Post-MNF reaction; San Antonio apology?; Jags in lead for L.A. race?

It's pretty blatantly obvious that there were a ton of stories about the Saints, their future in New Orleans, and so on, over the last several days, given the significance of Monday's game against the Falcons.

Rather than throw a lot of those stories on this page, I felt it would be better to let the focus be where it belongs - the Saints are back in the Superdome, in New Orleans, where they belong.

What a spine-tingling night it was.

Needless to say, you know by know how things went down on Sept. 25. You know the Saints are 3-0.

And you know there was a media blitz for the game Monday. It would be impossible to link every story on the Saints' future that came out over the last week. Most of what was written by pundits and said by talking heads relative to the Saints' future can be summarized as follows:
- It's great that the Saints are back in New Orleans.
- The league wanted this to happen, to give the city its team back and provide an opportunity for the state and the region to show it can support the team for the long haul.
- There is uncertainty over the Saints' future.
- The team will probably have until 2010 to determine whether it can stay or not.

One of the more interesting notes that kept coming up in numerous sources is that, by reports, the team announced early this year that it would stay through its current lease with the state, which expires in 2010.

I still haven't seen that announcement, but there's got to be a reason it's being repeated. Which is a good sign.

Of course, Tom Benson and Kathleen Blanco are going to be talking after the season. And there's still that pesky $61 million exit clause that Tommy Boy can exercise if he so desires.

But I'm thinking after Monday night that there's no way on God's green earth that that happens.

Thank God.

(And Paul Tagliabue.)

SAN ANTONIO APOLOGY?
One of the more interesting columns I've read about the Saints is linked here. It's a column by Mike Finger, of the San Antonio Express-News, wherein he admits on behalf of his city that it tried to steal the Saints, and that it should be ashamed.

Finger wrote in terms of the guilty conscience of San Antonio for trying to prevent what happened Monday night. Among Finger's words:

"But we, as a city, also tried to steal their football team. And it's about time we stopped denying it."

"In the eyes of many from New Orleans, Phil Hardberger and San Antonio became villains on par with Michael Brown and FEMA. They accused people here of taking advantage of Louisiana's misery, of using a flood to loot a franchise. And you know what? They were at least partly right."

"It's a good thing we failed."

At least someone from San Antonio has gotten it right.

See the previous post on this site (going through a column by the Express-News' Buck Harvey) for evidence that they are still at work to steal the Saints.

Maybe Monday night changed San Antonio's perspective.

Maybe the vultures have had a change of heart.

We shall see.

JAGS IN LEAD FOR L.A. RACE?
Another very intriguing piece to come out was this one from the Washington Post, about the viability of the Jaguars franchise in Jacksonville.

With the Saints getting back into New Orleans, and if support can remain strong there, it would seem that Jacksonville may take its place among the leaders for the L.A. race. The others would be San Diego (and its tremendous stadium issues amidst that city's recent corruption) and Oakland (Al Davis may push to go back to L.A.).

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