Put the narrative to sleep. Not for the night, week, month, or year. I mean put it to sleep, sleep. Like, pull the damn plug. The truth is that it's been on its death bed since the Saints ruthlessly ran a then promising Bills' team (my, how things change) into their own turf to the tune of six rushing touchdowns last season, but yesterday proved that whatever life was left in the idea that New Orleans struggles outdoors during games in which the home fans are in need of outerwear is no longer worth living. As if building their own 50 burger with extra cheesing and all the sauce wasn't impressive enough, the Saints felt not one single need to punt on an afternoon in which they spent the entire 4th quarter putting the ball into the belly of the type of running back that makes you refer back to your game program (shoutout, Dwayne Washington). Long story short, the Bengals couldn't even stop them when they were actively pumping the brakes to stop themselves. The bulldozer of momentum that the Saints are typically seen riding in the SuperDome rolled over Cincinnati in every facet of football and Marcus Williams' late second quarter interception-turned-backbreaking Michael Thomas touchdown might as well have served as the height of its powers. As evidenced by the multiple sideline shots of Sean Payton and his stable of thoroughbred running backs (like the one below) laughing and dapping alongside the wreckage, the second half was absolutely nothing more than a formality after the way in which a thorough dismantling of a first half ended.
After the Saints spent basically the entire last week in the news cycle, it feels weird that it's taken until the third paragraph to mention the focal point of those somewhat schizophrenic headlines. However, I think yesterday's demolition of a prospective playoff team really speaks to how quickly the name 'Dez Bryant' made people lose sight of the fact that the Saints were in the midst of a seven game streak that had just been punctuated by a 45 point effort and a double-digit win over the last of the NFL's undefeateds. That's not to say the abrupt subtraction of a high profile addition didn't also have the Who Dat Nation aboard the type of 24 hour emotional rollercoaster that's usually reserved for meth addicts, but the Saints never needed Dez Bryant. And honestly, that makes it all the more awesome that they did feel as though they needed to pay him tribute time, and time, and time again as if - in how long it takes me to remember a stranger's first name - they had already figured him part of the family.
I know there's a very co-dependent/'part and parcel' relationship that exists between a winning culture and winning football team. However, the fact that one day spent inside the doors of the Saints' locker room is all that was needed to turn a potentially problematic personality who may very well never take a single snap in black & gold into a valued member of the organization speaks deafening volumes. As favored teams floundered due to mid-season malaise, the team that actually was due for a letdown game drew motivation from the absence of a player they've embraced as their own despite him providing them nothing more than a little mid-week excitement.
Whether the off-the-field cohesion that had them celebrating with more X's than the groom in the most doomed of marriages is as important as the on-the-field cohesion they displayed in making the Bengals look like a Pop Warner team is a rhetorical question. The fact is, you don't respond to the most disheartening of season-opening defeats with an 8-game win streak without those things working in tandem. If you're looking for the 'TL; DR' version then here it is, in both play and personality, this Saints' team is special and they are proving it on a weekly basis. The reigning Super Bowl champs are up next on the schedule, so I wouldn't suspect a lack of inspiration ahead from what might just be the most dangerous and close-knit of rosters led by someone who's playing like he's 39 going on 25.
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