New Orleans Saints 2009 Playoffs
The New Orleans Saints playoff history can be described as scarce at best. It took the club 20 years to sell playoff tickets to its first postseason appearance in 1987. That game ended in an embarrassing 44-10 loss to the Minnesota Vikings. The golden age of the Saints came in the early ‘90s New Orleans returned to the playoffs three times in a row. This would be the best run with three exits in the first round in a row under head coach Jim Mora.
The first playoff win came in 2000 in the wild card round against the St. Louis Rams. That season Jeff Blake and Aaron Brooks took snaps at quarterback and Ricky Williams took care of the ground game while Joe Horn earned a Pro Bowl trip with 94 catches for 1,340 yards. The team gave the “Greatest Show on Turf” a surprising early exit. Six years later the Saints hinged their hopes for playoff tickets on Drew Brees and Reggie Bush. The team won the NFC South with a 10-6 record and beat the Eagles after a first round bye. The Chicago Bears ended the postseason experience with a body slam, winning 39-14.
New Orleans Saints Background
This season the Saints have a schedule full of very easily winnable games on the division schedule. The same could be said for last season though, so playoff tickets depend on the team not getting off to a slow start. Drew Brees has plenty of weapons at the Superdome with running back/receiver Reggie Bush and outstanding playmakers downfield in Marquis Colston and Jeremy Shockey.
The offensive side of the ball alone should be able to guarantee them the NFC South division title. To those playoff tickets last the defense will have to resemble the 2006 version ad not the 2007. Charles Grant, Will Smith, Jonathan Vilma, and Scott Fujita should provide plenty of this and be able to stop the run. Questions remain about the secondary though. Despite those questions, the postseason looks pretty good for the New Orleans Saints.