Saints quarterback Brees gave a solid display

Deuce McAllister rushed for a touchdown and caught another TD pass to set up an NFC Championship game against either Chicago or Seattle on 21 January.

In the AFC, Adam Vinatieri kicked five field goals to give Indianapolis a 15-6 victory over the Baltimore Ravens.

The Colts face the winners of Sunday's game between San Diego and New England.

The franchise has not reached the Super Bowl since leaving Baltimore for Indianapolis in 1984.

The Saints became the first team in NFL history to make a conference championship after losing 13 or more games the previous season.

And their triumph, in a Superdome that was a symbol of the devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina in 2005, continued a fairytale resurgence for the team.

Quarterback Jeff Garcia's run of success for the Eagles (11-7) ended, but he combined with former Saints receiver Donte' Stallworth on an Eagles-record 75-yard touchdown in the first half.

Brian Westbrook rushed for 116 yards and scored twice, including a franchise play-off record 62-yard run.

At Baltimore, Peyton Manning made up for some of his previous play-off failures and kept alive his hope of playing in the Super Bowl for the first time.

All he needed to do was get the Colts close enough for Vinatieri, who did the rest.

It was only the fourth play-off game in NFL history - and first since 1979 - in which neither team scored a touchdown.

Vinatieri, who won two Super Bowls with late field goals for New England, was signed by Indianapolis in the off-season.

He justified the acquisition with a flawless performance against the Ravens, succeeding with attempts of 23, 42, 51, 48 and 35 yards.

The fourth kick gave him an NFL-record 33 career post-season field goals.

The number two-seeded Ravens had hoped for revenge against the franchise that broke the hearts of Baltimore fans by leaving the city almost 23 years ago.