CheramieIII

Preach on Pastor Hagan, Preach on. and sometimes it didn't even matter if we won or lost, just that the team fought their asses off. We had a team and they're our own NEW ORLEANS SAINTS.

Danno

True, think of the current Cleveland Browns, only worse and for much longer.

RailBoss

The bags seemed like a lifetime ago. We will stay competitive with SP and Drew around. The next chapter will be the big question, by that time most of us older fools will be to senile to know whats going on.

Seer1

Hahaha! I grew up 100 miles south of Cleveland. They had a competitive edge and were doing the right stuff, but then loaded up the trucks one night and moved to Baltimore where they're still winning Superbowls. So they bring in a new team with the same name and a sign on the front window saying, "Piss poor management wanted." But that's alright because everyone knows Ohio's true pro team is the Buckeyes.

Then I head south the second Dempsey kicked that field goal with half a foot (and -according to ignorant haters, an illegal shoe) figuring any team that'll hire a guy with half an arm and half a foot is my kind of team. Haven't ever turned back. I bet there's still beer on the ceiling of that apartment from the game that put us into our first winning season. Hell, used to throw a party whenever the Saints would be on TV outside their local area. Also in another apartment the day Benson bought the team figuring a player didn't need to be born in Louisiana to be a Saint anymore. Washed the beer off the wall from the day we brought in Drew.....

Buckeye by birth, Who Dat by choice!

Yep, the 70's-80's-90's aren't even close to coming back. If anyone's laughing at the Who Dats these days, listen closely. It's a nervous, scared laugh.

; Your story isn't over yet ;

CheramieIII

You got that right.

jeanpierre

New England manages to stay in serious contention each year...

It's coaching and management...

We've got coaching and a good bean counter who doesn't know personnel all that well...

Danno

Most GM's don't. They hire competent scouts and a competent director of scouting.

I'd imagine if we draft as poorly this year as we did 2007 thru 2011 then he'll do what he's done before, hire new scouts and replace Reprish.

IIRC the last big scouting shakeup we had was just before the 2006 draft. That worked out very well for us.

vpheughan

Back when "We just want to be competitive, at least have a chance to win the game." Fast forward to a 62 - 34 regular season record, 5 - 3 playoff record and one Superbowl in 7 years. I'll take a .646 winning percentage over "just being competitive" any time!! As bad as last year was if you flip the Carolina games and KC, we would have been 10-6. Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda!!!

Rugby Saint II

The only dominant team in the next five years is the Saints!

Vrillon82

I just know after the big Salary Cap changes struck the league in 96 following the Cowboys run, things began to take a 180 in the NFL real quick, once big money players playing prior to the 96 Cap that took place was out of the league, you started seeing way more parity in the NFL and the teams like a San Fran, Dallas, Miami, Buffalo, NY Giants, Broncos, and couple other teams started becoming irrelevant, hence until 2009, Cowboys never won a playoff game since 1996 season.

If not for the 1996 changes, teams like Tampa, New Orleans, New England, St. Louis and Baltimore probably would of never got to the SB let alone win it, teams like Seattle and Arizona probably would of never smelled the lone SB appearance they had either.

I have debated for a long time asking the question, can you give full credit to a SB champion prior to the 96 season? Its ranks close to where fans start counting championships prior to the SB era, its becoming quite absurd actually when you really look back and start analyzing things.

To tell you how the 3 eras changed (Pre SB, SB era, SB era past 96), their hasnt been hardly any teams dominant in all 3 eras, least not the ones that existed going back to Pre SB. Theirs been some to dominate 2 of the 3, one of them was Pittsburgh, but I believe their dominance kind of had more to do with having the right things fall into place, more specifically in the 2000's - Present where the competition in the AFC is so stale that the only 5 teams that has made the SB since 2000 has been NE, Pitt, Baltimore, Oakland, and Indy. Oakland being the oddball of that 5.

It will never be like the 80s or early 90s.