Saints vs Falcons most anticipated game of the season?

[MCHan]

Sure, RAIDER fans were hyped for it... but why would a fan of the Lions have cared? And that's the whole point, fans of the Saints care but to most others it's just another game. Except what the networks will tell you at least.

 

As for my last statement, It wasn't offensive, so don't act like it was.

 

 

I'm guessing you do not give to charity and it's pretty much only about you. Who cares about others? Luckily most of this country is unlike you. People do care about others and see the importance of this game outside of just football.

[SLAYER]

Sure, RAIDER fans were hyped for it... but why would a fan of the Lions have cared? And that's the whole point, fans of the Saints care but to most others it's just another game. Except what the networks will tell you at least.

 

As for my last statement, It wasn't offensive, so don't act like it was.

 

 

 

 

No it was not offensive it was just plain outright stupid. But then again it would only matter to LOCALS, how much work and pulling together that had to happen to pull this off within 1 yr plus selling out the dome for the season. You enjoy your raider season and our Katrina gift (Brooks) and we will enjoy our Saints only the way Locals can.

[The Vatican Hitsquad]

I'm guessing you do not give to charity and it's pretty much only about you. Who cares about others? Luckily most of this country is unlike you. People do care about others and see the importance of this game outside of just football.

 

Why would you say that? I am a Veteran and give to two charities every year that mean a lot to me. So why does my indifference to a networked hyped game mean I don't care about others? I don't see this game as being one of the biggest MNF games ever, nor even this season unless you are a fan of the two teams involved. Human tragedy does not equate to sporting signifigance. Your statement is baseless and wrong.

[The Vatican Hitsquad]

No it was not offensive it was just plain outright stupid. But then again it would only matter to LOCALS, how much work and pulling together that had to happen to pull this off within 1 yr plus selling out the dome for the season.

 

How was it stupid? Have I tread across PC territory, where I am supposed to NOT post contrarily in a thread asking if this was the most anticipated games of the season? Of course it's important to Saints fans, that is what I said. But it really isn't important to anybody else outside of the networks telling you it is. In fact, you agree with my point in your first sentance there.

[tbimm]

Why would you say that? I am a Veteran and give to two charities every year that mean a lot to me. So why does my indifference to a networked hyped game mean I don't care about others? I don't see this game as being one of the biggest MNF games ever, nor even this season unless you are a fan of the two teams involved. Human tragedy does not equate to sporting signifigance. Your statement is baseless and wrong.

 

I will not disagree with you when it comes to personal type stuff because that belongs to you and is none of my concern. The only thing that we have proven here is that this game is not important to YOU and that is fine!

[Randall]

Why would you say that? I am a Veteran and give to two charities every year that mean a lot to me. So why does my indifference to a networked hyped game mean I don't care about others? I don't see this game as being one of the biggest MNF games ever, nor even this season unless you are a fan of the two teams involved. Human tragedy does not equate to sporting signifigance. Your statement is baseless and wrong.

 

 

 

Why can't you guys just let Saints fans enjoy the moment? Why do people have to come in here and say it's the most hyped game of the year.

 

Why not just show a little support for them and let the game end on it's own? It'll be over soon. Enjoy their moment with them.

[tbimm]

How was it stupid? Have I tread across PC territory, where I am supposed to NOT post contrarily in a thread asking if this was the most anticipated games of the season? Of course it's important to Saints fans, that is what I said. But it really isn't important to anybody else outside of the networks telling you it is. In fact, you agree with my point in your first sentance there.

 

This is where I do disagree. You are trying to speak for way too many people with this statement. Again it's not important to YOU!

[The Vatican Hitsquad]

This is where I do disagree. You are trying to speak for way too many people with this statement. Again it's not important to YOU!

 

But wasn't that the point of this thread? Asking if it was the most anticipated game of the season, and that it might be one of the highest rated MNF games ever? My commentary was based on a non-Saints fans perspective to what I percieved was a non-Saints fan type question.

 

Of course it's important to NO and Saints fans. I never said it wasn't nor implied otherwise.

[tbimm]

But it really isn't important to anybody else outside of the networks telling you it is.

 

This is the statement I was refering to. You are claiming it isnt important to anybody else!

Edited September 24, 2006 by tbimm

[SLAYER]

But wasn't that the point of this thread? Asking if it was the most anticipated game of the season, and that it might be one of the highest rated MNF games ever? My commentary was based on a non-Saints fans perspective to what I percieved was a non-Saints fan type question.

 

Of course it's important to NO and Saints fans. I never said it wasn't nor implied otherwise.

 

 

 

 

brother, enjoy but it will be the highest rated MNF game ever whether for the hype or not. And it is important to other fans around the country, but as said before just not YOU. Hell come to think of it, it propably will not be worth wathching, if you have no fantasy players playing just skip it.

[MCHan]

Why would you say that? I am a Veteran and give to two charities every year that mean a lot to me. So why does my indifference to a networked hyped game mean I don't care about others? I don't see this game as being one of the biggest MNF games ever, nor even this season unless you are a fan of the two teams involved. Human tragedy does not equate to sporting signifigance. Your statement is baseless and wrong.

 

 

Would you care if I gave a rats ass about our Veterans and believe that all special treatment (even though it's not a lot) that they get should be stripped? Maybe you don't but I know many other Veterans that do. All I'm saying is that people do care about things that do not directly affect them. Mainly because most people ask themselves ,"What if I was in that position?" 9/11 was a shining example of that. And yes the media does tend to overhype things but don't let that cloud your judgment and take away the signifigance of this game. The media will always overhype things but some of those things actually are as meaningful and important as they say.

[Big Score 1]

I wouldn't say it's the most anticipated game of the season.

 

Most overhyped, yes. But most anticipated, hardly.

 

Speak for yourself buddy

[Chavez]

Why can't you guys just let Saints fans enjoy the moment? Why do people have to come in here and say it's the most hyped game of the year.

 

 

Because the thread title asked that question?

 

GB the people of New Orleans, but as Vatican said, this game has some symbolic significance but that doesn't really mean that anything noteworthy will necessarily happen between the lines.

[myhousekey]

Wow. What a weekend. I’m not sure I even have the words to describe it all. As I boarded my plane from Dallas Friday afternoon, I was pleasantly surprised to see Joe Thiemann sitting in first class on his way down to the Big Easy for the big game. As a kid, the Redskins were my “2nd team” so this was quite a treat. My first thought was this had to be a good omen for the weekend to come. When we arrived in New Orleans, I was even lucky enough to strike up a little bit of conversation at the baggage claim with him about golf and the upcoming game (the man does not pack lightly….)

 

As I was born in the city, I am very familiar with the area but had not been back since the storm hit over a year ago. I had originally planned to return Labor Day weekend 2005 for a high school reunion. However, as we all know, Katrina hit just days prior and the festivities (and my trip) were cancelled. As my plane made its decent into Louis Armstrong International airport you couldn’t help but see all of the destruction (and rebuilding) marked by blue tarps, empty slabs, and construction equipment. You could see the canals where the levee had failed and the houses that had been only a stones throw away. A native sitting in the adjacent seat assured me that there were far less tarps then had been seen months ago, but it was apparent the city still had a long way to go. A friend of mine picked me up at the airport and we made our way towards downtown. Nearing downtown, we hit the I-10/610 split and my friend pointed out that you could still see the “water line” stain on the upcoming overpass. It had to be about 10-15 feet above the road. Unbelievable. We continued on I-10 downtown where signs of the storm were still visible all around. It was as if the storm had hit last month and not last year.

 

Finally we checked into the hotel and got the weekend kicked off. Too make what’s probably going to be a long story short, I’ll spare you the details from Friday to Sunday. Let’s just say we had a GREAT time and it involved beer, babes, golf, college football and more beer.

 

Which brings me to Monday. I was going to the game with a group of friends of mine that I had grown up with in New Orleans. Some still lived there. Others like myself had been transplanted by jobs to different places across the country. But we were all back this weekend and for one reason. The New Orleans Saints. In addition to my friends, my parents and my friends parents were in town for the game. We decided to meet up and have lunch, finally ending up at the Napoleon House. The only reason I mention this is because at our first choice of restaurants we were turned away because the owner was short handed with wait staff and couldn’t handle our group at that time. Another small sign that the city is still struggling for business and workers.

 

At around 2pm we decided to start making our way to the dome. The amount of people around the Superdome was amazing. There have been times in the past where I’ve attended Saints games and walking into the dome 30 minutes before kickoff was a breeze. Not today. The streets were packed and the crowd was pumped as they watched Cowboy Mouth just outside the dome on Poydras. Walking up to the gates at the dome was the equivalent to walking down Bourbon Street during Mardi Gras, moving at a snails pace at times. The city was ready. The fans were ready. I was ready.

 

As the gates finally opened around 530 and the fans poured into the stadium you could feel the electricity in the air. To the city this was more then a game. This was our Superbowl. U2 and Green Day kicked things off and the anticipation of what to come started building more and more. Could this team do it? How would the city react if we lost this game? Some said the city had already won regardless of the outcome but I couldn’t help but feel differently. New Orleans needed this game. For all of the suffering of the last year, they needed a bright spot to fill their hearts, if only for a day.

 

The Saints delivered and then some. A blocked punt returned for the opening score. (I don’t think I’ve ever heard the dome louder) A double reverse for the second touchdown where Drew Brees (bad shoulder and all) threw a key block to ensure Devery Henderson found the end zone. Forcing the Falcons from 1st and goal at the 2 into a field goal and then blocking the ensuing kick. Driving the field with only 1:49 to play and hitting a 51 yard field goal as the half expired. For 60 minutes the team played its heart out and refused to quit. Losing just wasn’t an option that day. As the clock finally ticked to 0 and the Saints had won 23-3, the dream had become a reality. We had won. We yelled and cheered. We laughed and cried. We sang and danced. For one night this city would forget about all that happened over the last year and celebrate a sign that there was still hope for a brighter future. Our New Orleans Saints were home.

[hooknladder]

You guys can't tell me your not happy Haslett is gone.

[neilfish2]

Wow. What a weekend. I’m not sure I even have the words to describe it all. As I boarded my plane from Dallas Friday afternoon, I was pleasantly surprised to see Joe Thiemann sitting in first class on his way down to the Big Easy for the big game. As a kid, the Redskins were my “2nd team” so this was quite a treat. My first thought was this had to be a good omen for the weekend to come. When we arrived in New Orleans, I was even lucky enough to strike up a little bit of conversation at the baggage claim with him about golf and the upcoming game (the man does not pack lightly….)

 

As I was born in the city, I am very familiar with the area but had not been back since the storm hit over a year ago. I had originally planned to return Labor Day weekend 2005 for a high school reunion. However, as we all know, Katrina hit just days prior and the festivities (and my trip) were cancelled. As my plane made its decent into Louis Armstrong International airport you couldn’t help but see all of the destruction (and rebuilding) marked by blue tarps, empty slabs, and construction equipment. You could see the canals where the levee had failed and the houses that had been only a stones throw away. A native sitting in the adjacent seat assured me that there were far less tarps then had been seen months ago, but it was apparent the city still had a long way to go. A friend of mine picked me up at the airport and we made our way towards downtown. Nearing downtown, we hit the I-10/610 split and my friend pointed out that you could still see the “water line” stain on the upcoming overpass. It had to be about 10-15 feet above the road. Unbelievable. We continued on I-10 downtown where signs of the storm were still visible all around. It was as if the storm had hit last month and not last year.

 

Finally we checked into the hotel and got the weekend kicked off. Too make what’s probably going to be a long story short, I’ll spare you the details from Friday to Sunday. Let’s just say we had a GREAT time and it involved beer, babes, golf, college football and more beer.

 

Which brings me to Monday. I was going to the game with a group of friends of mine that I had grown up with in New Orleans. Some still lived there. Others like myself had been transplanted by jobs to different places across the country. But we were all back this weekend and for one reason. The New Orleans Saints. In addition to my friends, my parents and my friends parents were in town for the game. We decided to meet up and have lunch, finally ending up at the Napoleon House. The only reason I mention this is because at our first choice of restaurants we were turned away because the owner was short handed with wait staff and couldn’t handle our group at that time. Another small sign that the city is still struggling for business and workers.

 

At around 2pm we decided to start making our way to the dome. The amount of people around the Superdome was amazing. There have been times in the past where I’ve attended Saints games and walking into the dome 30 minutes before kickoff was a breeze. Not today. The streets were packed and the crowd was pumped as they watched Cowboy Mouth just outside the dome on Poydras. Walking up to the gates at the dome was the equivalent to walking down Bourbon Street during Mardi Gras, moving at a snails pace at times. The city was ready. The fans were ready. I was ready.

 

As the gates finally opened around 530 and the fans poured into the stadium you could feel the electricity in the air. To the city this was more then a game. This was our Superbowl. U2 and Green Day kicked things off and the anticipation of what to come started building more and more. Could this team do it? How would the city react if we lost this game? Some said the city had already won regardless of the outcome but I couldn’t help but feel differently. New Orleans needed this game. For all of the suffering of the last year, they needed a bright spot to fill their hearts, if only for a day.

 

The Saints delivered and then some. A blocked punt returned for the opening score. (I don’t think I’ve ever heard the dome louder) A double reverse for the second touchdown where Drew Brees (bad shoulder and all) threw a key block to ensure Devery Henderson found the end zone. Forcing the Falcons from 1st and goal at the 2 into a field goal and then blocking the ensuing kick. Driving the field with only 1:49 to play and hitting a 51 yard field goal as the half expired. For 60 minutes the team played its heart out and refused to quit. Losing just wasn’t an option that day. As the clock finally ticked to 0 and the Saints had won 23-3, the dream had become a reality. We had won. We yelled and cheered. We laughed and cried. We sang and danced. For one night this city would forget about all that happened over the last year and celebrate a sign that there was still hope for a brighter future. Our New Orleans Saints were home.

 

Well put. And some say the game was fixed..what a joke.

[McBoog]

Are they playing this weekend too?

[rajncajn]

Awesome post MHK!

[Cordo]

Wow. What a weekend. ...

 

The Saints delivered and then some. A blocked punt returned for the opening score. (I don’t think I’ve ever heard the dome louder) ... We yelled and cheered. We laughed and cried. We sang and danced. For one night this city would forget about all that happened over the last year and celebrate a sign that there was still hope for a brighter future. Our New Orleans Saints were home.

 

 

 

Great post key. You definitely captured the feeling -- the electricity in the Dome was unreal, even 90 minutes before kickoff. As far as the Dome ever being louder -- a buddy and I were talking about just that. I call it a toss-up between "Gleason blocks the punt" and "Hakim drops the ball".

[myhousekey]

Just got this email. Pretty good read and I tend to agree with his views.

 

Eternal Dome nation

The symbolic and economic significance of the Superdome's reopening

has been lost on many in America. So we'll say this one more time for

anyone who still doesn't get it: It's the recovery, stupid.

Tuesday, October 03, 2006

Chris Rose

 

My euphoria over the Saints dissipated this weekend, but it was long

before their loss to the Carolina Panthers.

While I'm still inspired by the team and their determination, it must

be remembered that they are merely an enjoyable diversion from the

massive challenges at hand -- challenges for which the nation's good

will and assistance are most vital.

 

 

But I have come to the discomfiting conclusion that all the hoopla and

feel-good that we displayed to the country leading up to and during

the "Monday Night Football" game did not translate in the American

Heartland the way we might have hoped.

 

I was under the impression that we won back America's love and

admiration for our steely reserve and equanimity in the face of

adversity and our ability to come together in communal celebration

despite personal lives shrouded in sorrow.

 

Despite ESPN's sensitive handling of the tricky "New Orleans is

back/New Orleans is definitely not back" message that we needed to

send out, it seems that lots of folks did not buy into the Superdome

extravaganza as a good thing at all.

 

This became clear to me as I read the letters to the editor in the

weekend edition of USA Today. And while I am somewhat loathe to let

USA Today set the tone of dialogue on south Louisiana's recovery,

there can be no getting around the unanimity of views of the six

letters published on this topic.

 

To summarize their words: We -- we being anyone who cheered for the

Saints or greeted the Dome's reopening as a forward step in recovery

-- are wrong.

 

Let me offer a sampling from each letter:

 

Ravi Mangla of Fairport, N.Y., wrote:

 

"Using the New Orleans Saints' home game at the Superdome as a

metaphor for a city returning to normalcy after a horrific disaster is

such arrant dreck. I found myself frustrated Monday, hearing reports

describing how 'inspiring' and 'uplifting' it was for New Orleans'

citizens to finally get their team back. What would be more inspiring

and uplifting, in my opinion, would be seeing all the people of New

Orleans finally getting their homes back."

 

Mark Washington of Omaha, Neb., wrote:

 

"As an African-American, I was disturbed about things I saw on TV:

Thousands of mostly white faces in the stands being serenaded by white

rock musicians. It wasn't exactly a vision of a returning New Orleans.

 

"I highly doubt that the vast majority of former New Orleans

residents, who happen to be African-Americans, would have selected U2

or Green Day as their preferred entertainment."

 

Jack Wood of Fort Wayne, Ind., wrote:

 

"Federal funding contributed hugely to the $185 million it cost to

renovate the Superdome in New Orleans? Where are our priorities? With

garbage still clogging the streets and people still homeless, what

could that money have done to correct those conditions? This appears

to be just another example of badly placed priorities by Americans. We

should all be ashamed to put a football game ahead of human

suffering."

 

Mark Van Patten of Bowling Green, Ky., wrote:

 

"The restored Superdome is an ugly concrete monument plopped down

between interstate highway loops. It reflects the difference in the

classes in New Orleans.

 

"When it was convenient, the poor were inhumanely herded there to

await rescue. Now, the Superdome is ready for business, but the poor

will not be welcome because they don't have the money for admission or

they have been relocated to another city."

 

Ira Lacher of Des Moines, Iowa, wrote:

 

"How many of the thousands of displaced New Orleanians could have

rebuilt their homes with the $185 million that was squandered on

restoring the Superdome for the use of overpaid professional

athletes?"

 

And Donald and Anna Mulligan of Upper Black Eddy, Pa., weighed in:

 

"Very few hospitals and schools have opened in the city. And most

business owners are still out of luck. But the city says, 'Let the

games begin.'

 

"As we've always said, when you have a city that prides itself on

booze, food, gambling and parades, what can we expect?

 

"May God help us all."

 

All righty then. Thank you, America, for your comments. Now, before I

respond, let me pause here while you, the reader, go refill your

coffee cup. Or your big glass of bourbon or while you take a break

from the blackjack table or between lap dances or while you rest

between bites of an overstuffed alligator and hogshead cheese po-boy.

 

Where to begin? They don't give me enough space in the paper to say

all I want to say, but here we go.

 

Let's start with this: If we did not open the Superdome for Saints

games, presumably we could not then open it for the Bayou Classic, the

Sugar Bowl, Tulane football, the state high school football

championships, the Essence Music Festival, rock concerts, religious

revivals, car shows, home and garden shows, or anything else that

happens there in the course of a normal year and which generates

massive spending, jobs and activity in the community.

 

No Super Bowls, no NCAA championships and no chance at the national

political conventions. And, worst of all, no monster trucks.

 

And I'm guessing those opposed to repairing and renovating the Dome

for $185 million wouldn't buy into the concept of building a new

stadium from scratch for about five times that amount. And therefore

the logical extension is that all of the above events be moved to

Houston, Atlanta or somewhere else and Tulane can just play their

games at Muss Bertolino Stadium in Kenner and this community can just

muddle along without the perverse spectacle of "games" in a building

that housed sorrow and despair.

 

The Saints? Send them to San Antonio. The Sugar Bowl? Please, don't

trifle around while there is still garbage to be picked up.

 

The arguments posited in USA Today seem to suggest that there be no

compartmentalization of funding for recovery. In other words, that

repairing the Dome prevents homes being rebuilt in the 9th Ward. Or

that patching potholes on Bourbon Street is keeping hospitals from

opening. Or that reopening the Aquarium of the Americas -- or doing

anything with federal dollars that rebuilds our economic engines

rather than homes -- keeps people homeless.

 

Pardon my plagiarism, but that is arrant dreck.

 

That people were "herded" into the Dome during Katrina is an

interesting word choice. Here's some numbers for you provided by the

Dome's administrative office:

 

Prior to the levees breaking and the water pouring into the city,

there were approximately 10,000 evacuees inside the Dome. After the

flood waters rose and trapped a population across the region, 20,000

more were delivered to the Dome by air and boat and bus.

 

I ask you -- and those 20,000 people: Better to be at the Dome or

trapped on your roof or in your attic for those four days?

 

The fact is, the Dome, for all its squalor and misery, saved lives. It

wasn't Abu Ghraib. The toilets didn't flush and there was no cold

drinking water and not enough medicine, but toilets didn't flush

anywhere and there was no ice or medicine anywhere and it's crazy to

think that only folks who were at the Dome or the Convention Center

have a lock on the misery that befell the Gulf Coast in early

September 2005.

 

Everyone's got a story in this town, in this region, and not one I've

heard is a day at the park.

 

While we're at it, let me toss this gasoline on the fire, a snippet

from an editorial in the current issue of The Nation:

 

"The reality of refugee apartheid is hardly a memory. The game was

held hostage to the awkward fact that the folks starring in ESPN's

video montages of last year's 'cesspool' were almost entirely black

and the football fans in the stands were overwhelmingly white. But

recognizing this would contradict the infomercial for the new Big Easy

that was designed to appeal to the typical family, which finds gumbo

too spicy and thinks of soul as something consumed with tartar sauce."

 

A guy named Dave Zirin wrote this; another guy who wasn't there

telling me how white it was. Zirin also took umbrage with U2 and Green

Day playing instead of the Neville or Marsalis families.

 

Well, I would have liked that, too, but guess what? The Neville

Brothers won't play in New Orleans. And the Marsalises? I don't know,

except that I saw Branford on the sidelines joshing around with Spike

Lee, whose enthusiasm for the evening was palpable, so add his name to

the roster of folks who just don't get it.

 

Not to suggest that Zirin is a conspiracy theorist or anything, but he

also said ESPN blocked out the live sound from the Dome and played

fake cheers on the air when former President Bush was introduced

because the sound of booing was so resounding in the Dome and, again

-- why are people who weren't there talking about things that didn't

happen?

 

That is utter nonsense.

 

Why are we having this discussion still? Why are people from other

places spending so much effort to tell us that, as a community, we are

wrong, misguided, amoral and racist? Why are they making things up?

 

I mean, I can't really fathom how to craft a sensible response to a

black man from Omaha who was offended by the appearance of U2. I mean,

is this really an issue?

 

No African-Americans on the Saints roster or in Southern University's

band or in the attendant media or Dome employees or security staffs or

Irma Thomas or Allen Toussaint or the first responders who were

honored or African-American season-ticket holders chose to boycott the

game and maybe that's because they don't get it.

 

If there weren't thousands and thousands of black folks in the seats

Monday night, then I am blind. And it might be worth noting -- just

because I'm feeling ornery -- that when you incorporate surrounding

parishes and trace a map from southern Mississippi up through central

Louisiana, the demographic makeup of the Saints potential fan base is

not an African-American majority.

 

In fact, it's not even close -- but acknowledging this would weaken

the demagogic arguments of outsiders who keep hammering home just what

a cesspool of humanity we've turned out to be here in south Louisiana.

Human dreck. Unworthy.

 

Let me ask you something, Omaha: If you get your ass kicked by a

tornado, are you going to tell the College World Series to permanently

relocate somewhere else so you can get your priorities in order?

 

Hey, Bowling Green: If Louisville or Lexington gets whacked with a

dirty bomb and has to rebuild from scratch, where will the Kentucky

Derby and Wildcats basketball fit into the recovery? Disposable

entities, last on the list?

 

Hey, Upper Black Eddy, Pa. . . . oh, never mind.

 

I called the editorial page editor of USA Today to ask if he thought

those letters were representative of American thought on the matter

but he didn't return my call.

 

Unlike some of that newspaper's correspondents, I don't speak for

black people. And I don't speak for other white people. I speak for me

and I'll take the grenade on this one if my priorities are so

misplaced as to think that the opening of the Dome was, above all

else, an enormous boost to our economy -- to say nothing of our

spirits.

 

But then again, maybe I'm just fat, lazy, drunk and stupid and don't

get it and never will.

 

Just throw me something, mister, and I'll be content to mind my own

business and ignore all the suffering around me while I wave my foam

finger in the air and scream into America's living rooms: "Who dat

say?"

 

Me dat say. Dat's who.

 

Very respectfully,

 

PH2 (SW) Kurt Eischen

 

COMNAVRESFORCOM Public Affairs Staff (N00P)

 

New Orleans, LA

 

Tel: 504-678-6089 DSN: 678-1241

 

Fax: 504-678-5049 DSN Fax: 678-5049

 

E-mail: kurt.eischen@navy.mil

 

"A flute with no holes is not a flute, but a doughnut with no holes

is a Danish"