NEW ORLEANS – The Superdome got a new roof after Hurricane Katrina. The New Orleans Saints did their best to blow it off again.
In an earsplitting return to their rebuilt stadium, the Saints gave the Big Easy something to cheer about – an undefeated football team that made it look easy with a 23-3 victory over the Atlanta Falcons on Monday night.
This one couldn’t have been scripted any better for a team that spent all of last season on the road, and it couldn’t have come at a better time for a city that is still struggling to overcome the devastation of Katrina.
“From the moment I signed with the Saints, I was looking forward to this,” said quarterback Drew Brees , who joined New Orleans during the offseason. “We couldn’t have asked for it to go any better. It was a great night. It’s something we’ll never forget.”
After a Super Bowl-like pregame show that included a performance by supergroups U2 and Green Day, the Saints wasted no time turning their welcome-home party into Mardi Gras: The Falcons’ first drive stalled, and special teams demon Steve Gleason sliced through the middle of the Atlanta line to smother Michael Koenen’s punt.
The ball skidded across the goal line, where Curtis Deloatch fell on it for a touchdown – the first given up by the Falcons this season. Just 1 1/2 minutes into a homecoming that was over a year in the making, the Saints sent an emphatic message to the NFL and the entire country.
DeLoatch ran over to the stands and pointed at the crowd of 70,003, as if to say, “Take that Katrina!” Undoubtedly, many more were cheering around this still-recovering city, some of them vowing to set up televisions outside government-issued trailers that pass for homes more than a year after the storm blew ashore, the levees broke and the water poured through.
“That set the tone,” Brees said. “That’s when we all knew. This was our day, our night.”
Owner Tom Benson even broke out his parasol when it was over, bouncing off the field to “When The Saints Go Marching In” and reveling in the cheers of a fan base that once feared he would take their team away.
The Saints dedicated a game ball to the entire city.
“Infinite joy, man,” Gleason said. “Infinite joy.”
The Saints (3-0) poured it on against the Falcons (2-1), who fell behind 14-3 in the first quarter and never recovered. Devery Henderson scored New Orleans’ second TD on an 11-yard double-reverse, taking a handoff from Reggie Bush and cutting inside the pylon with help from a gutsy block by quarterback Drew Brees.
How could that play not work? In practice, the Saints dubbed that bit of chicanery “The Superdome Special.”
John Carney kicked two field goals in the second period, including a 51-yarder that cleared the crossbar as time ran out. The Saints trotted to the locker room with a 20-3 lead and a rousing ovation ringing in their ears. The Falcons straggled off in the opposite direction, as if they already knew this wasn’t going to be their night.
“As tough as it is to lose a game, I’d be lying if I said there isn’t a little, little, little piece of me that didn’t appreciate what this game meant to this city,” said Falcons coach Jim Mora, whose father is the winningest coach in Saints history. “It meant a lot.”
Of course, a Saints win seemed in the stars even before the kickoff. This was intended to be a showcase for New Orleans’ rebirth, as frustrating and halting as that process has been for so many.
Fans clad in gold and black strolled around the French Quarter throughout a brilliantly sunny day, ready to look forward instead of looking back at those awful scenes of suffering inside the Superdome in the days after Katrina. Those who had tickets to get inside the 31-year-old stadium found it spruced up with new scoreboards, bright video boards and plenty of fresh paint, all part of a $185 million renovation that was designed to keep the Saints from moving to San Antonio, Los Angeles or some other NFL-deprived city.
Showing the significance of the game, former commissioner Paul Tagliabue and his successor, Roger Goodell, were both at the Superdome. Signs were hung throughout the stadium, sending messages such as “Home Sweet Dome” and “Thank You America. New Orleans & Saints Are Here to Stay.”
After Bono left the stage and former President George Bush took care of the coin flip, the Saints made sure the party would last all night. They dominated on special teams – also blocking a short field goal attempt by 46-year-old Morten Andersen – and shut down Atlanta’s feared running game.
The Falcons, coming off a franchise-record 306 yards on the ground against Tampa Bay , managed just 117 yards rushing on the inspired Saints. Michael Vick had a miserable game, completing 12-of-31 for 137 yards.
Any hopes of an Atlanta comeback were snuffed out on the first possession of the second half. New Orleans took the kickoff and drove 73 yards in 12 plays, burning more than 7 1/2 minutes off the clock before settling for Carney’s third field goal from 20 yards.
Alge Crumpler , the team’s normally sure-handed tight end, dropped a pass in the end zone with no one around him in the first quarter. Andersen, still reviled in New Orleans for leaving to sign with the rival Falcons more than a decade ago, had a 25-yard chip shot swatted away by Josh Bullocks on the night the kicker became the second-oldest player in NFL history.
Even the referees chipped in, picking up a flag on a dubious pass interference call that could have extended a Falcons drive late in the third quarter.
About the only thing that didn’t go right for New Orleans was a first touchdown for Bush. Still, “Saint Reggie” gave the fans several chances to cheer their rookie sensation, rushing for 53 yards and catching four passes for 19 yards.
Deuce McAllister handled the bulk of the ground game, with 19 rushes for 81 yards. Brees was 20-of-28 passing for 191 yards. His favorite receiver was rookie Marques Colston – the third-to-last pick in this year’s draft – who grabbed seven passes for 97 yards.
“If we had lost, the fans still would have been partying, they still would have been happy, because the organization is still in New Orleans,” receiver Joe Horn said. “But we wanted to put the icing on the cake.”
And what a cake. The Saints seized first place all to themselves in the NFC South while matching their wins from all of last season. Forced to play in San Antonio, Baton Rouge and East Rutherford because of the Superdome’s massive damage, New Orleans struggled to a 3-13 record as a team without a home.
Now, they’re home for good.
And on the Adultfyi front, Mike Dickinson by picking the Saints came out of the weekend with a 12-2 record and an overall 34-12 mark that hands him sole possession of first. Dickinson’s losses came with picks of Arizona and New England.
Here’s how everyone did:
Mike Dickinson, 12-2 and 34-12 overall; Gene Ross, 11-3 and 33-13 overall; Ryan from Jerry’s Deli, 11-3 and 33-13 overall; Steve Seidman, 8-6 and 32-14 overall; Sean from www.pornlegends.com, 8-6 and 32-14 overall; Dan Davis from Genesis Magazine, 8-6 and 32-14 overall; John Gray, 1-4 and 31-15 overall; Brian aka Plus One, 9-5 and 31-15 overall;
Harry Weiss, 9-5 and 30-16 overall; Serenity of www.serenity.net, 8-6 and 29-17 overall; Sandy Bunz of www.sandybunz.com, 11-3 and 29-17 overall; Brian Wallace, 10-4 and 29-17 overall; Billy the Crystal, 9-5 and 28-18 overall; Mikie Fattorosi, 9-5 and 28-18 overall; Steve from Xbiz, www.xbiz.com, 10-4 and 28-18 overall; Big Ty, 7-7 and 28-18 overall;
Shannon from Adult DVD Empire, 9-5 and 27-19 overall; Wankus, 8-6 and 26-20 overall; Karl the Birdman, 7-7 and 24-22 overall; Steve Volponi, 7-7 and 22-24 overall