History of the St. Louis Rams
The professional American football franchise now known as the Los Angeles Rams played in St. Louis, Missouri, as the St. Louis Rams from the 1995 through the 2015 seasons. The Rams franchise relocated from Los Angeles to St. Louis in 1995 and their last game played at the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis was against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on December 17,2015, which they won, 31–23. The Rams last game as a St. Louis-based club was on January 3,2016, against the San Francisco 49ers at Levis Stadium, but the overall mediocrity of the Cardinals, combined with stadium issues, caused game attendance to dwindle. And once again the Bidwills, the family owned the Cardinals. The cities they looked at included Baltimore, New York City, Cardinals fans were unhappy at losing their team, and Bill Bidipll, fearing for his safety, stayed away from several of the 1987 home games. Their last home game was on December 13,1987, in which the Cardinals won 27–24 over the New York Giants in front of 29,623 fans on a late Sunday afternoon.
Not long after the 1987 season, Bidipll agreed to move to the Phoenix area on a deal with state and local officials. They planned to play at Arizona State Universitys Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe on a basis while a new stadium was being built. Unfortunately for the Cardinals, the savings and loan crisis derailed financing for the stadium, prior to the Rams 1979 Super Bowl season, owner Carroll Rosenbloom drowned in an accident. His widow, Georgia Frontiere, inherited 70% ownership of the team, Frontiere fired her step-son, Steve Rosenbloom, and assumed total control of the franchise. As had been planned prior to Carroll Rosenblooms death, the Rams moved from their home at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum to Anaheim Stadium in nearby Orange County in 1980. Also, Southern Californias population patterns were changing, there was growth in L. A. s affluent suburbs. Anaheim Stadium was originally built in 1966 as the home of the California Angels Major League Baseball franchise, to accommodate the Rams move, the ballpark was reconfigured with luxury suites and enclosed to accommodate crowds of about 65,000 for football.
In 1982 the Coliseum was occupied by the Los Angeles Raiders, the combined effect of these two factors was to force the Rams traditional fan base to be split between two teams. Making matters even worse, at time the Rams were unsuccessful on the field. Although it was not apparent at the time, the Rams loss in the 1989 NFC Championship Game marked the end of an era, the Rams would not have another winning season in Los Angeles for the remainder of the century, and beyond. The first half of the 1990s featured four straight 10-loss seasons, no playoff appearances, the return of Chuck Knox as head coach would not boost the Rams fortunes. Knoxs run-oriented offense brought about the end of offensive coordinator Ernie Zampeses tenure in 1993, general manager John Shaw was perceived by some to continually squander NFL Draft picks on sub-standard talent
2015 NFL season
The 2015 NFL season was the 96th season in the history of the National Football League, and the 50th of the Super Bowl era. The Panthers became the first team since the 2011 Green Bay Packers to win all but one of their regular season games and not win the Super Bowl. During the 2015 season, the Oakland Raiders, the St. Louis Rams, NFL owners eventually only approved the relocation of the Rams, by a vote of 30–2 on January 12,2016. Thus,2015 ended up being the Rams last season in St. Louis, the 2015 NFL League Year began on Tuesday, March 10,2015 at 4,00 p. m. ET. m. ET and trading period for 2015 began, a total of 453 players were eligible for some form of free agency at the beginning of the free agency period. Four players were assigned the franchise tag by their teams. These players were wide receivers Dez Bryant and Demaryius Thomas, linebacker Justin Houston, the player given the transition tag was Charles Clay. On March 19,2015, Clay signed a five-year, $38M contract with the Buffalo Bills, an unusually large number of big name players switched teams via trade prior to the 2015 season.
Eagles coach Chip Kelly used his newly obtained GM powers to make many blockbuster trades, the Philadelphia Eagles traded 2-time All-Pro running back LeSean McCoy to the Buffalo Bills in exchange for linebacker Kiko Alonso. The Eagles traded Pro Bowl quarterback Nick Foles along with their selection in the round of the 2016 NFL Draft to the St. The Saints traded away Pro Bowl guard Ben Grubbs and wide receiver Kenny Stills, the Detroit Lions acquired All-Pro defensive tackle Haloti Ngata from the Baltimore Ravens in exchange for draft picks to help make up for the loss of Ndamukong Suh in free agency. The 2015 NFL Draft was held April 30 – May 2,2015, the draft process began with the NFL Scouting Combine, where draft-eligible players were evaluated by team personnel, which was held in Indianapolis on February 17–23. On October 2,2014, Auditorium Theatre in Chicago was announced as the site of the draft. The previous fifty NFL drafts had been held in New York, in the draft, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers made Florida State University quarterback Jameis Winston the first overall selection.
Training camps for the 2015 season began July 22 and continued through the end of preseason, the normal training camp window ran from late July to late August or early September. Most of the camps had rookies report first, veterans, at that point, some teams practiced versus another organization, like the Bills practiced against the Browns this year. Teams started training camp no earlier than fifteen days before the teams first scheduled preseason game, at that point, the rosters for each team were open to 90 players. Those rosters were cut to 75 by Week 3 of preseason, prior to the start of the regular season, each team played at least four exhibition games
Nnamdi Asomugha
Nnamdi Asomugha is a former American football cornerback. He played college football for the University of California, Berkeley and he played for the Philadelphia Eagles and San Francisco 49ers. For many years he was considered one of the best shutdown corners in the NFL, nnamdi Asomugha was born in Lafayette, Louisiana, to Nigerian Igbo parents. He was raised in Los Angeles, Asomugha attended the University of California, where he played for the California Golden Bears football team. Asomugha graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Interdisciplinary Studies focused on Corporate Finance, Asomugha was the second Cal player to be drafted in the first round of the 2003 NFL draft by the Oakland Raiders. He was moved to cornerback but played sparingly the first two seasons of his career and he became a starter in 2005 and set new highs in tackles with 60 tackles and passes broken up with 14. In 2006, he recorded his first two interceptions against the Cleveland Browns. He got his third interception four weeks against the Pittsburgh Steelers, though the team suffered through a 2-14 season, Asomughas 2006 campaign was his finest yet as he finished the season with 50 tackles, eight interceptions, a sack, a forced fumble and one touchdown.
His interception total tied him for second highest total in the National Football League along with four other players, after the season, Asomugha was invited to the Pro Bowl as an alternate but because of late notice he was not able to attend the annual all-star game. He received the Oakland Raiders Commitment to Excellence Award and was named the teams Most Valuable Player, in addition, Asomugha was selected to Dr. Z Sports Illustrated 2006 All-Pro team as well as The Associated Press 2006 All-Pro Team. Asomugha was selected as the Raiders Team Captain for the 2007 season, opposing quarterbacks tested him only 31 times with a mere 10 completions the entire season. One NFL scout told Pro Football Weekly that Asomugha was thrown at less than any defender in the last ten years in 2007 and he finished the 2007 season with 34 tackles,1 interception and 7 breakups and was named a 2008 Pro Bowl alternate. A free agent in the 2008 offseason, the Raiders placed the franchise tag on Asomugha on February 20,2008.
Asomugha was again selected a captain before the 2008 season. Opposing quarterbacks tested him only 27 times the entire season resulting in just 8 completions, only perennial all-pros Randy Moss and Tony Gonzalez would catch more than one ball on him during the year. New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick said Asomugha is as complete a cornerback as he has all year. He finished the 2008 season with 40 tackles,1 interception,1 forced fumble and he received the Oakland Raiders Commitment to Excellence Award for the second time and was named the teams 2008 Co-Most Valuable Player along with running back Justin Fargas. Asomugha was selected as a starter for the 2009 Pro Bowl and he was selected onto The Sporting News 2008 All-Pro Team as well as the Pro Football Writers Association All-NFL Team for 2008
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U. S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in the central part of the state. The city is a center for the music, publishing and transportation industries and it is known as a center of the country music industry, earning it the nickname Music City, U. S. A. Since 1963, Nashville has had a consolidated city-county government which includes six municipalities in a two-tier system. Nashville is governed by a mayor, vice-mayor, and 40-member Metropolitan Council, thirty-five of the members are elected from single-member districts, five are elected at-large. Reflecting the citys position in government, Nashville is home to the Tennessee Supreme Courts courthouse for Middle Tennessee. According to 2015 estimates from the U. S. Census Bureau, the balance population, which excludes semi-independent municipalities within Nashville, was 654,610. The 2015 population of the entire 13-county Nashville metropolitan area was 1,830,345, the 2015 population of the Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Columbia combined statistical area, a larger trade area, was 1,951,644.
The town of Nashville was founded by James Robertson, John Donelson, and it was named for Francis Nash, the American Revolutionary War hero. Nashville quickly grew because of its location, accessibility as a port on the Cumberland River, a tributary of the Ohio River. By 1800, the city had 345 residents, including 136 African American slaves and 14 free blacks, in 1806, Nashville was incorporated as a city and became the county seat of Davidson County, Tennessee. In 1843, the city was named the permanent capital of the state of Tennessee, by 1860, when the first rumblings of secession began to be heard across the South, antebellum Nashville was a prosperous city. The citys significance as a port made it a desirable prize as a means of controlling important river. In February 1862, Nashville became the first state capital to fall to Union troops, the state was occupied by Union troops for the duration of the war. Within a few years after the Civil War, the Nashville chapter of the Ku Klux Klan was founded by Confederate veteran John W.
Morton, the city had reclaimed its important shipping and trading position and developed a solid manufacturing base. The post–Civil War years of the late 19th century brought new prosperity to Nashville and these healthy economic times left the city with a legacy of grand classical-style buildings, which can still be seen around the downtown area. Circa 1950 the state approved a new city charter that provided for the election of city council members from single-member districts. This change was supported because at-large voting diluted the minority populations political power in the city and they could seldom gain a majority of the population to support a candidate of their choice
Miami Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football franchise based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Dolphins compete in the National Football League as a club of the leagues American Football Conference East division. The Dolphins play their games at Hard Rock Stadium in the northern suburb of Miami Gardens, Florida. The Dolphins and the Atlanta Falcons are the oldest NFL franchises in the Deep South, however, of the four AFC East teams, they are the only team in the division that was not a charter member of the American Football League. The Dolphins team was founded by attorney-politician Joe Robbie and actor-comedian Danny Thomas and they began play in the AFL in 1966. For the first few years the Dolphins full-time training camp and practice facilities were at Saint Andrews School, in 1970 the Dolphins joined the NFL when the AFL–NFL merger occurred. The team made its first Super Bowl appearance in Super Bowl VI, Miami appeared in Super Bowl XVII and Super Bowl XIX, losing both games.
For most of their history, the Dolphins were coached by Don Shula. Under Shula, the Dolphins posted losing records in two of his 26 seasons as the head coach. During the period spanning 1983 to the end of 1999, quarterback Dan Marino became one of the most prolific passers in NFL history, Marino led the Dolphins to five division titles,10 playoff appearances, and Super Bowl XIX before retiring following the 1999 season. During the summer of 1966, the Dolphins training camp was in St. Pete Beach with practices in August at Boca Ciega High School in Gulfport. The Dolphins had a combined 15–39–2 record in their first four seasons under head coach George Wilson, before Don Shula was hired as head coach. Shula was a Paul Brown disciple who had been lured from the Baltimore Colts after losing Super Bowl III two seasons earlier to the AFLs New York Jets and finishing 8–5–1 the following season. Interestingly, Shula got his first NFL coaching job from then-Detroit Head Coach George Wilson, when Shula replaced Wilson at Miami the Colts charged the Dolphins with tampering in their hiring of Shula, costing the Dolphins their first round draft pick in 1971.
Shula introduced himself to the Miami press by saying that he didnt have any magic formulas, Shulas early training camps with the Dolphins, with four workouts a day, would soon be the stuff of sweltering, painful legend. But Shulas hard work paid dividends, as Miami improved to a 10–4 record and their first-ever playoff appearance. The Dolphins were successful in the early 1970s, becoming the first team to advance to the AFC Championship for three consecutive seasons and they captured the AFC championship in 1971 behind quarterback Bob Griese, running backs Larry Csonka and Jim Kiick, and wide receiver Paul Warfield. The AFC Divisional Playoff Game, in which the Dolphins defeated the Kansas City Chiefs, was the longest contest in NFL history, in Super Bowl VI, Miami lost to the Dallas Cowboys 24–3
David Garrard
David Douglas Garrard is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League for twelve seasons. He played college football for the East Carolina University Pirates and he was drafted by the Jacksonville Jaguars in the fourth round of the 2002 NFL Draft, and served as the teams starting quarterback from 2007 to 2010. Garrard was born in East Orange, New Jersey and grew up in Durham, when he was fourteen his mother died of breast cancer, when he began his professional career he created The David Garrard Foundation to promote breast cancer awareness and research. Garrard attended Southern High School in Durham, where he was named an All-America choice by Prep Stars, veteran high school coaches in North Carolina said Garrard possessed one of the strongest arms they had ever seen and compared Garrard to former NFL quarterback Roman Gabriel. Garrard attended East Carolina University, where he played for the East Carolina Pirates football team, although physically larger than most quarterbacks at more than 240 pounds, Garrard displayed exceptional mobility.
Former East Carolina head football coach Steve Logan compared the experience of tackling Garrard to getting hit by a beer truck, Garrard proved durable, starting every game for the Pirates in the 1999,2000, and 2001 seasons. In Garrards sophomore season, he led the Pirates to a 9–3 record with victories over the West Virginia Mountaineers, South Carolina Gamecocks, Miami Hurricanes, and North Carolina State Wolfpack. In the fourth game of the season against Miami, East Carolina came back from a 20–3 deficit to defeat the 13th-ranked Miami Hurricanes, Garrard threw a 27-yard touchdown pass to Keith Stokes for the go-ahead score in the final minutes of the game. ECU was unable to play the home game at Dowdy–Ficklen Stadium on its campus in Greenville, NC. The hurricane prevented the Pirates from returning to Greenville following a victory against South Carolina, leaving ECUs football team stranded in Columbia. East Carolina moved the game against Miami to Carter–Finley Stadium in Raleigh, the victory propelled ECU into the Associated Press college football polls top 25.
The Pirates spent eleven weeks ranked in the AP poll, climbed to as high as 16th in the poll, and finished the regular season ranked 20th. East Carolina dropped out of the top 25 to 27th in the voting after losing 28–14 in the Mobile Alabama Bowl to Texas Christian University, ECU finished 8–4 in Garrards junior season. Garrard capped the season by throwing a touchdown and rushing for another acrobatic TD in a 40–27 victory against Texas Tech in the Galleryfurniture. com Bowl. Garrards senior season began with high expectations but ended in disappointment, although East Carolina averaged more than 35 points per game in 2001, the Pirates finished the season with a 6–6 record. Ironically, the game of Garrards college career pitted him against Marshall University and its starting quarterback, Byron Leftwich. Garrard and Leftwich would eventually be teammates with the Jacksonville Jaguars, in the highest-scoring bowl game in college football history, Leftwich brought Marshall back from a thirty-point deficit to defeat Garrards East Carolina Pirates 64–61 in double-overtime.
Garrard went on to graduate from East Carolina University in 2001 with a degree in Construction Management, Garrard was drafted in the fourth round as the 108th overall pick in the 2002 draft by the Jacksonville Jaguars
Fumble
A fumble in American and Canadian football occurs when a player who has possession and control of the ball loses it before being downed or scoring. By rule, it is any act other than passing, punting, a fumble may be forced by a defensive player who either grabs or punches the ball or butts the ball with his helmet. A fumbled ball may be recovered and advanced by either team and it is one of three events that can cause a turnover, where possession of the ball can change during play. Under American rules a fumble may be confused with a muff, a muff occurs where a player drops a ball that he does not have possession of, such as while attempting to catch a lateral pass or improperly fielding a kicking play such as a punt. Ball security is the ability of a player to control over the football during play. If the ball is fumbled the defensive team may recover the ball, the same is true for the offense, but usually when the offense recovers the ball it simply tries to down it. In American football the offense cannot advance the ball if it recovers its own fumble on fourth down, in American football, there is no separate signal to indicate a fumble recovery.
If the offense recovers its own fumble, the official will indicate the recovery by a signal showing the next down. If the defense recovers the fumble, the official will indicate with a first down signal in the direction the team is driving the ball. Some officials have used a first down signal when the offense recovers its own fumble. This is not the thing as when a forward pass is attempted and is not caught. In this latter case, it is simply an incomplete pass, however, if the receiver catches the ball, but drops it after gaining control of the ball, that is considered a fumble. Any number of fumbles can be committed during a play, including fumbles by the team originally on defense, Most famously, Dallas Cowboys defender Leon Lett fumbled during Super Bowl XXVII while celebrating during his own fumble return. A sometimes controversial rule is referred to as the ground cannot cause a fumble. If a player is tackled and loses control of the ball at or after the time he makes contact with the ground, the player is treated as down and the ball is not in play.
However, in the NFL and CFL, if a ball carrier falls without an opponent contacting him and this is because in those leagues the ball carrier is not down unless an opponent first makes contact, or the runner is out of bounds. If a player fumbles in most other leagues, as soon as the knee or elbow touches the ground and it is possible for the ground to cause a fumble in college football if the ball hits the ground before any part of the ball carriers body touches the ground. An example was the fumble by Arkansas quarterback Clint Stoerner vs. Tennessee in 1998, the effects of fumbles vary when the ball goes out of bounds without being recovered, A fumble going out-of-bounds between the end zones is retained by the last team with possession
New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League as a club of the leagues National Football Conference East division. The team plays its games at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Giants hold their training camp at the Quest Diagnostics Training Center at the Meadowlands Sports Complex. The Giants were one of five teams that joined the NFL in 1925 and their championship tally is surpassed only by the Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears. Throughout their history, the Giants have featured 28 Hall of Fame players, including NFL Most Valuable Player award winners Mel Hein, Frank Gifford, Y. A. Tittle, and Lawrence Taylor. The teams heated rivalry with the Philadelphia Eagles is the oldest of the NFC East rivalries, dating all the way back to 1933, the Giants played their first game as an away game against All New Britain in New Britain, Connecticut, on October 4,1925. They defeated New Britain 26–0 in front of a crowd of 10,000, the Giants were successful in their first season, finishing with an 8–4 record.
In its third season, the finished with the best record in the league at 11–1–1 and was awarded the NFL title. In 1930, there were many who questioned the quality of the professional game. In December 1930, the Giants played a team of Notre Dame All Stars at the Polo Grounds to raise money for the unemployed of New York City and it was an opportunity to establish the skill and prestige of the pro game. Knute Rockne reassembled his Four Horsemen along with the stars of his 1924 Championship squad and told them to score early, like much of the public, thought little of pro football and expected an easy win. But from the beginning it was a one-way contest, with Friedman running for two Giant touchdowns and Hap Moran passing for another, when it was all over, Coach Rockne told his team, That was the greatest football machine I ever saw. I am glad none of you got hurt, the game raised $100,000 for the homeless, and is often credited with establishing the legitimacy of the professional game for those who were critical.
It was the last game the legendary Rockne ever coached, in a 14-year span from 1933 to 1947, the Giants qualified to play in the NFL championship game 8 times, winning twice. During this period the Giants were led by Hall of Fame coach Steve Owen, the period featured the 1944 Giants, which are ranked as the #1 defensive team in NFL history. a truly awesome unit. They gave up only 7.5 points per game and shut out five of their 10 opponents, though they lost 14-7 to the Green Bay Packers in the 1944 NFL Championship Game. The famous Sneakers Game was played in this era where the Giants defeated the Chicago Bears on an icy field in the 1934 NFL Championship Game, the Giants played the Detroit Lions to a scoreless tie on November 7,1943
Touchdown
A touchdown is a means of scoring in both American and Canadian football. Whether running, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, to score a touchdown, one team must take the football into the opposite end zone. The touchdown is scored the instant the ball crosses the plane of the line while in possession of a player whose team is trying to score in that end zone. The play is dead and the scores the moment the ball crosses the goal line in possession of a player. The slightest part of the ball being over the line is sufficient for a touchdown to score. However, only the ball counts, not a players helmet, touching one of the pylons at either end of the goal line with the ball constitutes breaking the plane as well. Touchdowns are usually scored by the offense by running or passing the ball, the defense can score a touchdown if they have recovered a fumble or made an interception and return it to the opposing end zone. Special teams can score a touchdown on a kickoff or punt return, in short, any play in which a player legally carries the ball across the goal line scores a touchdown, and the manner in which he gained possession is inconsequential. A touchdown is worth six points, the scoring team is awarded the opportunity for an extra point or a two-point conversion.
Afterwards, the team scored the touchdown kicks off to the opposing team. This rule was changed to the iteration in 1889. If the teammate could fair catch the ball, he could follow with a try for goal from the spot of the catch, the governing rule at the time read, A match shall be decided by a majority of touchdowns. A goal shall be equal to four touchdowns, but in the case of a tie, in 1881, the rules were modified so that a goal kicked from a touchdown took precedence over a goal kicked from the field in breaking ties. In 1882, four touchdowns were determined to take precedence over a goal kicked from the field, two safeties were equivalent to a touchdown. In 1883, points were introduced to football, and a touchdown counted as four points, a goal after a touchdown counted as four points. In 1889, the provision requiring the ball to actually be touched to the ground was removed, a touchdown was now scored by possessing the ball beyond the goal line. In 1897, the touchdown scored five points, and the goal after touchdown added another point, in 1900, the definition of touchdown was changed to include situations where the ball becomes dead on or above the goal line.
In 1912, the value of a touchdown was increased to six points, the end zone was added
Tackle (football move)
Most forms of football have a move known as a tackle. The primary and important purposes of tackling are to dispossess an opponent of the ball, the word is used in some contact variations of football to describe the act of physically holding or wrestling a player to the ground. In others, it simply one or more methods of contesting for possession of the ball. It can therefore be used as both a defensive or attacking move, in Middle Dutch, the verb tacken meant to grab or to handle. By the 18th century, a use was applied to harnesses or equipment used with horses. Modern use in football comes from the sport of rugby. In any such case, the ball becomes dead, the down is over, a tackle is known as a quarterback sack when the quarterback is tackled behind the line of scrimmage while attempting to throw a pass. A tackle for loss indicates a tackle that causes a loss of yardage for the running back or wide receiver. When a player who does not have the ball is taken down it is referred to as a block.
Tackles can be made by grabbing the ball carriers jersey, as mentioned above, the referee can declare that a play is dead if the ball carriers forward progress has been stopped, even if he has not actually been taken to the ground. To protect players from potentially catastrophic injury, there are restrictions on tackles. At no time may a defensive player tackle a player by grabbing the facemask of their helmet, doing so incurs a 15-yard penalty. A similar penalty is assessed to any player attempting to contact with his helmet against another opponents helmet. Grabbing a ball carrier by the pads behind his neck and pulling him down is known as a horse collar, a method which has been made illegal at all levels of American football. However, in the NFL a player can continue forward for one step, place kickers and punters are afforded an even greater protection from being tackled. Once the play is ruled complete, no contact is permitted, a player who makes contact with an opponent after the play is charged with unnecessary roughness and his team is assessed a 15-yard penalty.
However, a player who plays on the line can block below the knees as long the block is five yards of the line. In the National Football League, tackles are tracked as a statistic by a scorekeeper hired by the home team
New Orleans Saints
The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Saints currently compete in the National Football League as a member of the leagues National Football Conference South division, the team was founded by John W. Mecom Jr. David Dixon and the city of New Orleans. The Saints began play in Tulane Stadium in 1967, the franchise was founded on November 1,1966. The teams primary colors are old gold and black, their logo is a simplified fleur-de-lis and they played their home games in Tulane Stadium through the 1974 NFL season. The following year, they moved to the new Louisiana Superdome, for most of their first 20 years, the Saints were barely competitive, only getting to.500 twice. In 1987, they finished 12–3—their first-ever winning season—and qualified for the NFL playoffs for the first time in franchise history, the next season of 1988 ended with a 10–6 record. In the year 2000, the Saints defeated the St. Louis Rams 31–28 to notch their first-ever playoff win, in 2005, Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans and much of the Gulf Coast region.
The Superdome was used as a temporary shelter for displaced residents. The stadium suffered damage from the hurricane, and from lack of available facilities, however, the Superdome was repaired and renovated in time for the 2006 season at an estimated cost of US$185 million. The New Orleans Saints first post-Katrina home game was an emotionally charged Monday Night Football game versus their division rival, the Atlanta Falcons. The Saints, under head coach Sean Payton and new quarterback Drew Brees, defeated the Falcons 23–3. The 2009 season was a one for the Saints. Winning a franchise-record 13 games, they qualified for Super Bowl XLIV, over the course of 49 seasons, the Saints have compiled an overall record of 331–418–5, with a regular-season record of 324–409–5 and a playoff record of 7–9. First the brainchild of local sports entrepreneur Dave Dixon, who founded the Louisiana Superdome and the USFL. Senator Russell Long, and then–NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle, the NFL needed congressional approval of the proposed AFL–NFL merger.
Dixon and a civic group had been seeking an NFL franchise for over five years and had hosted record crowds for NFL exhibition games. To seal the merger, Rozelle arrived in New Orleans within a week, and announced on November 1,1966, when the deal was reached a week earlier, Dixon strongly suggested to Rozelle that the announcement be delayed until then. Dixon told an interviewer that he cleared the name with New Orleans Archbishop Philip M. Hannan
