So the Saints beat the Eagles in tonight's NFC divisional playoff game in the Superdome.
Don't get me wrong. it's tough to root against New Orleans. If you have any heart at all, you had to feel what this team was put through last year, with Hurricane Katrina, the fact that their first "home" game was played at Giants Stadium, and all the shuffling that this team endured last year, you had to feel for them.
Now we fast forward to this year. They open the season with the Superdome back in tact, and major restoration work has been done to the city of New Orleans.
The fans needed hope, something to help get life in perspective. Then, there was their beloved Saints. A love affair between fans and a city, something akin to Boston fans and the Red Sox, Chicago fans and the Cubs, or New York fans and the Knicks.
It's the life-long glimmer of hope, the wait-till-next-year syndrome, the belief that when the team lost, that it hurt the players as much as it did the fans.
It's a connection between fans and team that is recognized only in few pro circles.
Not only is this a connection that Saints' fans have had with their perrenial losers, but that the new regime reinforced.
After a dismal season that ended in a 3-13 record, New Orleans made some changes. Out went the head coach, Jim Haslett, and in came first-time head coach Sean Payton. They were also given a top draft pick, and with that they took one of the most electrifying players in college, Reggie Bush from USC.
They then signed quarterback Drew Brees, who took the San Diego Chargers to the playoffs.
The team had a new outlook this season, and so did their fans. They needed something to believe in, and their team delivered with a 10-6 record and first place in the NFC South.
Today, as you saw the television crowd shots of the fans, there was a thread
in the crowd. The thread was a "destiny" that they believe in. They believe that this is their year, a year that they have never known. Through the Archie Manning years, when one of the best quarterbacks in football played for one of the worst teams, through the Sam Mills era, when he led one of the toughest defenses in the league, but came up empty, this city has supported their team.
And now they think that this is their year. And in the year of a mediocre NFC, to say the least, they may be right.
One game stands in their way between just another season and a Super Bowl appearance. That game is the NFC Championship game.
From the beginning of the season, I thought that the Chicago Bears were the class of the NFC.
Most others did, as well. But, then, the last few games of the season rolled around and the Bears were not quite so impressive. Some people fear their quarterback, Rex Grossman. But the fear isn't about how good he is, but the inconsistancy in his play.
Even in the last game of the season, when the Bears got waxed by the Green Bay Packers, with the Bears resting key players, Grossman was questioned about his decision making.
But the Bears have a ferociuos defense that is reminiscent of the '85 team.
They gave up 23 points or less in 12 of their games this season.
They have had a week off, and Lovie Smith and his coaching staff have had two weeks to work with Rex and teach him to protect the ball so that they don't lose the game.
The Saints have had the benefit of schedule, a soft NFC, especially in their own division, and a little luck and solid play, to be in this position, playing for the NFC championship.
So, will "destiny," as the Saints' fans believe, live on in the Bayou in a home game against Seattle, or will reality set in on a frozen field in Chicago?
We'll see next week.
Don't get me wrong. it's tough to root against New Orleans. If you have any heart at all, you had to feel what this team was put through last year, with Hurricane Katrina, the fact that their first "home" game was played at Giants Stadium, and all the shuffling that this team endured last year, you had to feel for them.
Now we fast forward to this year. They open the season with the Superdome back in tact, and major restoration work has been done to the city of New Orleans.
The fans needed hope, something to help get life in perspective. Then, there was their beloved Saints. A love affair between fans and a city, something akin to Boston fans and the Red Sox, Chicago fans and the Cubs, or New York fans and the Knicks.
It's the life-long glimmer of hope, the wait-till-next-year syndrome, the belief that when the team lost, that it hurt the players as much as it did the fans.
It's a connection between fans and team that is recognized only in few pro circles.
Not only is this a connection that Saints' fans have had with their perrenial losers, but that the new regime reinforced.
After a dismal season that ended in a 3-13 record, New Orleans made some changes. Out went the head coach, Jim Haslett, and in came first-time head coach Sean Payton. They were also given a top draft pick, and with that they took one of the most electrifying players in college, Reggie Bush from USC.
They then signed quarterback Drew Brees, who took the San Diego Chargers to the playoffs.
The team had a new outlook this season, and so did their fans. They needed something to believe in, and their team delivered with a 10-6 record and first place in the NFC South.
Today, as you saw the television crowd shots of the fans, there was a thread
in the crowd. The thread was a "destiny" that they believe in. They believe that this is their year, a year that they have never known. Through the Archie Manning years, when one of the best quarterbacks in football played for one of the worst teams, through the Sam Mills era, when he led one of the toughest defenses in the league, but came up empty, this city has supported their team.
And now they think that this is their year. And in the year of a mediocre NFC, to say the least, they may be right.
One game stands in their way between just another season and a Super Bowl appearance. That game is the NFC Championship game.
From the beginning of the season, I thought that the Chicago Bears were the class of the NFC.
Most others did, as well. But, then, the last few games of the season rolled around and the Bears were not quite so impressive. Some people fear their quarterback, Rex Grossman. But the fear isn't about how good he is, but the inconsistancy in his play.
Even in the last game of the season, when the Bears got waxed by the Green Bay Packers, with the Bears resting key players, Grossman was questioned about his decision making.
But the Bears have a ferociuos defense that is reminiscent of the '85 team.
They gave up 23 points or less in 12 of their games this season.
They have had a week off, and Lovie Smith and his coaching staff have had two weeks to work with Rex and teach him to protect the ball so that they don't lose the game.
The Saints have had the benefit of schedule, a soft NFC, especially in their own division, and a little luck and solid play, to be in this position, playing for the NFC championship.
So, will "destiny," as the Saints' fans believe, live on in the Bayou in a home game against Seattle, or will reality set in on a frozen field in Chicago?
We'll see next week.
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