jeez what the hell kind of acid did Benson take post Katrina. Pre K he was one of the most hated owners in sports, now everything he does seems to be a home run. Talk about a complete 180.

The statue of Gleason is another classy move by Tom Benson.
Now, seems to me that pre-Katrina Mr Benson wasn't especially hated, maybe I'm wrong there since I don't live in N.O. He did bring us our first winning teams back in the 80's.
Post-Katrina seemed to be where all the hate came in for him. With his talk of moving the team to San Antonio, Tx. I have no hatred for Mr. Benson, never have. I honestly believe the only reason he did that was to set himself and the Saints up for a good deal in N.O. and get the SD redone. I just hope his sucessor, whether its Rita or whoever commissions 2 more statues. One of Mr. Benson himself to be unveiled opening day, the year after he passes. (Which I hope is a long time from now) and one of Drew to be unveiled at a party outside the SD the day he is inducted into the HOF.

Ceremony is invitation-only, which sucks. I was hoping to attend with my son.

Saints will unveil “Rebirth” statue on Friday | ProFootballTalk
At a time when so much talk has been devoted to a statue that has gone down, it’s nice to talk about one that has gone up.

On Friday, the Saints privately will unveil their “Rebirth” statue, which captures the moment from September 2006 at which the Saints and New Orleans unofficially returned from a year lost to a hurricane. It’s an invitation-only event, with players and team executives and politicians present for the pulling of the sheet from the sculpture.

One man who can’t attend due to his bounty-related suspension previously has explained what the statue will look like.

“We’re working on, and have a long-term vision of a statue right there in Champions Square of [Steve Gleason] blocking that punt [against the Falcons],” Sean Payton said last year. “And it really represents more than the actual play itself. That play really represents what was the re-opening of the Superdome and the beginning of us kind of picking ourselves back off the mat as a city and getting back to what we know as a normal way of life.”

It was a Monday night moment anyone who experienced it, live or on TV, never will forget. After a rousing pre-game concert featuring U2 and Green Day, the Saints entered the building and then took the field and forced Mike Vick and company to punt and Gleason slid to his left and sprinted through a gaping hole untouched and blocked it and Curtis DeLoach recovered it and the Saints would go on to beat the favored Falcons and when does football start again because I have goosebumps?

Was living in London when that game happened... stayed up until 3 or 4 in the morning to catch the action. I'll never forget sitting there in the dark by myself watching that game on a shoddy Internet feed, silently screaming and fist pumping so as not to wake my roommates.