Saints wide receiver Robert Meachem.
Never before have I watched a Saints game like that one. Never before have I experienced so many “I don’t believe it” moments. Never before have I seen the Saints get so many great breaks in one game.
A still-perfect record of 12-0 is a very nice Monday morning realization. One that a lot of people began to doubt would happen when the Saints fell behind by 10 points three times.
Here’s a sampling of comments from my Twitter page during the Saints game:
“Are you crying yet Walker?”
“hey Scott who dat going to be loosing their first game!”
“Who would have thought Redskins would be beating the Saints! Wow! @scottwalker6 do u need a tissue!?”
And here are some of my responses:
“Again, it’s not over.”
“Folks, it’s not a “trap game” until there is an “L” in the column. Relax and enjoy the game.”
“Still a quarter and a half to play. Have you seen the Saints in 4th qtr. this year?”
“Down 7 with more than a quarter to go. Settle down doomsday people.”
“Remember. Jason Campbell is still Jason Campbell.”
I bring this up because so many people who have watched the Saints play all season — people who have seen them almost lose to the Rams and go down 24-3 to the Dolphins — were so quick to lose faith and give up hope. This Saints team has proven it can handle adversity. It can take a team’s best shot and still be standing at the end.
How many clues did we need to know it was the Saints’ day? Wide receiver Robert Meachem stripped the ball away and scored a touchdown on the same play that Drew Brees threw an interception. Shaun Suisham, the Redskins’ soon-to-be-cut kicker, pushed a 23-yard field goal attempt wide right that would have put the game out of reach.
And there were more examples.
My point? Believe.
Believe in this football team. Believe in the players. Believe in the coaches. Believe that this team is special and headed for something great.
Already, the Saints are NFC South Champs, can clinch a first round bye with a win over the Falcons next week and have a two game lead over the Vikings for home field advantage throughout the playoffs. Things look pretty damn good right now.
Now back to Twitter. This was my parting tweet, after the game went final.
“To all those who like to send messages heckling the Saints, in the future please wait until the game ends and they actually lose.”
The Saints are back in the playoffs. That hasn’t happened in back-to-back seasons since 1991-92.
