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Guerry Smith - If history were a guide, the Saints’ fast start in 2009 would not mean much. Previously, they won their first three games in five different years, and those 3-0 records led to only two playoff appearances and one playoff victory.

Of course, history does not account for the presence of Drew Brees, Marques Colston, Pierre Thomas and a ball-hawking defense.

This two-part series looks back at what happened to those 3-0 teams. Part I covers 1991, 1993 and 1998. Part II will address 2002 and 2006.

1) 1991

Start: 7-0
First three: d. Seattle 27-24, d. Kansas City 17-10, d. Los Angeles Rams 24-7
Finish: 11-5 (lost in the wild card round of the NFL playoffs)

What went wrong: The best team in franchise history did not have a good enough offense or confident enough coaching to help out a dominant defense (league-low 13.2 points per game) that kept wearing down in the fourth quarter. The Saints, who held five opponents to fewer than 200 yards, could have started 10-0, but they lost a fourth-quarter lead at home to the Chicago Bears in game 8 and fell 20-17 despite allowing only 11 first downs. That performance became a recurring pattern. At 9-1, they led the NFC West by four games and blew the entire advantage in four weeks, losing fourth-quarter leads against San Diego, Atlanta, San Francisco and Dallas. After the Saints rebounded to win the division, their season ended in fitting fashion as the Falcons rallied in the fourth quarter again to beat them 27-20 in the Superdome. An injury-depleted New Orleans secondary could not contain Atlanta’s run-and-shoot offense in the second half.

Rickey Jackson was the only Saints linebacker who missed the Pro Bowl, but no one on offense got anywhere near Hawaii. Fred Mcafee (494 yards) and Gill Fenerty (477) were the two leading rushers. Bobby Hebert and Steve Walsh split time as the starting quarterback and had remarkably similar numbers – Walsh’s QB rating was 79.5, and Hebert’s was 79.0.

Defining moment: Coach Jim Mora elected to punt and play for field position instead of having Morten Andersen try a 50-yard field goal in overtime of the regular-season home loss to Atlanta. A little later, the Falcons won on a 50-yard field goal.

2) 1993

Start: 5-0
First three: d. Houston 33-21, d. Atlanta 34-31, d. Detroit 14-3
Finish: 8-8
What went wrong: Everything. Although veteran free agent quarterback Wade Wilson started hot, the aging Saints fell apart on both sides of the line of scrimmage after a bye week. Long-time skeptic Buddy Diliberto said Mora had his best team after New Orleans crushed the Los Angeles Rams 37-6 to improve to 5-0. It turned out to be Mora’s worst since his first season in 1986 and the beginning of his decline.

The Pittsburgh Steelers dominated the Saints on both lines in a 37-14 game 6 rout, and they never recovered, dropping seven of nine. Wilson crumbled once he lost faith in his offensive line, which allowed nine sacks in an embarrassing 17-14 loss to Cleveland when the Saints wasted a 4-0 advantage in turnovers. A year after becoming the only team in NFL history to place four linebackers in the Pro Bowl, the Saints had one – Jackson.

Defining moment: Fans become so frustrated with the offense that they cheered loudly when Wilson went down with a knee injury in a late-season Monday night game against the New York Giants.

3) 1998

Start: 3-0
First three: d. St. Louis 24-17, d. Carolina 19-14, d. Indianapolis 19-13
Finish: 6-10

What went wrong: Reality intruded. The Saints were no good to begin with under coach Mike Ditka (they went 12-33 in his other games), although they would have been a little bit better if quarterback Billy Joe Hobert had not suffered a season-ending injury in the first game. Second-year pro Danny Wuerffel, one of the most productive quarterbacks in college football history, took over and proved to be one of the least productive quarterbacks in NFL history despite winning his first two starts. The Saints used four quarterbacks, trying Billy Joe Tolliver next and finally Kerry Collins, whom they had beaten in week 2 when he started for the Carolina Panthers.

New Orleans finished 28th in the league in offense and 26th in defense, dropping five of its last six games after the fluky start.

Defining moment: Wuerffel’s helmet was turned sideways and stayed on his head during a hit in a 31-0 October loss to the San Francisco 49ers. He did not start another game.

New Orleans Saints history: What happened to the other 3-0 teams