confronted with winds greater than 40 mph at the Meadowlands, but the Giants' defense dominated early and often. The Giants were able to hold the Bucs to six three and outs in their first seven possessions. On offense, Eli Manning and Tiki Barber were effective if not spectacular. Near the end of the first quarter, the Giants started a 54-yard drive, culminating on a seven-yard touchdown pass from Manning to Plaxico Burress.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 8: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Midway through the second quarter, the defense struck again as Cadillac Williams fumbled a pitch and tackle Fred Robbins recovered for New York at the Bucs' 28. The Giants then used a deep pass to Burress and hard-nosed running to extend their lead to 14–0. The touchdown was scored on a one-yard plunge by Brandon Jacobs. Tampa Bay had chances to get back into the game over the next 20 minutes, but several dropped passes and questionable fourth down plays doomed them. Overall, rookie quarterback Bruce Gradkowski played well for Tampa Bay, but it wasn't enough. The Giants clinched the win late in the fourth quarter with some power running from Jacobs and Barber. Jay Feely added a 31-yard field goal to provide the final points in the 17–3 win.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 8: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Rookie defensive end Mathias Kiwanuka had his first ever sack and six tackles, middle linebacker Reggie Torbor added a sack, and Fred Robbins continued his fine season with the fumble recovery. On offense, Barber and Jacobs rushed for over 100 yards combined, Burress notched seven receptions,  and Manning completed 16 of 31 passes for 154 yards and the touchdown to Burress. The key was his ability to avoid the mistakes in the blustery conditions.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 8: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Note: The two offensive touchdowns scored by the Giants in this game were the first two offensive touchdowns scored against the Bucs since Tiki and Ronde Barber met for the first time during the 1997 season.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 9: vs. Houston Texans
The New York Giants defeated the Houston Texans 14–10 at Giants Stadium, despite a lackluster performance on both sides of the ball. The Giants got a break early as Texans place-kicker Kris Brown missed a 42-yard field goal. The Giants responded with a methodical 68-yard drive. RB Tiki Barber scored his first touchdown of the season on a 16-yard scamper. He finished the game with 115 rushing yards and 155 total yards from scrimmage.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 9: vs. Houston Texans
Houston fought back in the second quarter with a long drive culminating in a Brown field goal. The Giants put together an excellent drive at the end of the first half, but a holding penalty and two sacks forced them to punt. In the third quarter, Houston continued its fine play, putting together an 18-play scoring drive finished by a David Carr quarterback draw. Carr was outstanding on the day completing 21 of 30 passes for 176 yards. He was not pressured all day, due to injuries to Osi Umenyiora, Justin Tuck, and Michael Strahan (the star defensive ends).


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 9: vs. Houston Texans
Trailing 10–7 in the fourth, the Giants offense finally came alive as QB Eli Manning led an outstanding 66-yard scoring drive utilizing the two-minute offense. Tight end Jeremy Shockey finished the drive on a three-yard play-action toss from Manning putting New York ahead 14–10. The defense preserved the lead by forcing a Houston fumble late in the game. The running game then gained two first downs and WR Amani Toomer caught an Eli Manning third down pass to end the game.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 9: vs. Houston Texans
Jeremy Shockey led the Giants with eight receptions for 66 yards and Manning threw for 179 yards and one touchdown, along with an interception (at the end of the first half). Mathias Kiwanuka had the only sack of the day for New York.


2006 New York Giants season, Regular season, Week 10: vs. Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears met the Giants in a highly anticipated showdown of NFC powerhouses. Since both teams were leading their respective divisions at the time, NBC took advantage of the NFL's new flexible scheduling policy and made this matchup the first to ever be moved to primetime from Sunday afternoon.