2005 New Orleans Saints

The New Orleans Saints have been displaced from the Louisiana Superdome, owing to the devastation caused by the hurricanes and flooding of August 2005. Fortunately, those affiliated with the Saints, the National Football League, and football fans have displayed generosity, flexibility, and patience in rearranging schedules to keep the 2005-06 season on track. This has entailed moving three games to the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas, and four games to Louisiana State University's Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge. Please check this website or call Coast To Coast Tickets' representatives for up-to-date information or tickets to attend the New Orleans Saints' game you want.

A .500 team for the second straight season in 2004, the New Orleans Saints have taken the back road to respectability, in spite of having a legendary quarterback during the team's first dozen seasons. Now, with some playoff appearances under their belt, the Saints approach each season with more confidence. With a solid quarterback in Aaron Brooks and a running back named Deuce, the Saints ought to accomplish something positive in 2005. If you are lucky enough to have an opportunity to get tickets to a Saints game, don't hesitate.

The Saints joined the NFL as an expansion team in 1967. The new club struggled for many years, employing six head coaches, posting 12 consecutive losing records, and averaging only four wins per season from 1967 to 1978. The team's leader during much of this time was quarterback Archie Manning, who won the NFL player of the year award in 1978. The greatest moment in Saints history came on November 8, 1970, when New Orleans kicker Tom Dempsey sealed a 19-17 upset of the Detroit Lions with a 63-yard field goal—the longest in NFL history.

The Saints began playing in the Superdome in 1975, and four years later they recorded their first non-losing mark, finishing with an 8-8 win-loss record under head coach Dick Nolan. The team's woes continued during the 1980s, however, and New Orleans was never able to compile more than 8 wins in a season.

Under head coach Jim Mora, the Saints achieved their first winning record and their first playoff appearance in 1987. A former defensive coordinator for the New England Patriots, Mora was named NFL coach of the year. Running back Rueben Mayes, the 1986 rookie of the year, and wide receiver Eric Martin, a three-time 1,000-yard gainer, anchored the NFC's second-best offense.

Mora steered the Saints to three consecutive trips to the postseason from 1990 to 1992. New Orleans assembled the NFC's toughest defense in 1990 and 1991, led by one of the best linebacker units in the league. In 1992 linebackers Rickey Jackson, Vaughn Johnson, Sam Mills, and Pat Swilling all played in the Pro Bowl, and the Saints led the league in quarterback sacks. Despite its tenacious defense, the team lost in the first round each time it made the playoffs. At the end of the 1996 season, former Chicago Bears head coach Mike Ditka replaced Mora. Ditka was fired after the 1999 season.

Head coach Jim Haslett has an overall winning record in his four years with the Saints, so it's time to start looking for something to happen in the Superdome.

The New Orleans Saints have never played in the Super Bowl.