Are Saints Fans Jaded?

Are Saints fans jaded?

Moments after the Saints thrilling victory over the Tampa Bay Bucs, Facebook and Twitter blew up with Saints fans DISAPPOINTED in how the Saints won the game, feeling bad about winning ugly. Yes there was the obligatory “WE DAT!”s and “Geaux Saints” posts from the soccer mom diehards, but the “boy we got away with one” or “we didn’t deserve that one” comments outnumbered them.

Monday call in shows were worse, the general mood of callers was of a Saints defeat. Some talk show hosts expressed their “concern” that yes, while the Saints did win the game, their poor play left much to be desired.

Balderdash!

Let me get this straight. The Saints went into hostile territory to play a division rival. A rival who a week earlier snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. A rival who, in only week 2, had to call a “players only” meeting feeling their backs, already, were against the wall. A rival so determined not to go 0-2, discipline and sportsmanship was tossed aside.  

And win?!

And we wonder why coaches get testy.

Sure, Drew Brees made a couple of poor decisions. OK, the OL had its problems.  And yes, Sean Payton is obsessed with making a player out of Mark Ingram.  But the Saints didn’t deserve to win?

Let’s take a trip down Saints memory lane. 

In 1990, week one of the NFL season, the Saints played the back to back Super Bowl champion San Francisco 49ers on Monday Night Football. The Saints were on the cusp of victory. The incomparable Joe Montana was sacked six times.  Perennial all-pro RB Roger Craig was held to 23 yards on 12 carries. The greatest NFL player of all time (as elected by an NFL Network poll) Jerry Rice had a grand total of one catch for 6 yards.  The Saints took a late 12-10 lead on a Morten Anderson 32 yard FG. Know what happened next?  That beaten down 49er offense of Montana and Rice connected on a 3^rd down 20 yard heartbreaker that turned a would be desperation 58 yard FG prayer into a 38 yard chip shot game winner. They made the necessary plays at the right time to win the game.

The 49ers finished that season 14-2, the Saints were 8-8. Do you think the 49ers cared they squeaked by a highly motivated inferior opponent, early in the season at their ballpark?

By all rights, the 49ers had no business winning that game.

By all rights, the Saints had every business winning the Bucs game.

The Saints outgained Tampa in total yardage 371-273, held QB Josh Freeman to 9/22 passing for 113 yards and a pic, a sack fumble and held the Bucs scoreless defensively. But for those poor decisions by Brees and a Tampa goal line stand, this was a Saints blowout.

Had the Saints lost this game, it would’ve been a giveaway.

The Saints inglorious past is littered with heartbreaking defeat after heartbreaking defeat.  Wins that were seemingly in the bag, teams beaten, tantalizing, only to be ripped away by a Hail Mary, a punt return or hyper-conservative coaching.

So come on, Saints fans, don’t be jaded. I, for one loved that ugly victory over Tampa. I’d take 17 more just like it.