Pro Football Historian (PFH) is a blog page written by Flint Given. Pro Football Historian or PFH is a page to inform people on prior NFL events that people might not know about. Learning about teams from the 1920s or even the first few NFL World Championships in the 1930s fascinates me. It's these kinds of events that I want to discuss in this blog. Hopefully you are interested and will continue to check up on my blogs.
Monday, February 28, 2022
Who Were The Elwood American Legion?
Friday, February 25, 2022
Who Were The Detroit Maroons?
Thursday, February 24, 2022
History Of The Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons had little success at first and did not qualify for the postseason playoffs until 1978. They were NFC West champions in 1980 and 1998, and in 1998 played in the Super Bowl XXXIII match, losing to Denver Broncos.
The decade of the 2000s featured star player Michael Vick and was marred by criminal charges against him. Falcons finished top of NFC South in 2004, 2010 and 2012, and reached Super Bowl LI in 2016, where they lost to the New England Patriots.
On June 30, 1965, the Atlanta Falcons were born. The NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle granted ownership to Rankin M. Smith, Sr., the executive vice president of Life Insurance Company of Georgia. The name Falcons was suggested by Julia Elliott (1909–1990), a high school teacher from Griffin, Georgia who won a contest in 1965. Though 40 other contestants had also suggested the name, Elliott wrote in an essay, "The falcon is proud and dignified, with great courage and fight. It never drops its prey. It's deadly and has a great sporting tradition." Among the many suggested names were the Knights, Bombers, Rebels, Crackers, Confederates, Thrashers (which would later be the name of the city's second NHL team), Lancers, Firebirds, Fireballs, and Thunderbirds."
Rankin M. Smith Sr. would draft Tommy Nobis, LB, University of Texas with the first pick of the 1966 NFL Draft held on November 27, 1965, making him the first ever Falcon. Early speculation on the team's first head coach focused on a host of tutors: former University of Oklahoma head coach Bud Wilkinson; University of Arkansas head coach Frank Broyles; former San Francisco 49ers head coach Red Hickey; and former Cleveland Browns head coach Paul Brown; and Green Bay Packers head coach Vince Lombardi were all considered or courted. In the end, Smith selected Lombardi's assistant Norb Hecker on January 26, 1966.
The Atlanta Falcons began their first NFL season in the NFL Eastern Conference, playing a "swing schedule", consisting of playing every other team once, in order to make up for the disparity of an odd number of teams. Their first game (preseason) was on August 1, 1966 against the Philadelphia Eagles before a crowd of 26,072 at the Atlanta Stadium. The Falcons would lose against the Eagles and would lose their first nine games in the regular season before finally getting their first franchise win on the road against the New York Giants, 27–16. Former Giant Ernie Wheelwright scored two touchdowns receiving and ran for 51 more yards as QB Randy Johnson hit for a trio of TD's. Their first ever home victory was against the St. Louis Cardinals, 16–10 to a crowd of 57,169. The Falcons ended their inaugural season at 3-11, yet Nobis won the NFL Rookie of the Year Award and became the first Falcon named to the Pro Bowl.
The 1967 season was no better as the Falcons exited their second season with only 1 win and a 1–12–1 season. After a dreadful 0–3 start in the 1968 season, Norm Van Brocklin, formerly head coach of the Minnesota Vikings, was named to replace Norb Hecker on October 1. Two weeks later, his Falcons beat New York 24–21, in the first meeting between Van Brocklin and his former QB, Fran Tarkenton.
Despite the win, the Falcons would still finish with an abysmal 2–12 record. Although the first three seasons for the Falcons were dreadful, the Falcons turned things around in 1969. On September 21, the Falcons won their first season opener ever, beating the San Francisco 49ers, 24–12, before their home fans. Rookie tight end Jim Mitchell scored two TDs and the Falcons set a team record with 229 yards rushing. On December 7, Harmon Wages threw for a TD in the first quarter (16 yards to Paul Flatley), caught a pass for a TD in the second quarter (88 yards), and then ran for a TD in the fourth quarter (66 yards) in a 45–17 rout of the Saints. The Falcons finished the year with a vastly improved 6–8 record.
The Falcons would have their first Monday Night Football game in Atlanta during the 1970 season on November 30, when they played the Miami Dolphins. The Falcons would end up losing 20–7 in front of an audience of 30 million TV viewers. The Falcons would end up going 4–8–2 for the 1970 season. Atlanta would have their first winning season in 1971. On November 22, the Falcons won their first nationally televised game with a 28–21 triumph over the Green Bay Packers in Atlanta. The Falcons would enter their final game of the season in New Orleans on December 19 with a 6–6–1 record, needing to beat the Saints to have their first winning record. The Falcons beat New Orleans, 24–20, with 40 seconds left in the game. The victory gave the Falcons a then-franchise best 7–6–1 record. In 1972, the Falcons finished 7-7.
The Falcons opened the 1973 season against New Orleans, smashing 35 team records en route to a 62–7 victory on September 16. Despite opening the season with a huge win, the Falcons would only manage to score 15 total points in the next 3 games, all of which they lost. The Falcons came back and won 7 in a row, including a victory against the unbeaten Vikings, 20–14, on November 19 before a national television audience. Dave Hampton once again barely missed the 1,000 yard mark for the season. The Falcons finished 9–5 for their best record ever up to that point, but lost out on the playoffs by one game.
1974 saw the Falcons collapse to a 3–11 record.
In 1975, with the first pick in the NFL Draft, the club selected quarterback Steve Bartkowski of the University of California. The Falcons finished the year with a 4–10 record, but Dave Hampton finally broke the 1,000 yard mark (1,002) in a 22–13 loss to the Green Bay Packers. Bartkowski would continue to struggle in 1976, throwing only 2 TDs while being picked off 9 times. Bartkowski was then replaced by Kim McQuilken, who fared no better, throwing 9 interceptions in three games. Because of the abysmal season, Coach Marion Campbell resigned. Pat Peppler would replace him, and the Falcons would go on to finish at 4-10. In 1977, former Redskins and Cowboys quarterback Eddie LeBaron was named General Manager, and Leeman Bennett became the fifth head coach in club history. The following season, the Falcons' "Grits Blitz" defense (led by defensive coordinator Jerry Glanville) set an NFL record for the fewest points allowed in a 14-game season, with 129. They also set the record for the fewest points allowed per game for the year with 9.2 (a mark that not even the 1985 Bears defense could match). However, due to the team's lackluster offense (which averaged less than 13 points per game), the Falcons finished with a 7–7 record.
Led by a strong defense, the team finished the 1978 season with a 9–7 record, qualifying for the postseason for the first time in franchise history. The season featured several dramatic comebacks, including two victories over rival New Orleans by identical 20-17 scores. In the playoffs, they met a team that didn't make the playoffs in a number of years, the Philadelphia Eagles. Despite falling behind 13–0, the Bartkowski-led Falcons came back to take a 14–13 lead, which held up after a chip-shot Eagles FG attempt sailed wide right with seconds remaining. Their next encounter would be with the heavily favored Dallas Cowboys. Despite knocking out Hall of Fame quarterback Roger Staubach and taking a 20–13 lead into halftime, the offense would only collect 85 net yards in the second half as the Cowboys, led by backup QB Danny White, came back and won 27–20. White would come back to haunt the Falcons yet again two years later.
The Falcons were unable to carry the previous year's momentum into 1979, though, finishing 6-10. Records were broken for the season by William Andrews with 1,023 rushing yards, by Wallace Francis with 74 catches for 1,013 receiving yards, and by Steve Bartkowski with 2,502 passing yards (203 completions out of 379 attempts).
1980 was a highly successful season for the Falcons, as they finished 12–4. While the season started at 3–3, Atlanta went on to record an amazing 9-game winning streak. Bartkowski threw for three touchdowns on December 14 as the Falcons defeated the San Francisco 49ers, 35–10 to win their first-ever NFC West division title. In the Divisional Playoffs, the Falcons lost to the Dallas Cowboys, 30–27, as the Cowboys rallied for 20 points in Atlanta before a then-record crowd of 59,793, including a game-winning touchdown pass from Danny White to Drew Pearson with less than a minute to play. This loss is widely cited as one of the most devastating losses in Atlanta sports history (even more so than the Super Bowl loss to Denver in 1998), as many fans and the team itself took almost a decade to recover.
The 1981 season was plagued with injuries as the Falcons lost 3 key starters for the season. The Falcons would lose six games by less than a touchdown and finish with a 7–9 record.
In the strike-shortened 1982 season, the Falcons finished 5-4 and returned to the (expanded) playoffs, but lost to Minnesota 30–24 in the first round.
In 1983, the Falcons finished 7–9 and missed the playoffs.
In 1984, the Falcons suffered a huge loss when RB William Andrews suffered a career-threatening knee injury on the last day of training camp. He would be sidelined for 2 years before returning for the 1986 season, only to retire soon after. Gerald Riggs would replace him in the lineup, as Riggs was a bright spot in amassing over 3,000 yards and 23 touchdowns in those two seasons. However, the Falcons would finish with back-to-back 4-12 records for the 1984 and 1985 campaigns. After an average 7-8-1 season in 1986, where David Archer succeeded Steve Bartkowski as starting QB, head coach Dan Henning was dumped and replaced by Marion Campbell.
In 1987, Campbell did nothing to reverse the Falcons losing and they would finish their season with a 3–12 record, including losing 9 out of their last 10 games upon their return from the strike of that season. The 1988 season would also be awful as the Falcons would finish with a 5–11 season.
1988 would start with Atlanta drafting first overall, a pick they used to select Auburn linebacker Aundray Bruce, most notably bypassing perennial All-Pro DE Neil Smith, who went second overall to the Kansas City Chiefs. Settling in with 1987's first round selection Chris Miller as their new starting QB, Atlanta proceeded to lose seven out of their first 8 games. The Falcons were able to salvage their season somewhat with a stretch where they won 4 games out of 5, including a road win over the playoff-bound Eagles, but lost their last 3 games to finish 5–11 for the season.
In 1989, Atlanta's top draft pick (fifth overall) was a flamboyant All-American defensive back from Florida State named Deion Sanders who was as good at cultivating his "Prime Time" image as he was at intercepting passes and returning kicks. In drafting Sanders, it gave the Falcons something they had been sorely lacking since the departure of Bartkowski and the diminishing role of Gerald Riggs; an immediately identifiable franchise player. However, Sanders and the Falcons ended up in a contract dispute that lasted until the week leading up to the first game of the regular season as Sanders, among other things, used his standing as a prospect as an outfielder for the New York Yankees as negotiating leverage. Upon finally agreeing to terms, Sanders only practiced the Friday before the game and participated in the Saturday walk-through, put on the football pads for the first time in seven months in the season opener vs. the Rams and returned a punt 68 yards for a touchdown, making him the only modern-day athlete to hit a home run and score a touchdown in the same week (he had only left the Yankees a few days prior). However, the Falcons were unable to win many games, and in response Coach Marion Campbell resigned and replaced by Jim Hanifan on an interim basis. The Falcons would go on to a 3–13 record.Their next head coach would be recently fired former Oilers coach Jerry Glanville, whose eccentric personality gave the Falcons another piece of identity. Coinciding with Glanville's hiring and his "Man in black" image, the Falcons altered their uniforms from their traditional red jersey/red helmet uniform to an all-black motif which would remain in place until 2003.
The Falcons would start the 1990 season with an impressive win against Glanville's former team, the Houston Oilers, 47–27. The Falcons began the season 2–2, but their season took a turn for the worse after losing a 45–35 shootout to the defending champion 49ers (who they had played tough on the road a few weeks prior). Joe Montana torched the blitz-happy Falcons for 6 touchdown passes, and after that game Atlanta would lose 8 out of their next 9, pausing only to beat Glanville's former division rival Cincinnati before winning their last two games to finish at 5–11.
On October 28, Atlanta-based Turner Network Television, a subsidiary of the Turner Broadcasting System, did its first NFL game not only involving the Falcons, but also played in Atlanta. Mentions were made of these connections during the broadcast as the Falcons beat the Cincinnati Bengals 38–17.
The 1991 team, also known as the "2 Legit 2 Quit" Falcons, as they appropriated the song by MC Hammer as their team theme song after several Falcons appeared in the accompanying music video. Hammer himself would make several appearances on the Falcons sideline during the season. Atlanta made the playoffs as the sixth seed with a 10–6 record, snapping a streak of eight consecutive losing seasons. Notable personalities on this team were CB Deion Sanders, WR Andre Rison, and CB Tim McKyer, a talented but brash player who had quickly worn out his welcome with the Miami Dolphins the year prior but emerged as a leader for Atlanta. Also new to the team was QB Brett Favre, drafted from Southern Mississippi during the off-season. Atlanta tied the San Francisco 49ers with a 10–6 record, but made it over them due to a Billy Joe Tolliver hail mary earlier that year. The Falcons made it to the second round of the playoffs by beating the New Orleans Saints at the Louisiana Superdome (27–20). The next week, they lost a rain-soaked blowout to the eventual Super Bowl champion Washington Redskins 24–7.
In 1992, the Falcons would move from the Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium to the Georgia Dome and finish with a 6–10 record. In the off-season, the team traded Brett Favre to the Green Bay Packers in exchange for a first-round draft pick.
For the 1993 season, Deion Sanders continued to be the star player of the Atlanta Falcons, picking off 7 passes while shutting down some of the league's top receivers. Despite Sanders's amazing performance, the Falcons finished once again with a 6–10 record. After the season coach Jerry Glanville was fired and replaced by June Jones.
TNT did a game from the Georgia Dome for the first time on October 17, as the Falcons beat the Rams 30–24.
The Falcons would lose Sanders to free agency in 1994, and they would also acquire QB Jeff George, who had managed to wear out his welcome in Indianapolis after being four seasons removed from being picked #1 overall in 1990. With these changes, the Falcons mildly improved to a 7–9 record.
The next year, with Jones's run and shoot offense firmly in place, George had a then-career season. In the final game of the 1995 season, the Falcons come from behind to beat the San Francisco 49ers 28–27 to secure a playoff spot. They would lose to the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field 37–20.
The Falcons would follow up their playoff appearance with a 3–13 record in 1996, in a season best-remembered for an argument caught on camera during a Sunday Night game between George and June Jones. George was benched after the incident, and both were gone by the end of the season.
Jones would be replaced by former Broncos Coach (and Georgia native) Dan Reeves, who would lead the Falcons to a 7–9 record in 1997. Rankin Smith died at the age of 72 on the eve of a Sunday Night game against Carolina. This game aired on TNT, part of Time Warner's Turner Broadcasting System - which is based in Atlanta. In fact, this is the last NFL game aired on TNT to date.
In the greatest season in franchise history to date, the 1998 Falcons shocked the league by posting a 14–2 regular season record and qualifying for Super Bowl XXXIII by upsetting the heavily favored Minnesota Vikings in the NFC Championship Game.
Featuring a balanced offense led by Pro Bowlers Chris Chandler and Jamal Anderson, as well as an aggressive and opportunistic defense, the Falcons sprinted to a promising 6–2 start. To that point, however, the team's success was generally regarded as a fluke, given the franchise's history, a weak schedule, and blowout road losses to two contending teams, the San Francisco 49ers and the New York Jets.
On November 8, 1998, the NFL finally began to take notice when the Falcons traveled to Foxboro Stadium and defeated the Patriots 41–10, at the same time snapping a streak of 22 consecutive losses at cold-weather sites in November and December that had dated back to 1982. It was in this game that TE O. J. Santiago introduced the famous "Dirty Bird" dance that became the team's trademark endzone celebration for that season.
The win at Foxboro significantly raised the team's profile before a week 11 confrontation with the hated San Francisco 49ers, from whom the Falcons had received some of their most embarrassing losses to throughout their history. Atlanta earned a 31–19 win over the 49ers before a packed Georgia Dome.
The Falcons won their final six games of the season, including a 24–17 week 16 triumph over the Detroit Lions which clinched Atlanta's first division title since 1980.
A major distraction hit Atlanta the day after a road win over the Saints, in the form of a quadruple-bypass heart surgery that their head coach Dan Reeves required. Assistant coach and former Rams head coach Rich Brooks would temporarily handle head coaching duties in Reeves's absence, winning both of their last two games of the season.
The Falcons entered the 1998 playoffs as the #2 seed in the NFC, becoming the first 14-win team not to receive home field advantage throughout the playoffs. However, they did receive a bye into the divisional round.
Three weeks after his surgery and two weeks after being re-admitted to the hospital due to an accelerated heartbeat, Reeves returned to work full-time and would return to the sideline for their division-round showdown with the 49ers, who were coming off of a comeback victory over the Green Bay Packers. The Dome was again filled to capacity as the Falcons charged to a 10-0 first half lead and held on for 20–18 victory, advancing to their first NFC Championship game in franchise history.
Next was a journey to the Metrodome and a January 17 date with the league's most feared offense, the top-seeded Minnesota Vikings. The then highest scoring team in NFL history, the 1998 Vikings wielded an explosive, record-setting passing attack powered by Randall Cunningham and Minnesota's deadly trio of wide receivers Randy Moss, Jake Reed, and Cris Carter, and finished the regular season 15–1. Despite Atlanta's impressive 14-2 regular season, they were heavy underdogs heading into Minnesota, with few pundits believing they could keep the game close, and virtually none predicting a win.
The Falcons' offense prepared all week for the deafening cacophony of the Metrodome, and promptly opened the game with a touchdown drive that quieted the crowd and propelled the team to an early 7–0 lead. However, the Vikings responded with a 5-play, 80-yard touchdown drive of their own. Minnesota would proceed to tally 20 unanswered points in the first half, pressing the Falcons against the ropes with a 20–7 lead.
The pivotal moment in the contest came with 1:17 left in the first half. The Vikings had just taken over from a punt on their own 18. High on a dominating first half, they chose to throw the ball in an attempt to put the game away before halftime. Opting for three consecutive downfield passes, Minnesota was dumbfounded when DE Chuck Smith managed to beat Todd Steussie on 3rd down to force a Randall Cunningham fumble. The Falcons recovered on the Minnesota 14 and cashed in with a Chandler to Terance Mathis touchdown on the next play, mending the rift to a more manageable 20–14 going into the break.
In the second half and with the momentum completely reversed the Falcons scored the only points of the 3rd quarter on a 27-yard Morten Andersen field goal to make the score 20–17. The Vikings responded, converting three third downs in a 15-play, 82-yard drive, and posting their only points of the second half on a Cunningham to Matthew Hatchette touchdown pass 1:19 into the fourth quarter. The Falcons countered with another field goal set up by a 70-yard strike from Chandler to Mathis. The score was 27–20 with 11:02 remaining.
From here, the teams exchanged possessions twice. The clock running dry, Minnesota managed to break through on what appeared to be a game-clinching 55-yard drive to the Atlanta 21. Stopped on 3rd down with 2:07 left, the Vikings summoned Pro Bowl kicker Gary Anderson, who had made NFL history that season by converting all 39 of his field goal attempts. However, Anderson's 38 yard boot hooked wide left which left the Falcons still alive and the Vikings and the Metrodome faithful perplexed by a foreboding change in momentum. That momentum would spark the most important drive in franchise history.
The Falcons had the ball and two minutes to span the 71 yards separating them from an improbable comeback. In perhaps the finest moment of his injury-prone and inconsistent career, QB Chris Chandler directed an 8 play drive, concluding with a 16-yard touchdown pass to Terance Mathis with 49 seconds left. Nonplussed, and squeamish from the disaster at the end of the first half, Minnesota coach Dennis Green then chose to run out the clock and try his chances in overtime.
The crowd, which had been collectively eviscerated by the Anderson miss and Chandler's subsequent heroics, quickly took heart as the Vikings won the overtime coin flip. The celebrated Minnesota offense would decide its own fate.
The game became a struggle for field position in the early part of the period, as both teams failed to break the 50-yard line on their initial possession. The Vikings' second possession stalled at their own 39, a 52-yard Mitch Berger punt subsequently pinning Atlanta deep in its own territory.
Beached at their own 9, the Falcon offense mounted a final frantic charge. Led once again by the clutch passing of Chandler, Atlanta surged 70 yards in a breakneck 10-play drive, encountering only a single 3rd down which came on the final play of the game. After centering the ball on a 2-yard Jamal Anderson rush to the Minnesota 21, the Falcons tapped kicker Morten Andersen for the game-winning field goal. The Metrodome waxed breathless as Andersen split the uprights from 38 yards, vaulting the Falcons to the win and sending them to the Super Bowl for the first time in franchise history. It also set off one of the biggest celebrations in the city's history as thousands packed Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport upon their arrival in town later that night and thousands more swamped the highways during their convoy to team headquarters.
In the two-week interval between the NFC Championship game and Super Bowl XXXIII, media attention was focused mostly upon the Falcons' opponent, the Denver Broncos, their retiring quarterback John Elway, and former Denver coach Dan Reeves's relationship with Elway, which was at times contentious during his tenure as Broncos coach. Falcons Pro Bowl CB Ray Buchanan also jokingly guaranteed a win to a reporter, with this statement being blown out of proportion by the overzealous media. Days later, Buchanan attracted further attention when he greeted the media wearing a dog collar to represent the Falcons' status as 8+1⁄2 point underdogs.
The biggest story for either team broke the night before the game. Falcons Pro Bowl free safety Eugene Robinson, who had just that morning received the Bart Starr Award for his "high moral character," was arrested for soliciting an undercover police officer $40 for oral sex on Biscayne Boulevard in downtown Miami. Robinson would play in the game, but he would turn out to be a liability, blowing a coverage on a key play in the first half, and missing a tackle that resulted in a fourth-quarter touchdown.
Super Bowl XXXIII was an exciting and novel event for Falcons fans and players, but was a disappointing end to what had theretofore been a dream season. The Falcons offense moved the ball consistently on the Broncos throughout the game, but had several mishaps within Denver territory, allowing the Broncos offense to deliberately pick apart the Atlanta defense and pull away to a 17–3 lead in the first half. A Morten Andersen field goal brought the Falcons within 17–6 going into halftime, but the second half was punctuated by two key interceptions thrown by the normally surehanded Chris Chandler, which allowed the Broncos to pull away to a 31–6 lead. By the end of the game, the Falcons had driven within the Broncos 30-yard line seven times, yet had only managed to score 13 points with 5 turnovers. The Falcons scored two late touchdowns, one on a 94-yard kickoff return by Tim Dwight, to make the score a more respectable final of 34–19.
Despite the embarrassing finish, the 1998 Falcons are the most celebrated team in franchise history. That year, the Falcons set franchise records for wins (14) and points scored (442), with RB Jamal Anderson breaking the NFL record for carries in a season (410) and the team record for rushing yards (1,846). The team also sent six players to the Pro Bowl, the second highest total in team history. Atlanta was also the first dome team in league history to make the Super Bowl.
After the adrenaline rush of the 1998 season, Atlanta football would cool down when RB Jamal Anderson endured an early season-ending torn ACL injury. The team tumbled to a 5–11 record in 1999, and an even worse 4–12 record in 2000.
In the 2001 NFL Draft, the Falcons orchestrated a trade with the San Diego Chargers to attain the #1 overall draft pick with which they chose the electrifying sophomore quarterback Michael Vick out of Virginia Tech. The Chargers used the #5 pick to acquire RB LaDainian Tomlinson. The Falcons chose to keep veteran QB Chris Chandler as the starter to allow Vick some time to learn the system. The team finished the year with a 7–9 record and missed the playoffs.
Starting the 2002 season, the Falcons became part of the NFC South division, after 30+ seasons in the geographically inaccurate NFC West.
Vick became the full-time starting quarterback in 2002. That year, the Falcons recorded an NFL-best eight-game unbeaten streak (7–0–1). During the streak, they recorded huge victories over division rivals New Orleans, who started the year 6–1, and the Carolina Panthers (two shutout victories, 30–0 and 41–0). They also overcame a 17-point deficit in the fourth quarter to force a 34–34 tie with the Pittsburgh Steelers en route to a 9–6–1 record and a trip to the playoffs. Also during the season, Vick set records for both the most rushing yards in a game by a quarterback and longest run by a quarterback, showing that the skills he had shown in his college career at Virginia Tech were not a fake. They immediately scored a major upset on January 4, 2003 by becoming the first road team in NFL history to defeat the Green Bay Packers in a playoff game at Lambeau Field, winning 27–7. Their season would end the next week in Philadelphia as the Eagles won, 20–6.
As things were looking up, disaster struck swiftly in the next season. During the 2003 preseason against Baltimore, Vick broke his leg and was forced to miss the first twelve games of the season. Without him, the Falcons were crippled and they suffered through a 5–11 season, despite Vick going 3–1 as starter at the end of the season. With three games left in the season, coach Dan Reeves was fired and defensive coordinator Wade Phillips was named his replacement on an interim basis. The Falcons drafted Virginia Tech cornerback DeAngelo Hall with the eighth pick in the 2004 NFL Draft.
In 2004, with the Falcons being buoyed by the return of Michael Vick and energized by their new head coach Jim L. Mora, they would go 11–5 and easily win the NFC South. Having a first round bye, the Falcons would face the St. Louis Rams in the Divisional Round, who had shut them out 36–0 the previous year on national television. Buoyed by a team record-324 yards rushing and over 150 punt return yardage by Allen Rossum they advanced to the NFC Championship game by embarrassing the Rams 47–17. However, in their second NFC title game appearance, they were denied another trip to the Super Bowl, as they lost to the Philadelphia Eagles, 27–10. After the season, Vick signed a 10-year, $130 million contract with a $37 million signing bonus—the richest contract in NFL history at the time.
During the 2005 season the Falcons started 6–2, but injuries on defense caused them to finish the second half 2–6. Bright spots included the Falcons ending their Monday Night Football jinx by going 3–0, and on Thursday, November 24, the Falcons played on Thanksgiving Day for the first time in franchise history, beating the Detroit Lions 27–7. On the next-to-last game of the regular season, the Falcons were eliminated from playoff contention with a 27–24 overtime loss against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Falcons finished 8–8 and once again failed to attain back-to-back winning seasons.
The Falcons started this season successfully with two wins against the Carolina Panthers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but lost to the New Orleans Saints on Monday Night Football, giving them a record of 2–1. The next week, the team came back and won their game against the Arizona Cardinals 32–10, with Jerious Norwood, a rookie RB from Mississippi State University, running for over 100 yards and Morten Andersen hitting all 5 of his field goals. Andersen, one of the most prolific kickers in NFL history and a member of the 1998 Super Bowl team, had been re-signed by the club September 19, ending punter Michael Koenen's audition as the sole kicker on the team (Koenen continued to placekick in long-yardage situations).
The next week, the team had a bye and prepared to face the New York Giants. The Falcons would lose to the Giants 27–14. The only bright spot of the game was a 90-yard 3rd-quarter touchdown run by Warrick Dunn, the longest touchdown run in Atlanta Falcons history.
The Atlanta Falcons hoped to bounce back the next week against the Pittsburgh Steelers, and they did so with a huge game. In a shootout rivaling the following week's Indianapolis-Denver game, the Falcons beat the Steelers 41–38 in overtime as Morten Andersen kicked a game-winning 32-yard field goal. Falcons QB Michael Vick had a career-high 4 touchdown passes, including 3 to star TE Alge Crumpler. Both teams combined for 9 touchdown passes and 872 yards of total offense. With the win, the Falcons improved to 4–2.
In week 8, the Falcons defeated the Cincinnati Bengals 29–27. Vick showed that the previous game was no fluke, going 19 of 27 for 291 yards and three touchdowns, as well as scrambling for 55 yards. A third-quarter touchdown pass to third-checkdown receiver, fullback Justin Griffith, chilled defensive coordinators league-wide and thrilled Falcons fans, as Vick demonstrated field awareness, patience, elusiveness, and precision passing under pressure.
The 5–2 Falcons next traveled to Ford Field in Detroit to face the Lions, where they fell to 5–3. The Falcons suffered a similar fate to both the Cleveland Browns and the Baltimore Ravens bringing their record to an even 5–5 on the season. The Falcons suffered another loss to the New Orleans Saints on November 26 (31–13) to cause their record for the season drop to 5–6, but more importantly to let their losing streak continue on to 4 games. The next week they defeated the Washington Redskins in an away game with a score of 24–14. In that game the Falcons were down 14–0 but came back and scored 24 unanswered points to win the game. A 69-yard run for a touchdown by rookie Jerious Norwood helped seal the victory. The next week, the Falcons beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, keeping hopes alive for a playoff berth. However, they then lost their next two games, against the Dallas Cowboys and the Carolina Panthers.
Even with a 7–8 record, the Falcons were not completely eliminated from the playoffs until, in week 17, the New York Giants beat the Washington Redskins. The Falcons' last game was a meaningless loss to a second-string Philadelphia Eagles team, sealing their record for the season at a losing 7–9. The next day (January 1, 2007), the Falcons fired their head coach, Jim L. Mora; he was replaced by Louisville head coach Bobby Petrino on January 7.
The Falcons spent most of the 2007 season trying to overcome the controversy surrounding Vick and his involvement in an illegal dog fighting ring. Under considerable pressure, the NFL barred Vick from attending training camp pending its own investigation into the matter. For all intents and purposes, the Falcons' season effectively ended when Vick was arraigned on federal dog fighting charges on July 26. The terms of his bail barred him from leaving Virginia for any reason before the November 26 trial. With Vick's absence, journeyman quarterbacks Joey Harrington and Byron Leftwich were used to plug the hole at quarterback. Vick pleaded guilty on August 20; on the same day the NFL suspended him indefinitely. The Falcons are trying to recover part of his signing bonus, based on evidence he used it to fund the gambling side of the dog fighting operation. Blank later stated that while he felt Vick should be allowed back into the NFL, he will probably not play another down for the Falcons again.
Petrino had revamped the offense in hopes of making Vick a more complete quarterback. However, with Vick on the sidelines, Petrino's game plan didn't seem to fit on the field or in the locker room, with veteran players Alge Crumpler and DeAngelo Hall voicing their displeasure. Petrino later resigned just 13 games into the season to coach the Arkansas Razorbacks. Petrino resigned the day after Vick was sentenced to 23 months in prison and also a day after Petrino coached the Falcons in a 34–14 loss to the New Orleans Saints on Monday Night Football.
Without Vick, the Falcons appeared to be a rudderless team. They finished their troubled 2007 season with a 44–41 victory over the Seattle Seahawks, ending the year at 4–12. The offseason brought change to the team's front office, as Thomas Dimitroff was hired to replace Rich McKay at the general manager position.
On January 23, 2008, Jacksonville Jaguars defensive coach Mike Smith was named the Falcons' new head coach. Matt Ryan, a quarterback from Boston College, was drafted third overall to be the new face of the franchise. Free agent Michael Turner was also acquired to help in the run game. Defying expectations, the Falcons managed an 11–5 season in 2008 and earned a wild card playoff berth. They did not get beyond that however, as they lost a 24-30 match against the Arizona Cardinals.
In 2009, the Falcons suffered numerous devastating injuries to defensive players and to Turner (ankle) and Ryan (toe). The Week 13 game against Philadelphia saw Michael Vick return to play his former team, in which he scored two touchdowns, one passing and one rushing. Atlanta was very nearly shut out, but in the closing seconds of the game scored a touchdown and brought the final score to 34–7. The following week, the team lost a close match against New Orleans, which mathematically excluded them from the playoffs. Nonetheless, Atlanta managed to win their final three games and end the year with a 9–7 record, the first time in its history the team achieved back-to-back winning seasons.
The Falcons lost their 2010 opener in Pittsburgh before crushing the Cardinals at home in Week 2. Atlanta then played its first divisional match of the season against the defending champion Saints. In a closely fought game, the Falcons beat New Orleans 27–24 with two minutes left in overtime. Then followed a 16–14 win over the struggling 49ers. After games with Cleveland (a 20–10 win) and Philadelphia (a 31–17 loss), they won a key division match against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 9 to claim a lead in the NFC South, putting them at 6–2 at the halfway point of their season. In the 2010 Thursday Night Football opener, the Falcons donned throwback uniforms and defeated the Baltimore Ravens 26–21 in a highly anticipated match-up of 6-2 teams, and the first meeting of the top two quarterback picks of the 2008 draft, in Ryan and Joe Flacco. Ryan set career highs for attempts and completions, going 32 for 50, and clinching the Falcons' first 7–2 record since the 1998 Super Bowl season. The Falcons secured their third straight winning season, a franchise first, with a win over St. Louis (34–17), and a victory in a highly anticipated game with the Green Bay Packers (20–17), which was a close game all the way up to the end, when kicker Matt Bryant sealed the game with a 47-yard field goal with 13 seconds on the clock, bringing the Falcons to an NFC-best 9–2 record. The next week the Falcons defeated their divisional rivals, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 28–24, improving their record to an NFC best 10–2. Week 14 saw the first of two late-season matchups with the struggling Carolina Panthers. The Falcons got up 14-0 early in the game and went on to cruise to a 31–10 victory, raising their record to an NFC-best 11–2. Week 15 took the Falcons to the Northwest against the Seattle Seahawks. After a quick start by the Seahawks, the Falcons took control with a key touchdown pass late in the first half and a fumble recovery for a touchdown on the Seahawks' first possession of the second half to go up 24–10, eventually winning 34–18. The win (followed by a Giants loss) secured a playoff berth for the Falcons with two games left. With only one win needed in the final two games to clinch everything, Week 16 set up a Monday Night showdown with the defending Super Bowl Champion New Orleans Saints. A low-scoring affair ended with the Saints pulling out a 17–14 win. Week 17 brought in the struggling Carolina Panthers and an easy win for the Falcons, 31–10. The victory clinched the NFC South Division title (only their fourth division title in the team's history) and clinching home-field advantage in the playoffs by claiming the number one seed in the NFC. However, their season had a disappointing end, with the Falcons suffering a loss at home in the divisional round of the playoffs to the Green Bay Packers by a margin of 48–21.
In 2011, Atlanta finished 10-6 and earned the fifth seed in the NFC playoffs. The Falcons failed to get out of the first round, however, as the New York Giants defeated them 24–2, with Atlanta's only points coming off of a safety.
In 2012, the Falcons won the NFC South and had the conference's best record at 13–3. Matt Ryan had the best season of his career, throwing for 4,719 yards and 32 touchdowns. Ryan directed an explosive passing attack featuring 1,000-yard receivers Roddy White (1,351 yards) and Julio Jones (1,198 yards), and future Hall of Fame tight end Tony Gonzalez, who led the Falcons with 93 receptions. In the playoffs, Atlanta narrowly defeated the Seattle Seahawks 30–28 in the Divisional round after blowing a 27-7 3rd-quarter lead. The Seahawks took a 28–27 lead with 31 seconds left, but Ryan quickly led the Falcons downfield to set up Matt Bryant's game-winning 49-yard field goal with 8 seconds remaining. Atlanta would go on to host the NFC Championship Game and face the San Francisco 49ers. Just like the week before, the Falcons jumped out to an early lead (17-0) and could not hold onto it. This time, they lost 28–24.
In 2013, Atlanta slipped to a 4–12 record, their first losing season since 2007. Injuries were also the story of the 2013 season. This was Tony Gonzalez' last year in the NFL.
In 2014, Atlanta improved by two games, and thanks to an extremely weak division, remained in playoff contention until the final week of the season, when their divisional rival, the Carolina Panthers, defeated them 34–3. The Falcons' final record that season was 6-10. After the season, Mike Smith was fired and replaced by Dan Quinn.
The 2015 season marked the Falcons' 50th season of play in the NFL. The Falcons got out to a fast start in 2015 with 5 straight victories before losing their first game to archrival New Orleans on the road on Thursday Night Football. They bounced back to defeat Tennessee but then went into a tailspin, losing six straight games before they finally defeated the Jaguars in Week 15. Then in Week 16, they scored a major upset by defeating the Carolina Panthers, who had beaten them 38-0 two weeks before, by the score of 20–13. This spoiled Carolina's chance at a perfect season. Sadly for the Falcons, they were eliminated from playoff contention for the third straight year after the Minnesota Vikings defeated the New York Giants later that day. They finished the regular season with a 20–17 loss at home to archrival New Orleans, giving them a final record of 8-8.
The 2016 season was the Falcons 25th and final season at the Georgia Dome. They finished with an 11–5 record, earning them a first-round bye in the playoffs. Matt Ryan was named NFL MVP after the season. After defeating the Seattle Seahawks in the Divisional Round 36-20 and blowing out the Green Bay Packers 44-21 in the title game, the Falcons advanced to the Super Bowl for the first time in 18 years. Against the 14-2 Patriots, the Falcons started off strong, pulling away with a 28-3 lead nearing the end of the third quarter. However, Tom Brady and the Patriots mounted an incredible comeback, scoring 25 unanswered points to send the game into overtime for the first time in Super Bowl history. The Patriots received the ball in overtime, and drove down the field for the game-winning score, shocking the Falcons as they went home inches from the Lombardi Trophy.
After the Falcons' heartbreaking Super Bowl loss the year before, the Falcons returned in 2017 for a second shot at the Lombardi Trophy. 2017 was also the opening of Mercedes-Benz Stadium, the new home for the Falcons. One of their regular season games was also against the Patriots in a game known as "the Fog Bowl II." Overall, the Falcons finished 10-6, qualifying for a playoff spot despite being placed 3rd in the division. In the wild card round, the Falcons beat the 11-5 Los Angeles Rams 26-13. It was the first time in franchise history winning playoff games in back-to-back years. However, the Falcons season was stopped short the following week against the Eagles, 10-15.
In 2018, the Atlanta Falcons were expected by many to be the first team to play the Super Bowl in their home stadium. However, injuries plagued the team throughout the season as they fell to 4-9 and, with a Vikings win the following week, were mathematically eliminated from postseason contention. However, the Falcons were able to win their final three games to finish 7-9.
In the 2019 season, Atlanta wasn't ready to give up. Nevertheless, they suffered a six-game losing streak following a week 2 win over the Eagles. Their 1-7 start was the worst since 2003. However, after their bye week in week 9, the Falcons caught fire, winning six of their final eight games to equal their 7-9 record from the previous year. In their season finale against the Buccaneers, the Falcons finished the game with a pick-six seven seconds into overtime, marking the shortest overtime in NFL history.
After their phenomenal finish at the end of last year's season, the Falcons expected to do really well this season. However, things took a turn for the worse as the Falcons started off with five straight losses, their first such start since 1997. Two of these losses (in back-to-back weeks) included fourth-quarter leads of 15+ blown by the Falcons. The Falcons ended up firing head coach Dan Quinn after a Week 5 loss to the Panthers. Interim head coach Raheem Morris led the team to a 4-2 record over their next six games before the Falcons lost their final five games to finish last in the NFC at 4-12. On January 15, 2021, the Falcons hired Arthur Smith to be their head coach for the season.
For the first time since 2010, longtime receiver Julio Jones was not on the roster, as he was traded to the Tennessee Titans on June 6, 2021.
Wednesday, February 23, 2022
Who Were The Conshoshocken Athletic Club?
Conshohocken won the mythical Schuylkill County championship in 1914, 1915 and 1916, before laying claim to the eastern Pennsylvania championship in 1919. Conshohocken had an annual Thanksgiving rivalry with the Norristown Billikens of Norristown, Pennsylvania; from 1914 to 1916, Conshohocken beat the Billikens in all three games. The team played home games at Conshoshocken Community Field.
Conshoshocken had two notable players. One was William Earl Potteiger was an American football, baseball, and basketball player and coach. He played professionally in both baseball and football and coached professionally in basketball, baseball and football. Potteiger was player-coach for the New York Giants when they won their first National Football League championship in 1927. He also played minor league baseball from 1913 to 1917, in 1919, and from 1926 to 1927. He managed in the minors from 1926 to 1927 and in 1932. The other notable player was Robert Watkins "Bert" Yeabsley was a professional baseball player. Yeabsley played in Major League Baseball for Philadelphia Phillies in the 1919 season. He only played in three games in his one-year major league career. In 1916, Yeabsley played minor league baseball for the Raleigh Capitals as an outfielder. He made his major league debut on May 28, 1919. He pinch-hit for pitcher Elmer Jacobs in the 9th inning and drew a walk off Jimmy Ring of the Cincinnati Reds. Over the next two weeks, he appeared in two more games as a pinch runner, and never played professional baseball afterwards. Yeabsley also played professional football from 1914 until 1919 for the Conshohocken Athletic Club. In 1919, he played football for the Holmesburg Athletic Club.
Tuesday, February 22, 2022
History Of The New Orleans Saints
The Saints were among the NFL's least successful franchises in their first several decades, where they went 20 consecutive seasons without a winning record or qualifying for the playoffs. They earned their first winning record and postseason berth in 1987, while their first playoff win would not occur until 2000, their 34th season. The team's fortunes improved amid the 21st century, which saw them become more consistent postseason contenders. Their greatest success to date came in the 2009 season, when they won Super Bowl XLIV, the team's first Super Bowl appearance. The Saints are one of two NFL franchises to win their sole Super Bowl appearance, along with the New York Jets, and the most recent to do so.
The city of New Orleans was awarded an NFL franchise on November 1, 1966, thanks to a combination of local activism (most notably by David Dixon and by members of the local media, such as New Orleans States-Item sports editor Crozet Duplantier) and political force (Senator Russell Long and Congressman Hale Boggs, who made approval of the NFL-AFL merger conditional on the awarding of a franchise to New Orleans).
William G. Helis Jr., Herman Lay, John W. Mecom Jr., Louis J. Roussel Jr., Jack Sanders, and Edgar B. Stern Jr. were the six bidders for the franchise. On December 15, oilman Mecom became the majority shareholder and thus president of the team with his winning bid of $8.5 million; later that month, Tom Fears was named head coach. The team was named "Saints" due to its birthday on the Roman Catholic Church's All Saints Day, a fitting nickname for a team in the largely Catholic New Orleans area. The name was announced on January 9, 1967. The team's original stadium was Tulane Stadium, which could seat more than 80,000 fans. The team was placed in the Capitol Division of the NFL's Eastern Conference; their division foes were the Dallas Cowboys, Philadelphia Eagles, and Washington Redskins. The team started off well, with a 5–1 preseason record; then, on the first play of the 1967 regular season, wide receiver John Gilliam returned the opening kickoff 94 yards for a touchdown. However, this was not enough for the Saints, and they lost their regular season opener to the Los Angeles Rams, 13–27. Their first win came on November 5 as they defeated the Eagles 31–24. That would be one of the Saints' only triumphs in their inaugural campaign; they ended the season 3–11, the second-worst mark in the league and 3 and 1⁄2 games behind Washington in the divisional race. At the time, however, the Saints' three wins tied for the most ever for an expansion team's inaugural season.
Their next few seasons continued along similar lines. They improved slightly in 1968, putting up a 4–9–1 record as they competed in the Century Division against the Cleveland Browns, St. Louis Cardinals (NFL), and Pittsburgh Steelers; in 1969, they returned to the Capitol Division (featuring the same division opponents as 1967) and managed to go 5–9.
The 1970 season saw yet another realignment for the Saints due to the AFL–NFL merger. The Saints were placed in the NFC West, where they would remain through 2001. Their original NFC West competitors – the Atlanta Falcons, Los Angeles (and later, St. Louis) Rams, and San Francisco 49ers would also remain in the division through 2001 (with the Carolina Panthers joining in 1995), leading to the development of long-standing rivalries.
The season started off poorly for the Saints. After going 1-5-1 in the first seven games, Fears was fired and replaced by J.D. Roberts on November 3. In Roberts' first game as coach, New Orleans trailed the Detroit Lions 17-16 with time winding down, but Tom Dempsey kicked an NFL-record 63-yard field goal as time expired to win the game. The record would stand through 2013 (43 years later), when Matt Prater of the Denver Broncos broke it with a 64-yard field goal. Dempsey's achievement is made all the more remarkable by the fact that he was born without toes on his right foot (which he kicked with). This Saints victory, however, would be the last for the season; they lost their last six games to finish 2-11-1, the worst record in the young history of the franchise.
In the 1971 NFL Draft, the Saints owned the second overall pick behind the Boston Patriots. Deciding that a franchise quarterback was necessary, they selected Archie Manning out of Mississippi. In the season opener, Manning did not disappoint; he passed for 218 yards and a touchdown and ran in another touchdown on the final play to give the Saints a 24-20 win over the Rams. Four weeks later, Manning engineered a 24-14 upset of the Dallas Cowboys, the same team who would return to Tulane Stadium three months later and win Super Bowl VI over the Miami Dolphins. Throughout the season, Manning split the quarterbacking duties with veteran Edd Hargett. Manning ended the season with six passing touchdowns and four rushing touchdowns; he did well enough to become the team's undisputed starter the next season. Despite the promise Manning showed, the Saints' misfortunes continued as they finished 4-8-2.
In 1972, the Saints started 0-5 and finished 2-11-1. During the 1973 preseason, the Saints fired Roberts and hired John North, who led the Saints to consecutive 5-9 seasons in 1973 and 1974.
In 1975, the Saints moved from Tulane Stadium into the Louisiana Superdome. Despite the new home, they went just 2-12; North was fired after six games, and Ernie Hefferle was named interim head coach for the final eight games of the season.
For the 1976 season, Hank Stram was hired as head coach; he came with a proven track record (three AFL titles, one Super Bowl win) from his years with the Kansas City Chiefs (formerly the Dallas Texans). However, his talents proved ineffective in his first season, as the Saints went 4-10; Manning sat out the entire season after undergoing elbow surgery just after Stram's hiring, forcing the quarterback duties to be split by backup Bobby Scott and Chicago Bears castoff Bobby Douglass. 1977 was not much better as the Saints went 3-11, including a humiliating 33-14 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on December 11, the Buccaneers' first victory in the NFL after 26 consecutive losses.
In 1978, Stram was replaced by Dick Nolan. The season saw an improvement in the Saints' fortunes; Manning had the best season of his career up to that point, passing for 3,416 yards and 17 touchdowns. He was named to the NFC Pro Bowl squad for the first time and was also named the NFC's Most Valuable Player by The Sporting News and UPI. The Saints put together a record of 7-9, their best ever mark. The Saints might have made the playoffs had it not had been for a pair of losses to the Atlanta Falcons, where the Falcons used the "Big Ben" play to score the winning touchdown in the final seconds of each contest, as well as a last-minute loss to the eventual Super Bowl XIII champion Pittsburgh Steelers.
In 1979, the Saints built on the success of the previous year. After an 0-3 start (including a 40-34 overtime loss to the Falcons on opening day), the Saints won five of their next six games to take sole possession of the NFC West lead after nine games. The Saints were 7-6 heading into a Monday night game with the Oakland Raiders; their rivals for the NFC West title, the Rams, were 8-6. The Saints jumped out to a 35-14 lead and seemed certain to gain a share of first place with their win. But the Saints blew the lead and lost 42-35. The next week, they were blown out 35-0 at the Superdome by the San Diego Chargers, ending their playoff hopes. The Saints, however, did manage to beat the Super Bowl-bound Rams (playing their last home game at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum until 2016) in the final game of the regular season. This gave them an 8-8 record, the first non-losing season in team history. It was also the first time that the Saints finished higher than third place in their division.
In 1980, the Saints had high hopes after their two relatively successful seasons. Instead, the bottom fell out, where, despite a strong offense, their defense was almost nonexistent. The team started 0-12, and Dick Nolan was fired; he was replaced by Dick Stanfel, who lost two games (including one in San Francisco where the Saints blew a 28-point lead). They managed to win against the New York Jets, who finished with the league's second worst record at 4-12, by a point. This game was also noteworthy for an episode where Archie Manning was signing autographs after the game. A boy ran up to him and stole his (unfastened) necktie, after which he was fined for violating the NFL's dress code. The Saints then lost their last game of the season to the New England Patriots to finish 1-15, the worst mark in team history and (at the time) the worst for a 16-game schedule, since eclipsed by the 2008 Detroit Lions and 2017 Cleveland Browns (0-16). A local journalist and radio/TV personality, Buddy Diliberto, wore a paper grocery bag over his head to promote the brown bag special of Sonic, the Saint's sponsor at the time. Many fans took to wearing bags over their heads when attending games. The moniker "Aints" was also born due to the ineptitude of the 1980 Saints.
In 1981, ex-Houston Oilers head coach Bum Phillips was hired as head coach and general manager. The dismal 1980 season meant that the Saints would get the first pick in the 1981 NFL Draft. They selected Heisman-winning running back George Rogers out of South Carolina, a move which in hindsight proved to be a huge blunder; the New York Giants, drafting second, selected future Hall of Fame linebacker Lawrence Taylor from North Carolina. Rogers was the team's workhorse, playing in all but one game and averaging more than 25 carries a game. He ran for a total of 1,674 yards, making him the NFL rushing champion. However, his fine performances were not enough to make the Saints a winning club. They finished the season 4-12, but two of those wins came over the Rams, New Orleans' first regular-season sweep of the Rams since the two teams were placed in the NFC West by the AFL–NFL merger in 1970. The Saints also defeated the eventual AFC champion Cincinnati Bengals.
In 1982, the Saints signed former Oakland Raiders and Houston Oilers quarterback Ken Stabler and traded Archie Manning to the Oilers. Two games into the season, the Saints were 1-1, but a players' strike led to the cancellation of seven games. When the season resumed, the Saints won two games in a row to take their record to 3-1, but they lost four games in a row before winning their last game, 35-6 over the Falcons. They finished 4-5, but missed out on qualifying for the playoffs (expanded to 16 teams due to the strike) on a tiebreaker.
1983 saw the Saints improve on the previous season once again. They hovered at or above .500 for most of the season, but lost a golden opportunity to stay one step ahead in the playoff race by giving up 17 points in the 4th quarter of a 31-28 loss to the New York Jets on Monday Night Football. Their playoff hopes came down to the final game of the season, when they hosted the Rams. Los Angeles scored two touchdowns on interception returns and another on a punt return, and Mike Lansford kicked a 42-yard field goal with six seconds remaining to give the Rams the victory and a playoff berth, and end the Saints' season. The Saints finished 8-8, tying their previous best season record.
Eight weeks after the conclusion of the 1983 season, the Saints traded their number one pick in the 1984 NFL Draft to the New York Jets for quarterback Richard Todd, who had worn out his welcome in the Big Apple by throwing too many interceptions, and was being phased out in favor of rookie Ken O'Brien. During the 1984 season, New Orleans traded for former Heisman Trophy winner and future Hall of Fame running back Earl Campbell, who won the NFL rushing championship in each of his first three seasons with the Oilers, when Bum Phillips coached the club. The Saints won for the first time on Monday Night Football by defeating the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Superdome, but a three-game losing streak late in the season dropped the Saints to 7-9.
The biggest news of the 1984 season was that John Mecom, the owner of the team for almost 20 years, was putting them up for sale. Speculation was rife that a new owner might move the Saints out of New Orleans, namely Jacksonville, Florida. But on May 31, 1985, negotiations were finalized to sell the team to Tom Benson, a native New Orleanian who owned numerous car dealerships throughout the New Orleans area. The team's future in New Orleans was safe for the time being.
In 1985, the Saints started off 3-2, but then lost six games in a row. Bum Phillips resigned twelve games into the season, and his son Wade Phillips, the Saints' defensive coordinator, was named interim coach. The Saints ended the season 5-11. A bright spot of the campaign was the emergence of quarterback and Louisiana native Bobby Hebert, who led the Saints to victories over the Vikings and Rams late in the season. Hebert previously spent three seasons in the United States Football League with the Michigan Panthers and Oakland Invaders, leading the Panthers to the first USFL championship in 1983.
Before the 1986 season, Saints owner Tom Benson put his stamp on the team by making two important hires: first, he named Jim Finks president and general manager; then, he named Jim Mora head coach. The Saints' offense struggled throughout the year after Bobby Hebert went down with a knee injury in the third game of the season, but behind a revitalized defense and NFC Rookie of the Year Rueben Mayes, New Orleans improved to 7-9.
The 1987 Saints started 1-1; then, another player strike followed. This time, however, replacement players were used until the regular players ended their strike. As a result, the season was only one game shorter than usual. The Saints went 2-1 with replacement players as they were led by their quarterback, New Orleans native John Fourcade. When the regular players returned, their first game was against the San Francisco 49ers. The Saints lost 24-22, but that would be the last time they would taste defeat that year. They ran off a nine-game winning streak to close out the season, a remarkable feat considering that the Saints had never before won nine games in a season, let alone nine games in a row. The loss against San Francisco, however, would keep the Saints from being NFC West Champions; instead, the Saints finished 12-3, behind the 13-2 49ers, and had to settle for a wild-card spot in the playoffs despite having a better record than either of the other division champions that year. The Saints hosted the Minnesota Vikings on January 3, 1988; after 20 years, the Saints finally took part in the NFL playoffs. The game started well for the Saints as they took a 7-0 lead, but Minnesota answered by taking a 31-10 lead into halftime. The Vikings added 13 more points in the second half to make the final score 44-10. Despite the loss, the Saints were recognized for their accomplishments; six players were selected for the Pro Bowl, and Mora and Finks were named NFL Coach and Executive of the Year, respectively.
The 1988 Saints looked to return to the playoffs. After starting the season with a loss to their nemesis, the 49ers, the Saints bounced back with a seven-game win streak. After the streak, though, the Saints lost five of their next seven games. They won their last game of the season, against Atlanta, but they missed out on the playoffs due to tiebreakers.
The 1989 Saints managed to finish 9-7, but thanks to other strong performances in the NFC, they missed the playoffs by two games.
In 1990, the Saints started off poorly, going 2-5 in their first seven games. However, they turned their season around and close wins in their final two games of the season were enough to give them an 8-8 record and a playoff berth in the newly expanded NFL playoffs, which now included six teams from each conference. They traveled to Soldier Field to take on the Chicago Bears, but lost 16-6.
In 1991, the Saints started with a seven-game win streak, a team-record best start, and an overall impressive start, considering the Saints had never started better than 2-0. With the 7-0 start, the Saints opened up a four-game lead over the rest of the division. But then the Saints lost five of their next seven games, giving Atlanta and San Francisco a shot at claiming the division title. However, the Saints regrouped in the final two games of the season, and they finished 11-5 as the Falcons and 49ers finished 10-6 to give the Saints their first-ever division title. The Saints' first-round playoff game would be at the Superdome against Atlanta. The Falcons came from behind to defeat the Saints 27-20.
In 1992, the Saints attempted to defend their division title, but their hated rivals, the 49ers, swept the season series and finished 14-2 to the Saints' 12-4, meaning that the Saints would once again have to settle for a wild card berth to the NFC playoffs. They hosted the Philadelphia Eagles but once again could not put their home field advantage to good use, losing 36-20 for their fourth playoff loss in as many games.
The 1993 season would see the Saints start their decline from regular playoff contender to league doormat once again. They started off 5-0, but lost eight of their last 11 games to finish 8-8, one game out of the playoffs.
After seven straight years without a losing record, the team returned to the losing ways of the pre-Mora era in 1994. The Saints started 4-8 on their way to a 7-9 record.
In 1995, the Saints again finished 7-9 in the NFC West, which was newly expanded to include the Carolina Panthers. Due to tiebreakers, the Saints had the disgrace of finishing in last place in the division behind even the expansion team.
In 1996, after the Saints started 2-6, Mora resigned after more than ten years with the franchise. He finished his Saints tenure with 93 wins and 78 losses, making him far and away the most successful Saints coach ever. In fact, Mora was (up to then) the only coach ever to have a winning record during his Saints tenure, and his 93 wins were three more than the team had won in its entire history prior to his arrival. Rick Venturi was named interim head coach, but he had even less success than Mora did that season, going 1-7 to bring the Saints' final record to 3-13, their worst record since 1980.
Before the 1997 season, Tom Benson named legendary Chicago Bears head coach Mike Ditka as the Saints coach, leading to optimism that he would be able to win a Super Bowl with the Saints as he had done with the Bears. However, the Ditka era would be a tumultuous time for the organization.
In 1997, Ditka led the team to a 6-10 record, a three-game improvement from the previous season; the team was marked by strong defense (anchored by defensive end Joe Johnson, middle linebacker Winfred Tubbs, and veteran cornerback Eric Allen, among others) and inconsistent offense.
The 1998 season was even more chaotic. Starting quarterback Billy Joe Hobert was lost for the year in the season-opening win against the St. Louis Rams. Later in the season, the team claimed quarterback Kerry Collins off the waiver wire; Collins had been released by the Carolina Panthers earlier in the season after he informed the team his heart wasn't in the game anymore. Collins was inconsistent as a starter, including a 31-17 loss to a previously winless Panthers team, but he was also at the helm for a 22-3 upset of the Dallas Cowboys, the high point of the season, before being benched against the Buffalo Bills in Week 17. His lackluster performance, coupled with a highly publicized DUI arrest, led Ditka to state that the team would not seek to re-sign Collins. The Saints finished 6-10 once again.
In the months before the 1999 NFL Draft, Ditka became enamored with Texas running back Ricky Williams, the Heisman Trophy winner who'd set an NCAA record for career rushing yards with the Longhorns. Ditka's remarks that he'd "trade his entire draft" for the standout runner were well-publicized; holding the #13 overall pick, the Saints needed to trade up to have a chance at selecting Williams.
They got their chance to do so when the Indianapolis Colts selected Miami running back Edgerrin James with the #4 overall pick. The Saints orchestrated a three-way trade with the Washington Redskins and the Chicago Bears that involved the Saints taking Washington's #5 overall pick and therefore, Williams in exchange for all the Saints' remaining 1999 draft picks and their 1st- and 3rd-rounders in 2000.
The trade drew mixed reactions from Saints fans. In the days after the draft, Ditka boldly predicted that the Saints would go to the Super Bowl.
Fan opinion began to solidify against Ditka when it became clear that his prediction would not come true. The Saints' 1999 season was marked by yet more inconsistency at quarterback, a porous defense, and a hobbled Williams, who struggled with a high ankle sprain and an elbow injury in his rookie year. The Saints finished 3-13. Owner Tom Benson had had enough; soon after the season ended, he fired Ditka, the entire coaching staff, and general manager Bill Kuharich.
The Ditka era in New Orleans saw seven different starters at quarterback in three seasons (Heath Shuler, Danny Wuerffel, Doug Nussmeier, Billy Joe Hobert, Billy Joe Tolliver, Kerry Collins, and Jake Delhomme) and a defense which went from top-ten to near the bottom of the league in nearly every statistical category.
To replace Ditka and Kuharich, Tom Benson settled on Randy Mueller, formerly of the Seattle Seahawks, as general manager, and Pittsburgh Steelers defensive coordinator Jim Haslett as head coach. Mueller shook up the roster, bringing in a squad of fresh talent via free agency: wide receivers Jake Reed and Joe Horn, quarterback Jeff Blake, tight end Andrew Glover, defensive tackle Norman Hand, cornerback Fred Thomas, safety Chris Oldham, and linebacker Darrin Smith, among others. Lacking their top draft pick because of the Williams trade (a pick the Redskins would use to draft linebacker LaVar Arrington), New Orleans selected defensive end Darren Howard early in the 2nd round.
Inspired by Terrell Davis and the Denver Broncos' offense, new offensive coordinator Mike McCarthy implemented a form of the West Coast Offense with Ricky Williams as the focal point: a run-first attack designed to open up passing lanes and create opportunities for the occasional deep ball.
After a sputtering 1-3 start, the Saints found their groove, winning six straight games behind Williams and an opportunistic defense. The 2000 season marked the surprising emergence of Joe Horn, who'd previously been a backup receiver with the Kansas City Chiefs but was flourishing as Blake's main target.
Adversity struck, however, with injuries in consecutive games to Williams and Blake, forcing the team to rely on backups at both positions for the remainder of the season. Blake's injury presented an opportunity for quarterback Aaron Brooks, who led the team to two critical road wins: an upset over the defending champion St. Louis Rams and a late comeback against the San Francisco 49ers, keeping the Saints atop the NFC West. A Week 16 victory over the Atlanta Falcons, coupled with a St. Louis loss the following night, gave the Saints a 10-5 record, a playoff berth, and their first division title since 1991.
In the regular season finale, the Saints lost to the Rams, setting up a rematch between the two teams in the wild card playoff round. Though they lost Horn to an injury early in the game, the Saints managed to surge ahead to a 31-7 lead early in the 4th quarter behind three touchdowns from Brooks to backup wide receiver Willie Jackson. A late comeback by the Rams was halted in dramatic fashion when St. Louis wide receiver Az-Zahir Hakim fumbled a punt late in the game. Saints fullback Brian Milne fell on the ball, and New Orleans able to run out the clock to secure its first-ever playoff win. The final score was 31-28.
The return of Ricky Williams the next week could not prevent the injury-hobbled Saints from losing to the Minnesota Vikings. Despite the 34-16 loss, the 2000 season was viewed as an overwhelming success by the fans and the media. Haslett and Mueller were recognized by the NFL as Coach of the Year and Executive of the Year, respectively. Five Saints were selected to the Pro Bowl: Horn, left tackle Willie Roaf, defensive linemen Joe Johnson and La'Roi Glover, and linebacker Keith Mitchell. Horn set a franchise record with 1,340 receiving yards and emerged as a playmaker and tenacious possession receiver. Despite his injury, Williams rushed for 1,000 yards and eight touchdowns in 10 games.
The next five seasons failed to meet the raised expectations of fans and media. The 2001 season established a trend of team inconsistency from week to week; though the Saints engineered a stirring comeback from several touchdowns down to beat the Rams on the road, they also collapsed at the end of the season, losing their last four games by embarrassing margins to finish 7-9. New Orleans was outscored 160-40 in its final four games and shut out 38-0 by San Francisco in the finale at home in the Saints' final game as a member of the NFC West.
The season was notable for the curious behavior of Albert Connell, a wide receiver acquired in the offseason and intended to be the long-term starter opposite Joe Horn. Connell was accused of, and subsequently admitted to, stealing over $4,000 from teammate Deuce McAllister, though he claimed the theft was just a prank. Connell caught only 12 passes in 11 games with the Saints; the team suspended him for the last four games of the season and later terminated his contract.
In the offseason, the Saints having drafted running back Deuce McAllister in the first round of the 2001 NFL Draft, traded starter Ricky Williams to the Miami Dolphins. The trade ended up giving the Saints two 1st-round picks.
The 2002 season started with promise (in the now geographically accurate NFC South division) but finished in familiar fashion. The Saints began the year with impressive wins over three 2001 playoff teams. an overtime win over new division rival Tampa Bay, a 15-point trouncing of Green Bay, and a come-from-behind win over Chicago on the road. But the season would include a loss to bottom-dweller Detroit, as well as another late-season collapse that included three straight losses to Minnesota, Cincinnati, and Carolina, when a victory in any one of these three games would have all but guaranteed a playoff berth. The Saints, after starting 6-1, finished at 9-7 and missed the playoffs once again.
Jim Haslett and his coaching staff drew criticism for not benching starting quarterback Aaron Brooks in any of the season's final games. Brooks had been hobbled by a shoulder injury, and though both he and Haslett insisted the injury would not affect his play, Brooks' performance suggested otherwise. Over the last six games of the season, Brooks completed only 47% of his passes, throwing for six touchdowns and five interceptions and losing six fumbles. His passer rating over those six games was 66.7, far less than his 80.1 rating over the entire season.
Backing up Brooks in 2002 was fan-favorite Jake Delhomme, who'd played at nearby UL-Lafayette and had come off the bench to cement a victory over Tampa Bay several weeks earlier. Brooks' poor performance late in the 2002 season prompted fans to chant "We Want Jake!" at games, but Haslett ignored these chants. In the offseason, Delhomme signed with Carolina, in part because he'd be able to compete for the starting job. Delhomme would lead the Panthers to Super Bowl XXXVIII in his first season in Carolina, further rubbing salt in the wounds of Saints fans.
The 2003 season started off poorly for the Saints, going 1-4 in their first five games, including a 55-21 blowout loss at home against the Indianapolis Colts, as Colts quarterback and New Orleans native Peyton Manning threw six touchdown passes to hand the Saints a humiliating loss on national television. The Saints, however, would rebound somewhat from their poor start and finish the season 8-8. McAllister ran for a career-high 1,641 yards.
The 2004 season saw the Saints struggle out of the gate. They compiled a 4-8 record in their first 12 games, and Haslett's job appeared to be in jeopardy. Then the Saints put together three straight wins (two of them on the road) to give them a shot at an 8-8 record and a playoff berth. The Saints faced Carolina (also 7-8) in Week 17. The Saints needed to beat the Panthers; they also needed one of two things to happen: a St. Louis tie or loss, or a Seattle win or tie and a Minnesota win or tie. The New Orleans, St. Louis, and Minnesota games were all played at 1:00 PM EST that Sunday. The Saints defeated the Panthers 21-18, but Minnesota lost to Washington (also by a 21-18 score), meaning that the Saints' playoff chances came down to the game between the Rams and the New York Jets. The game went to overtime with the score tied 29-29. The teams battled back and forth for most of the overtime period. The crucial moment occurred when Jets kicker Doug Brien (formerly of the Saints) missed a 53-yard field goal. The Rams capitalized on the good field position and kicked a field goal of their own to win with a little over 3 minutes left in overtime, sending the Saints out of the playoffs on the tiebreaker scenarios. Though the Saints had beaten the Rams earlier in the season, their loss to the Vikings and the fact that the Rams did not play the Vikings that season meant that the tiebreaker had to go to the best conference record, where the Rams finished ahead of the Saints and Vikings to claim one of the NFC's wild card spots. The Vikings then got the final wild card spot thanks to their win over the Saints. While the season finished in heartbreaking fashion, many thought that Haslett would have been fired if not for his team's four-game win streak to end the season.
Going into the 2005 season, the Saints were optimistic that they could build on their good results at the end of 2004. But when Hurricane Katrina struck, the Saints were thrown into chaos with the rest of their city. The Saints were forced to temporarily relocate their headquarters to San Antonio, Texas. Regardless, they managed to provide an emotional lift for their hometown when they defeated the Panthers 23-20 in Week 1. On September 6, 2005, the NFL decreed that the Saints' first home game would be played in Giants Stadium, adding insult to injury as the Saints were forced to play a "home" game against the Giants in front of a hostile crowd. The Saints struggled and lost 27-10. Fortunately, the NFL announced shortly after that the rest of the Saints' home games would be played either in San Antonio's Alamodome or Baton Rouge's Tiger Stadium. The Saints lost to Minnesota in Week 3, but won in the Alamodome the next week over Buffalo to bring their record to 2-2. They then were upset by the winless Green Bay Packers, 52-3. Furthermore, the Saints suffered heavily due to a season-ending injury suffered by star running back Deuce McAllister. The Saints would eventually finish the season with a 3-13 record; the last few games of the season saw quarterback Aaron Brooks being benched and released (then signing with the then-Oakland Raiders), giving playing time for backup quarterback Todd Bouman and even third-stringer Adrian McPherson and, eventually, the season ended with head coach Jim Haslett losing his job.
The 2006 Saints orchestrated one of the more remarkable turnarounds in NFL history, as they were the first team to go from 3-13 to a conference title game the next season. First-year head coach Sean Payton, who came from Dallas as a Bill Parcells pupil, was hired for a daunting task at hand. In his first move as coach, he released almost half of the roster, most notably inconsistent quarterback Aaron Brooks.
The Saints were aggressive in free agency, signing former San Diego Chargers quarterback Drew Brees, who had been released after suffering a career-threatening injury to his throwing shoulder during the last game of the 2005 season and was still recovering from surgery at that time. Brees was also being pursued by Nick Saban and the Miami Dolphins but their doctors gave Brees a 25% chance of making a comeback. The Saints gambled on his ability to recover in time for the season and signed him to a major long-term contract. His signing would become a major turning point for the Saints. Then came April, and the 2006 NFL Draft.
On the eve before the draft on April 29, news broke that the Houston Texans could not reach an agreement with Reggie Bush and instead reached a deal with defensive end Mario Williams as the #1 pick. When the team found out that Bush would be available, they selected the USC running back with their #2 pick. In that draft, the Saints also picked an unknown player in the 7th-round who would become a standout: wide receiver Marques Colston from Hofstra as the 252nd pick.
When preseason got underway, the Saints started out strong in a victory over the Tennessee Titans, which featured a dazzling run by Reggie Bush where he reversed his direction for a big run. That was the only highlight for the Saints' preseason as they finished just 1–3, losing their other three preseason games.
The 2006 regular season officially began for the Saints with a road win against the Cleveland Browns, with Bush accounting for 129 yards from scrimmage, while Colston caught a touchdown pass from Brees. The next week, the Saints went to Green Bay, where the Saints lost 52-3 the previous year, to face the Packers. The start of the game looked bleak for the Saints as they quickly went down 0–13, but Brees led a comeback, throwing for 353 yards and two touchdowns as the Saints came back to win a shootout, 34–27. The Saints then headed back for the first game in the Superdome since the 2005 preseason, a Monday Night date with the Atlanta Falcons on September 25.
The Saints entered the game 2–0 against the 2–0 Falcons with many expecting the Falcons' powerful running game to overwhelm the team. The game kicked off to fanfare of the Saints' official return to New Orleans. The game also featured pregame festivities featuring Green Day and U2 performing a song that would become the team's unofficial anthem, "The Saints Are Coming". New Orleans dominated the game right from the start when Steve Gleason blocked a punt that was recovered for a touchdown by Curtis Deloatch. The Saints went on to win 23–3.
The next week, the Saints lost their first game of the season to division rival Carolina, 18–21. The Saints bounced back in their second game in New Orleans facing division rival Tampa Bay. With time winding down and the Saints down by four, they were set to receive a punt. Reggie Bush returned the punt 65 yards, untouched, for the winning touchdown, and the first of his career. The Saints were 4–1 and in control of the NFC South. A week later, the Saints upset the favored Philadelphia Eagles in New Orleans, 27–24, and the Saints were taken seriously heading into their bye week.
New Orleans entered a midseason slump, losing three of four by Week 10 before going on a three-game win streak. They defeated Atlanta, San Francisco, and Dallas in convincing fashion.
The Saints concluded the regular season at 10–6, winning the NFC South title and, for the first time in the team's history, securing a first-round bye in the playoffs.
The Saints' divisional playoff game would be a Week 6 rematch with the Eagles, who were led by backup quarterback Jeff Garcia this time and riding a six-game winning streak. The game featured several lead changes and a most inspired effort by Deuce McAllister, who rushed for almost 150 yards and two touchdowns, one receiving and one rushing. New Orleans won its first divisional playoff game in team history, 27–24, and only the second playoff win in franchise history. The Saints then traveled to Chicago to face the Bears in the team's first ever NFC Championship appearance, where they ended up falling short in the title game, 14–39.
New Orleans led the NFL in total yards gained and passing yards in the 2006 season. Drew Brees set new Saints single-season records in passes completed (356), passer rating (96.2), and passing yards (4,418). The team sent three players to the 2007 Pro Bowl: Brees, defensive end Will Smith, and offensive tackle Jammal Brown.
The 2007 regular season began with a primetime matchup against the defending Super Bowl champion Indianapolis Colts, but New Orleans suffered a 10–41 pounding. The losses continued, as Tampa Bay and Tennessee routed them, followed by a close loss to Carolina. The Saints finally managed a victory in Week 6 by defeating the Seattle Seahawks 28–17. After three more victories, they lost two more games, then beat the Carolina Panthers, and then fell to the Buccaneers again. In Week 16, the Saints lost to Philadelphia, which removed them from the playoffs. A loss to the Chicago Bears in the regular season finale ended the Saints' season with a 7–9 record.
In 2008, the Saints began by defeating the Buccaneers before losing three of the next four games. New Orleans was selected for that year's international series game in London, where they beat San Diego 37–32. The remainder of the season was an uneven string of games, and after being beat by Carolina on December 28, the team ended its 2008 campaign with an 8–8 record.
New Orleans started off 2009 innocently enough with a rout of the hapless Detroit Lions. Afterwards, they traveled to Philadelphia and beat an Eagles team that was missing its starting quarterback, Donovan McNabb, due to an injury. They accumulated further easy wins over the Buffalo Bills and New York Jets in the next two games. After the bye week, they handily defeated the New York Giants and then beat the Miami Dolphins in a high-scoring affair at Landshark Stadium. With this impressive win, which featured a second-half rally, the Saints moved to 6–0. The next four opponents were comparatively weak ones, and the Saints soon found themselves at 10–0 along with the Colts. In Week 12, they faced the New England Patriots in the Superdome and inflicted a stunning defeat on the three-time Super Bowl champions. The Saints nearly lost their next game against the 3–8 Washington Redskins at FedEx Field. The score was tied 30–30 at the end of regulation, and in overtime, Washington almost broke the Saints' eleven-game winning streak. However, a fumble by the Redskins gave the Saints the ball. They then made a field goal and won the game, 33–30, clinching the NFC South division title. Afterwards, New Orleans faced the Dallas Cowboys at home and were finally brought down by a 17–24 score. The next week, the Saints were upset at home by the 2–12 Tampa Bay Buccaneers in overtime. They secured the #1 NFC playoff seed when the 11–3 Minnesota Vikings lost to the Chicago Bears in Week 16. The Saints rested starters during their Week 17 game against the Panthers, finishing their season at 13–3. The re-energized team came back from the first-round bye week and hosted the Arizona Cardinals, crushing them 45–14. Now in the NFC Championship, the Saints faced the Vikings. The two teams waged an epic struggle through all four quarters. Minnesota quarterback Brett Favre was hit several times by the New Orleans defensive line, and there were multiple penalties, timeouts, and booth reviews of questionable plays. Although the Vikings never trailed by more than a touchdown, they could not gain a lead, and as the 4th quarter was drawing to a close, Favre threw an ill-advised pass across the middle of the field, which was intercepted by Saints cornerback Tracy Porter. The game went into overtime, and New Orleans got possession of the ball after winning the coin toss. Kicker Garrett Hartley made a 40-yard field goal, sending the Saints to Super Bowl XLIV.
The Super Bowl was played in Miami against the Colts, who had won Super Bowl XLI there three years earlier. Indianapolis jumped out to a 10-0 lead by the end of the 1st quarter. The Saints were unable to score a touchdown in the first half, and instead settled for two long Hartley field goals, making the score 10-6 at halftime. The 3rd quarter opened with New Orleans executing a surprise onside kick, and both teams got into an argument over who got hold of the ball. The Saints were ultimately ruled to have recovered it. A screen pass by Drew Brees to running back Pierre Thomas was good for a touchdown, giving the Saints a 13–10 lead, their first of the game. After another Colts touchdown, Hartley kicked another field goal to make it a 17–16 game. The Saints regained the lead with 5:42 remaining in the 4th quarter; a 2-yard touchdown pass from Brees to tight end Jeremy Shockey, followed by a two-point conversion by Lance Moore, made it a 24–17 Saints lead. On the Colts' ensuing drive, quarterback Peyton Manning was intercepted by Tracy Porter, who returned it 74 yards for the game-clinching touchdown. A strong defensive effort by New Orleans halted the Colts' attempt at another scoring drive, and the game ended 31–17. The Saints had finally won a championship after decades of futility, sending the city of New Orleans, and the region, into wild celebrations.
The Saints did not quite live up to their 2009 level of play the following season. Hosting the Vikings in the 2010 season opener, a much-vaunted rematch of the NFC Championship resulted in a meandering 14-9 win, the lowest-scoring victory of Sean Payton's tenure as head coach. After a close win in San Francisco, the Saints went 3-3 down the stretch, as Drew Brees threw several interceptions and Garrett Hartley (the hero of the 2009 postseason) missed multiple field goals that resulted in his being temporarily benched in favor of John Carney, a former Saint who had first played in the NFL back in 1988. The last remaining active NFL player from the 1980s booted two field goals to help New Orleans beat the 0-3 Carolina Panthers in Week 3. After a loss to the Cardinals the following week, Carney quit, and the kicking position returned to Hartley.
Overall, the Saints looked sloppy and out of form during the early season, and they suffered their worst loss when the Cleveland Browns beat them at home in Week 7. But after the bye week, the team got back on course and won four games in a row before losing to Baltimore in Week 15. A Monday night matchup with the Atlanta Falcons saw New Orleans win 17-14. The Saints lost to Tampa Bay 23-13 to end the regular season with a record of 11-5. New Orleans reached the playoffs, but had to settle for a wild card spot as division rival Atlanta had already locked up the NFC South title and the #1 seed. The #5-seeded Saints headed to Seattle, where their season came to a spectacular end, as the 7-9 Seahawks overpowered the defending champions 41-36. The game was highlighted by a 67-yard touchdown run by Marshawn Lynch, who broke several tackles on the play.
In 2011, New Orleans played in the season opener for the second year in a row, but this time in Green Bay as guests of the defending champion Packers. The Saints struggled, as the Packers quickly marched out to two touchdowns, but regained their composure in a wild shootout. Green Bay never lost their lead however, and went on to win the game 42-34 after stopping Saints rookie running back Mark Ingram on the 1-yard line as time expired. Opening at home in Week 2, the Saints easily beat Chicago 30-13, then won another shootout against the Houston Texans. Although New Orleans' defense had performed poorly up to Week 3, the unit got back in sync by limiting Jacksonville to 10 points in a 23-point win the following game. After beating winless Carolina, Drew Brees threw three interceptions as the Saints lost to Tampa Bay 26-20. In Week 7, the team hosted Indianapolis in what had been expected to be a rematch of Super Bowl XLIV, but without Peyton Manning, the Colts struggled. Brees threw 5 touchdown passes as the Saints crushed the Colts, 62-7. The Saints set a franchise record for most points in a game. However, the Saints reverted to their Week 6 form the following week, as Brees threw two interceptions, and the Saints suffered an astonishing defeat against the winless St. Louis Rams. However, that would prove to be the last loss of the regular season, as the Saints went on an eight-game winning streak to close the season. They defeated division rivals Tampa Bay and Atlanta, then came out of the bye week to blow out the eventual Super Bowl champion New York Giants 49-24 at home. The Saints then defeated the Lions 31-17, the Titans 21-17, and the Vikings 42-20. On Monday Night Football, the Saints hosted the Atlanta Falcons and went on to blow them out, 45-16 and secure the division title. In that game, Brees broke the NFL's single-season passing yardage record set by Dan Marino 27 years earlier. The Saints would finish the regular season with a 13-3 record by defeating the Panthers 45-17. However, the Saints finished behind the defending Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers and the San Francisco 49ers for the 3rd seed in the NFC playoffs.
In the wild card round of the playoffs, the Saints hosted the Detroit Lions in the Lions' first playoff appearance since 1999. The Lions got off to a good start, ending the first half with a 14-10 lead, but couldn't keep up with the Saints, who prevailed 45-28. In the divisional round, the Saints traveled to San Francisco to face the #2-seeded 49ers. The Saints had trouble against the 49ers' defense, committed five turnovers. Despite the mishaps, the Saints remained one score behind the 49ers for most of the game. In a spectacular finish, the lead changed hands four times in the last four minutes, but the Saints lost 36-32, as 49ers quarterback Alex Smith threw a 14-yard touchdown pass to Vernon Davis with nine seconds left to end the Saints' 2011 season.
On March 2, 2012, the NFL announced the findings of an investigation of a bounty program that former defensive coordinator Gregg Williams and over two dozen defensive players maintained. The program rewarded cash to players for violent hits on opposing players that took place during the 2009–2011 seasons. Bounties were placed on four specific players: quarterbacks Brett Favre, Cam Newton, Aaron Rodgers, and Kurt Warner. The NFL hit the Saints hard with punishments. Williams, who became defensive coordinator with the St. Louis Rams, was suspended indefinitely. Head coach Sean Payton was suspended for the entire 2012 season. Although he did not participate in the bounty program, he never told anyone to stop it. General Manager Mickey Loomis was suspended for the first eight regular season games, as he ignored an order from owner Tom Benson to ensure that the program was stopped. Assistant head coach Joe Vitt (who was named interim head coach during Payton's suspension) was banned for the first six regular season games. The Saints were also fined $500,000 and stripped of their 2nd-round picks in the 2012 and 2013 NFL drafts. Payton began his suspension April 15 after his appeal was rejected. Loomis and Vitt also appealed their suspensions, but they were upheld. The NFL later announced punishments to four current and former Saints players. Linebacker Jonathan Vilma was suspended for the entire 2012 season; he twice offered $10,000 to anyone who knocked out Warner and Favre in the 2009 playoffs. Defensive lineman Anthony Hargrove was suspended for the first eight games of the 2012 season. Will Smith was suspended for four games, and Scott Fujita (now with the Cleveland Browns) received a three-game ban. All of the suspensions were without pay. A grievance was filed on behalf of the suspended players, but it was rejected. All of the players have appealed to Commissioner Roger Goodell.
After much negotiation, the Saints re-signed quarterback Drew Brees. Due to the Bountygate scandal, head coach Sean Payton, as well as some of the defensive players allegedly involved in the scandal, were not allowed to play. They also had to forfeit some of their second-round draft picks for the upcoming 2012 and 2013 NFL Drafts. It was one of the most severe sanctions ever imposed on a team in North American professional sports history.
The 2012 season began in disappointing fashion with four straight losses to the Washington Redskins, Carolina Panthers, Kansas City Chiefs, and Green Bay Packers. Then the Saints went on to win five of their next six games, including handing division rival Atlanta its first loss of the season. After three straight losses to San Francisco, Atlanta, and the defending champion New York Giants, the Saints won two of their last three games, including a 41-0 shutout against division rival Tampa Bay. The 2012 season ended with a 7-9 record for the Saints, their first losing season since 2007.\
The Saints finished 1st in the NFL in passing yards per game and 2nd in overall offense, but they were last in the league in overall defense.
As the team tried to leave the Bountygate in the past, Sean Payton returned to the team as Head Coach following the 2012 season. 2013 prove to be a successful season for the Saints, going undefeated at home and going 11–5, making it into the playoffs as a 6th seed. They manage to win their first road playoff game in franchise history against the Philadelphia Eagles, 26–24. They advanced to 1st seed Seattle Seahawks, getting defeated by the eventual Super Bowl champions 15–23.
2014 was not a memorable year for the Saints. Despite being 2nd in total offense, they went 7–9, with most of the reason for the disappointing season coming from the defense, who ranked 31st in defense that year, turnovers, and inconsistency. They were eliminated from playoff contention after a 14–30 loss to their divisional rival Atlanta Falcons in the second-to-last week of the regular season.
2015 also proved to be a mostly forgettable year for the Saints. They finished 7–9 again mainly part to once again having one of the league's worst defenses.
The Saints, in their 50th season, despite having the top scoring offense in the league, finished 7-9 for the third consecutive year. This put them in place for the 11th overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft. They picked Alvin Kamara. Drew Brees threw for over 5,000 yards for the fifth time in his career. Brandin Cooks and Michael Thomas, the 47th overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft, both had over 1,000 yards receiving. Running back Mark Ingram broke 1,000 yards rushing for the first time in his career.
Before the season, the Saints acquired longtime Viking and All-Pro running back Adrian Peterson. However after playing in only four games in which he rushed for 81 total yards, the Saints traded Peterson to the Arizona Cardinals. Alvin Kamara would go on to have a successful rookie season as the Saints finished the year with an 11-5 record to return to the playoffs after a three-year absence.
However, after defeating their division rivals, the Carolina Panthers, in the opening round, the Saints were eliminated from the playoffs after losing to the Minnesota Vikings when a missed tackle allowed Stefon Diggs to score the game-winning touchdown on the final play.
However, after defeating their division rivals, the Carolina Panthers, in the opening round, the Saints were eliminated from the playoffs after losing to the Minnesota Vikings when a missed tackle allowed Stefon Diggs to score the game-winning touchdown on the final play.
The Saints enjoyed another strong season as they finished the year with a 13-3 record and first-round bye. Highlights of this season included Drew Brees surpassing Peyton Manning for most career touchdown passes during a win against the Washington Redskins; he also beat the Ravens for the first time in his career.
They defeated the defending Super Bowl champion Eagles in the Divisional round, but controversially lost to the Los Angeles Rams, led by 32-year-old head coach Sean McVay, in the title game. Saints fans later cried out against an uncalled pass interference against Rams cornerback Nickell Robey-Coleman call that was a pivotal turning point in the fourth quarter; had the pass interference call been made, the Saints would have likely put the game away by scoring a touchdown, but were forced to settle for a field goal instead, which the Rams easily matched on the next drive to force overtime, in which the Rams won with a field goal. This ruling lead to numerous lawsuits against the NFL from Saints fans and led to a rule change allowing challenge flags to be used on pass interference calls.
In 2019, the Saints had another year of success. Despite losing Drew Brees for five weeks due to a thumb injury against the Rams in Week 2, the Saints went 5-0 under backup quarterback Teddy Bridgewater. The Saints also participated in one of the highest scoring games in NFL history in Week 14, putting up 46 points and two two-score leads against the 49ers, only to lose on a last-second field goal 46-48. Overall, the Saints finished 13-3 and secured their third straight division title. However, despite the Saints acquiring 13 wins, they lost the tiebreakers to the 49ers and Packers, who also went 13-3, marking the first time since 2011 where a team got 13 wins but played in the wild card round (Ironically, the Saints happened to be both teams).
In the Wild Card Round, the Saints played the Vikings, hoping to avenge their divisional loss two years before. Nevertheless, the Vikings would prevail once again, winning a 26-20 overtime contest.
The 2020 season for the Saints went back and forth. Despite starting the season 1–2, the Saints acquired nine straight victories, and were soon atop the NFC. One of the biggest surprises of the year was Week 9 against the Buccaneers. The Saints gave Tom Brady the worst loss of his career, a 38–3 shutdown of the Buccaneers. Midseason, however, Drew Brees fell to a rib injury, and had to rest for four games. Backup Taysom Hill went 3–1 during that span, their only loss against the 3–8–1 Eagles. Overall, the Saints went 12–4, and made history for not only completing the first-ever sweep of the NFC South, but sweeping their division for the first time in franchise history.
The New Orleans Saints won their first playoff game in 2 years with a victory over the Bears in the wild card round, 21–9, but, despite sweeping them in the regular season, the Saints then lost to their division rival and eventual Super Bowl champion Buccaneers in the divisional round, 20–30.
That game marked the end of an era as Drew Brees announced his retirement on March 14, 2021, the 15th year anniversary of him signing with the Saints, on Instagram with the help of his children.
In 2021, the Saints would barely miss the playoffs with a 9-8 record. The team had four different starting quarterbacks because of injuries and Covid-19. After the season head coach Sean Payton resigned.
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