NFL bragging rights to change Sunday

by Reginald Rogers
Paraglide



This Sunday, millions of pro football fans worldwide will be drawn to their TV sets as the American Football Conference champions, Indianapolis Colts face the National Football Champion New Orleans Saints in Super Bowl XLIV.

The game will allow each team to claim its place among the National Football League’s elite as it will be crowned Super Bowl Champions for the 2009-2010 season. But what does it offer to the fans who support these teams throughout the season or the die-hard fans who proclaim their love for their team of choice every single day of the year? The big event actually provides a day of celebratory festivities and a year’s worth of opportunities to brag, boast and belittle fans of arch-rival teams.

I must admit, I am a stone-hearted Dallas Cowboys fan. I mean win or lose, the Cowboys are, without a doubt, my team. I, like any fan, must endure the torture of watching the Boys get destroyed at the hands of (insert team name here) and I may post negative comments on Facebook following a playoff lost to the Minnesota Vikings. But the following week, when there is a game, best believe I am back on the gravy train destined for the “Dallas Palace,” also known as Cowboys Stadium.

So what about the Indianapolis Colts fans, who have endure a year drought from the Super Bowl, following the 1960s, when a quarterback by the name of Johnny Unitas pulled the trigger.

Actually, you’d also have to consider the fact that during that time, the Colts were not the Indianapolis Colts, but were, in fact, the Baltimore Colts. The team left Baltimore in the middle of the night on March 28, 1984, much to the displeasure of the citizens of Baltimore. Until the Colts chose Peyton Manning as its No. 1 pick and the top overall pick in the 1998 draft, Indianapolis had little reason to celebrate. Despite making the playoffs three times during the 1970s, the team’s record over the years between its last winning season and its first after Manning’s arrival in 1998 was a dismal 26-41. After Manning, the team built a formidable offense and an equally dangerous defense with the addition of players like receivers Reggie Wayne and former Colt Marvin Harrison, linebacker Dwight Feeney, running back Joseph Addai and former running mate Edgerrin James, tight end Dallas Clark, cornerback Marlin Jackson and second-year receiver Anthony Gonzalez.

Unitas won a Super Bowl title in 1970 (Super Bowl V), but he won two NFL World Championships, which is what it was called before the term Super Bowl was coined. He also played in 10 pro bowls, from 1957 to 1967. Unitas was also voted Pro Bowl MVP three times, in 1959, 1960 and again in 1963. One distinction Unitas has is that he threw a touchdown in 47 consecutive games between 1956 and 1960. The mark remains untouched, according to Wikipedia. Unitas’ No. 19 jersey was retired in 1973, following his final season, which was played with the San Diego Chargers.

Peyton Manning has set a few records of his own in Indy. Manning claims the single season record for touchdowns thrown, as he tossed 49 end zone bombs in 2004. He has also won a Super Bowl with the Colts, a task he complete in 2007. Manning can all but claim his gold Hall of Fame jacket as he is currently being called the best in the business. Oh and one other thing, Manning has also been selected to 10 Pro Bowls, including this year’s all-star event, which took place Sunday night in Miami.

For Colts fans, the possibility of winning this year’s Super Bowl and the possibility of adding another next season will give them the right to give Indy another name, other than the Home of the Indianapolis 500 moniker – “Titletown.” There are few teams that hold this distinction. Pittsburgh, Dallas, San Francisco and more recently, Foxboro, Mass, home of the New England Patriots, have all staked their claim.

So what about New Orleans? A Super Bowl win would be the city’s first ever, since the team was formed in 1960. After enduring more than two decades of NFL obscurity, the Saints have traveled a long road to build a winning team. Perhaps the final piece to the puzzle was the addition of former San Diego quarterback Drew Brees, who has put up remarkable numbers since joining the team two years ago. Brees has brought leadership to an organization whose previous seasons were so bad, the team was often called “The Ain’ts” by the very fans who will cheer for them this weekend. In the 1970s and early 80s, it was common to hear, “Oh when the Saints, go marching in …You know the Saints ain’t gonna win … “ echoing off the walls of the New Orleans Superdome. Ironically, most of those years during which the team often finished in the NFL’s basement, Peyton Manning’s father, Archie was the team’s star quarterback. It’s not that Manning was bad. He was one of the greatest to play the game. It’s just that the rest of the team was horrible and football, after all, is a team sport.

Now, after the disastrous aftermath and lingering effects of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, the citizens of New Orleans deserve nothing less than a Super Bowl title.

A Super Bowl victory will give New Orleans the opportunity to title itself as America’s City of Perseverance.

New Orleans embodies a die-hard spirit and the city and its people are like no other. The subculture of the Big Easy is, in a sense, indescribable. Where else can you find a city where its citizens dance and play jazz music to commemorate a fallen citizen. Only in New Orleans
If there are any readers who hail from these two cities, I would like to bid you good luck. May the best team and the best city be as one. To the winning fans, until next season, rep your city. For everyone else, until next time, I’m out.