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METAIRIE — The first day of the rest of the New Orleans Saints’ lives was just another Monday during football season.

But this Monday was the latest any Saints team had a day-after-game gathering as the team returned to work in preparation for their game against the Indianapolis Colts in Super Bowl XLIV on Feb. 7 in Miami.

The team was back in the locker room at the training facility less than 15 hours after the historic 31-28 overtime victory against Minnesota in the NFC Championship game Sunday night in the Superdome.

“When I got outside this morning,” safety Darren Sharper said, “I saw the city was still standing, so that was a good thing. I didn’t get a chance to go out and celebrate last night because I was a little bit too sore to enjoy myself. I couldn’t have been celebrating if I couldn’t move my head to see who was around me.”

That didn’t stop pretty much the rest of the city from celebrating well into Monday morning.

“Driving home was nuts,” defensive tackle Sedrick Ellis said. “The streets were crazy and so crowded. But I was glad so many people got to be a part of this.”

Coach Sean Payton has a ritual in which he returns to the field after all his post-game duties are complete and throws passes to his son Connor and some of his Connor’s friends.

“My son’s concern is the confetti’s going to keep us from being able to play catch on the field,” Payton said. “That was his concern. It was just good to hug them and be around the family and enjoy the time. There never seems to be enough of it.

“When you’re able to get a win like that and you have the people closest to you to be a part of it, and so many of us had family in and friends in. You know, for them to have a chance to be part of it I think it makes it really special. Obviously, the same goes for this upcoming game.”

Payton, who said he hadn’t had time to return the “80 to 90 text messages” he received after the game, hadn’t been home when he held his weekly news conference at mid-day Monday. After the game he and his family drove the few blocks from the Superdome to Harrah’s — “it took a long time” because of crowds in the street, Payton said — to have a late dinner, then spent the night in the hotel.

Payton said he got some sleep, apparently more than running back Reggie Bush, who was wearing large, dark sunglasses when he spoke with reporters Monday.

“Eventually, I got to sleep — about two hours ago,” Bush said. “These are my I’m-tired-I-just-got-to-bed-two-hours-ago-I’m-going-to-hide-my-eyes-glasses. I’m pretty tired. But it was fun, just seeing everybody in the streets screaming and honking their horns.

“I’m not sure that goes on in too many cities. It’s so special to see how much people here enjoy it. I’m so happy to be a part of it and give it to them. Seeing people crying, seeing everybody dancing in the streets, it was really something.”

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