A woman’s right to choose

Drew Brees-Sean Payton: Perfect Partners

Filed under: Saints, Super Bowl

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla.-- We saw Drew Brees on Sunday night hold his son Baylen on the field and whisper to him after winning Super Bowl XLIV and the game's most valuable player award. There was a twinkle in his eyes that set everything around him aglow

And then on Monday morning in his news conference here, Brees cradled his MVP trophy much like he had his son. The glow from the silver prize illuminated his face. The stars on the trophy reflected to form a line of stars on the ceiling above him

Saint Brees.

That is how New Orleans Saints fans now regard him. It is how his coach, Sean Payton, in some ways considers him. And for Brees, the feeling is mutual.

Brees and Payton reminded every NFL team that if you want to get where they just reached, you had better develop an encompassing head coach/quarterback relationship that colors your team. The head coach and quarterback garner much of the credit and much of the blame in any NFL city. That duo's aura -- or lack of it -- sets the template for the entire roster.

You are going nowhere in this league if first you do not have a franchise quarterback. And accompanying it a quarterback/head coach relationship that sets the standard for team-wide relationships.

"With Sean, it's like ESP,'' Brees said. ``We have trust, faith and confidence. I feel like I know the play that's going to be called.''

Brees said that this Saints team "will walk together forever'' even though there certainly will be roster changes next season.

But this Brees-Payton connection looks solid for the next few seasons. And that is great news for both. And for Saints teams to follow.

 

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Saints Fans Welcome Champs Home

Filed under: Saints, NFL Fans, Super Bowl, Super Bowl XLIV Video

NEW ORLEANS -- Why wait until Tuesday for a parade? After all, you can create an impromptu one with two simple ingredients -- a mass of people lining each side of the street and moving vehicles.

And so New Orleans Saints fans gathered on Veterans Memorial Boulevard by the Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, waiting for the team to fly back from Miami in order to give them a champion's welcome. Though the tradition is nothing new; Saints fans have lined this same stretch of road to greet the team after every road game this season.

For a mile and a half, bodies lined the street, nulling any other traffic. Some partied through the night and made it to the airport early in the morning to get a good spot, even though the team didn't arrive until about 3 p.m. On an overpass above the road, drivers turned a highway into a parking lot, getting out of their cars and standing on the overpass in order to look down on the action.

 

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