SmashMouth

When Sean Payton came to New Orleans in 2006 to coach the Saints, he was little more than "that guy from Dallas" to most local fans. He was young. He was energetic. He was highly regarded in football circles. But he was also the latest in a long string of coaches who had come and gone after promising everything and delivering precious little.

But if you've been watching closely, something has happened over the past 12 years. Something has changed in the ol' ballcoach's relationship with the city. That was as clear as ever in the Saints' locker room following the team's wild-card playoff victory over the Carolina Panthers on Sunday (Jan. 7).



As members of the Saints' 53-man squad relished their hard-fought, closer-than-anybody-really-wanted victory, Payton appeared in the locker room. He had one last demand: "I want 53 jumping right now!," he shouted.

He then proceeded to lead the way with a dance that can only be described as utterly beautiful -- if not for its technique than for its sheer sense of "dance like nobody's watching" unselfconsciousness. The locker room erupted, and, brother, they danced.

So did the city. Videos of Payton's expression of unadulterated, stiff-armed joy were captured on players' cellphones and beamed out to the Who Dat Nation. The videos soon went viral. Within two days, trumpeter Shamarr Allen had recorded a new rap song, "Hit the Sean Payton," inspired by the head coach's sweet, sweet moves. The whole thing has become a Crescent City sensation the likes of which haven't been seen in New Orleans since it first learned how to stand up and get crunk.

But in the process, Payton has given the city more than just a viral video. Gradually over the past 12 years (almost to the day; he was hired Jan 17, 2006), Sean Payton has given the city what it always wants the most: He has wrapped his arms around it and given it a hug. He has accepted it. He has, despite perceived efforts at times to keep it at arm's-length, gone native.

By all outward appearances, that guy from Dallas has become a true New Orleanian.

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