For New Orleans Saints, 'Maybe Next Year' Seems to Be All We Hear

The New Orleans Saints played their first game back in 1967 and ever since New Orleanians have patiently endured the roller coaster ride that has yet to reach a climactic championship prize. It seems that no team has disappointed its fans as much as the Saints.

Personally, I am not a hardcore football fan, but I love to watch. And I must admit that when football fever runs through the Big Easy it definitely affects me. The barber will talk about it, it's on the talk radio, people will ask me about it, and you just feel like these Saints really can make or break some peoples' week.

There's been much said about the Saints' troubles and woes. We've had many letdowns of almost mythic proportions. I will speak in general terms here as I am not a football afficionado.

Sometime's it's so disappointing that it becomes hilarious. Once Jim Mora said in a press conference: "I'm sick of coulda, woulda, shoulda, coming close, if only." He also mixed in some expletives in his frustration.

I've seen pictures of fans putting brown bags on their heads in the Superdome to vent their frustration. Whenever the Saints really disappoint then fans start to wear these rather depressing bags on their heads.

It's a curious social phenomena that even though the Saints have so far been perennial losers in some sense of the word(they never won a Super Bowl), New Orleanians still religiously attend their games. Perhaps it has to do with the name - Saints. It is such an ingrained custom here I guess: going every Sunday to watch the Saints.

I feel sorry for those souls who have passed away and were always hoping the Saints would make it to the big game, to have a chance at least to win it all. Many lives have probably been shortened because of the Saints' letdowns, well at least partly.

A few years back, the Saints made a miracle play at the best possible time, right at the end. After the touchdown the Saints were down 20-19 and John Carney could have easily put the icing on the cake with a field goal to win the game. Oops... nevermind. Talk about a huge letdown.

I've pondered the possible reasons why we seem to always come up short and not get deep in the playoffs. We're 7-7 now, so it's sort of over. Well, to make myself feel a little better I've found a few possible reasons why the Saints are disadvantaged and thus have been wrongfully victimized:

Humid and Hot Climate Zone

The weather down here encourages people to avoid strenuous exercise, because it's just so humid and muggy and sticky and hot most of the time. Players up in Chicago or Minnesota are forced to work out harder to avoid freezing. But when our players go up north they're at least a little more sensitive to that bitter cold.

Indoor Arena

Being indoors may help for the home games, but once we go away and visit the outdoor arenas we are not prepared as much, especially when it's freezing and snowing. Plus it introduces other variables like wind, turf, etc. So maybe we're a little spoiled.

40+ years of bad luck

If your team has been a loser for that long your teams' collective self-esteem is probably a little lower than that of ...say Green Bay. The word Aints has been spread throughout the city and even the players have heard it. So expectations may be a little lower. Oh yeah, plus there's this bad luck voodoo business probably going on, well maybe not that part.

Distractions off the field

Well, hurricanes is one example. When your whole family is being evacuated that probably takes away some concentration.

I don't want to discourage Saints fans, because I think we do have a solid team this year and had some bad luck. Technically we still have a wildcard shot if this-or-that maybe happens and that doesn't happen. You know, I'm pretty sure that next year we have a really good chance, because I hear we're stepping up our defense. Yeah, next year for sure things we'll be different. But as of now I'm putting my faith in our upgraded Hornets.

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