tiggerpolice

NEW ORLEANS -- Given all the losing New Orleans football fans have seen, it was only a matter of time before someone offered a conspiracy theory.

The premise went something like this: Had the NFL taken a page from pro wrestling's book to ensure that the usually hapless New Orleans Saints would become the feel-good story of the year?


Highly unlikely, of course, which means people may have to accept the Saints' surprising and rather dramatic 5-1 start as that rare case when reality follows a storybook script -- uncannily so, in this case.

"This is a little unique," new Saints coach Sean Payton conceded this week. "We thought at the beginning of the season that this could be something special and that we have an opportunity to maybe put some smiles on peoples faces and help start the rebuild of this city. There's a lot of work to be done outside of the football aspect of what this town needs, but I think the idea that they can rally around their team -- I think that's good stuff."

This new chapter in Saints history really began late last December, when the NFL announced its support of the team's return to storm-battered New Orleans. Saints owner Tom Benson, long a critic of this market, changed his tune and stated he wanted to be a leader in the city's rebirth.

Benson had a banner hung above the front entrance of the Saints' practice headquarters in a part suburban New Orleans that was largely spared by Hurricane Katrina. It read: "The Saints are marching in to win and rebuild our community."

As challenging as rebuilding around here may be, that seemed the more realistic of the two stated goals in light of the Saints' dreadful 3-13 record in 2005.

Fans here were just happy there was a plan to rebuild the Louisiana Superdome and bring back a sense of normality by watching a team they had always loved despite four decades of mostly losing seasons.

Next came the hiring of Payton, who played up his credentials as a former Bill Parcells assistant but had no prior head coaching experience. His first big move was to urge the team to sign free agent quarterback Drew Brees, somewhat of a risk with Brees coming off throwing-shoulder surgery.

At the same time, no one could be sure how well Deuce McAllister would come back from reconstructive knee surgery.

But if Payton could handle the job, and if Brees and McAllister came back healthy, this team had a chance to at least be competitive -- especially because the Saints were bound to get at least one immediate contributor with the No. 2 overall draft choice.

Ah, the draft. It seemed exceedingly wishful thinking to hope Houston would pass on Heisman Trophy winner Reggie Bush and let the Saints have him, didn't it?

Or if anyone really wanted to dream big, how about getting Bush, then mining a couple of hidden treasures out of the later rounds? Perhaps there was a new starting offensive guard waiting in the fourth round, maybe a Division II college prospect such as Jahri Evans? What about using a seventh-round pick, 252nd overall, on Marques Colston, a receiver out of I-AA Hofstra who wound up starting right away and scored four touchdowns in his first six games?

Was it unrealistic to hope the Saints, with new players comprising about half their roster and everyone adjusting to a new coaching staff, could jell in time to win their first two games on the road and open at home undefeated. Was it unrealistic to hope that about $185 million worth of work on the Superdome could be completed on a nine-month schedule and make the iconic stadium look better than ever when it opened Sept. 25? Or that the dome would sell out for the entire season, as it has? Or that the Saints would actually beat favored Atlanta and later roar back to triumph over Philadelphia and stay solely in first place in the NFC South after Week 6?

There are still 10 games to go and many won't be easy. The schedule includes Baltimore, Carolina, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, Atlanta again, Dallas and the New York Giants. And New Orleans has seen fast starts fizzle before. As recently as 2002, the Saints opened 6-1, only to finish 9-7 and miss the playoffs.

But Payton expected something good to happen this season. He was confident he created a roster of intelligent, hustling players along the lines of the New England model. He also expected his players, like him, could appreciate the chance to be part of an NFL story that would transcend sports, that they'd derive a little extra edge from that.

They have.

"The thing that means the most to me and really kind of tugs on me is when people say, 'Thanks for what you've done for this city. Thanks for being here in New Orleans,"' Brees said recently. "It's not really even about football. It's not, 'Great game,' or 'Go Saints.' ... That's interesting because you've got so many people in this community that not only do they care about the Saints, but they care about their community, and I think that's pretty special."

http://www.sportingnews.com/yourturn...c.php?t=139305

RockyMountainSaint

Thanks Tigger.
I have to keep pinching myself to remind me that I'm not dreaming!

LongTimeFan

I watched the Bears/Cardinals game Monday night, the Cards lost a game that was in the bag almost, I went to bed with a 1:44 left in the 3rd with a 23-3 lead, when I got up the next morning I tuned in to ESPN only to find out they lost and how they lost, I remember well the games we lost like that, I actually felt bad for the Cardinal fans.

TheGambler

You felt bad? I felt disgusted. I agree, their fans deserved better than shelling out money to watch their team blow a lead, but I'm worried more about the big picture.....

In the NFC, wins and losses by certain teams (Chicago, in this case) can mean the difference between having a first round bye, or by hosting a wild card game. Chicago was a lock to go 5-1 after this game, but the Cardinals (in the words of Dennis Green) "let them off the hook". Thanks a lot, Arizona.

yasoon

I thought about this too. But, let's face it, the Bears were not gonna go any worse than 12-4 even with that loss. I have alot of faith in the Saints to actually make the playoffs this year, but even 11-5 is gonna take some breaks with this schedule. The Bears have 2 "hard" games left, we have like 8.

I think the Bears and Seahawks will be your bye teams. The Saints and Panthers get in from the South. The Eagles and either the Cowboys or Giants get in from the East. I think our realistic hope is to hold on to the South and get a home playoff game against the Cowboys.

Having Said all that, I figured we would be 2-4 right now, so what do I know.

exiled

great post tiger