New Orleans Saints Aim to Imitate The Arizona Cardinals
The 2009 Superbowl was contested by team making their first appearance in the big event. The Arizona Cardinals ended their mediocre record since joining the NFL, leaving just five franchises never to have played in American Football’s biggest game.
That figure could be down to four if the New Orleans Saints continue their current form. Where he Cardinals were shock finalists who came from under the radar after scraping into the play offs, the Saints are making a big statement of intent.
They are one of two unbeaten teams in the NFL- if they win their next contest the team will have won as many games ( eight) as they achieved in the whole of last season. The current schedule is a sixteen game season, so they will have reached the halfway mark undefeated.
The Saints are not scheduled to meet the NFL’s other unbeaten outfit, the Indianapolis Colts, who are leading the pack in the AFC Conference. To have two teams with perfect records at the midpoint is unusual – the chances of both staying that way though are miniscule.
The have only been two unbeaten regular seasons since the current NFL structure was set up- the Miami Dolphins in 1972 and the New England Patriots in 2007. Only the Patriots have done it in the extended sixteen game season.
New Orleans were an expansion team in 1967 but it was two decades before the hapless Saints were able to post a winning season. They were so bad for so long that their long suffering supporters christened them the ‘Aints’. Louisiana gridiron fans had little to cheer for except the famous Morten Anderson- the NFL’s greatest kicker. The fact that a kicker was the franchise’s star player says it all.
That’s no longer the case since Drew Brees blew into town. The quarterback is a genuine superstar elected to the Pro Bowl three times. In 2008 he fell just fifteen yards short of the season passing record held by the legendary Dan Marino.
He went into the 2009 campaign by throwing an amazing six touchdown passes against the Detroit Lions and he’s smashed just about all the offensive record for the Saints franchise in just three and a half seasons.
Remarkably New Orleans are performing brilliantly this season, despite the fact that in 2008 they didn’t have single player in the Pro Bowl. Like the Cardinals, they are thriving on underdog status and attracting support from uncommitted fans around the country.
This season’s effort hasn’t come completely out of the blue as the team did each the NFC Championship game in the 2006 season. However, that was only the second time the franchise had won a play-off game.
These days the Louisiana Superdome is sold out after many years when the team struggled to inspire the city’s population. Loyal Saints fans are beginning to wonder if this just might be their year.
Odds for the NFL can be found here.
If you enjoyed this post then try these:
- Saints Triumph as the Titans Plummet to Horrific Defeat
- Colts and Saints Hope to Continue Undefeated Run
- So will the Cardinals make the SuperBowl?
- Tom Brady back on Field, Leads Pats to Victory
- Then There Were Two
“These days the Louisiana Superdome is sold out after many years when the team struggled to inspire the city’s population.”
What the heck are you talking about? Historically, the Saints have one of the most supportive and loyal fanbases in the NFL. Go back and check: even in the 1960’s and 1970’s, with terrible teams, they still led the league in attendance.