The New Orleans Saints came into existence ahead of the 1967 NFL season after the league granted the city a franchise. They derive the name from the city and a calling card of the city’s culture. i.e. Jazz. The name “Saints” came from the Louis Armstrong melody “When the Saints go marching in.”
The song is used as chants at the team’s home stadiums, which have changed twice. The Saints made their NFL bow at the Tulane Stadium before moving to the Superdome where they are based even in the 2020 NFL season.
In the 2005 NFL season, New Orleans had to play their share of home games in New York’s Giants Stadium, San Antonio’s Alamodome, and the LSU Tigers’ Tiger Stadium.
In keeping with the Saints theme, the club’s official launch date was on November 1, known as All-Saints day.
The New Orleans Saints entered the ranks of professional football for the 1967 NFL season. Right from their first game, they retained their black and gold colors. The New Orleans Saints endured two decades of failure and couldn’t make a mark.
They claimed a first divisional title nearly a quarter of a century after making their NFL bow. This didn’t prove to be the kick they needed as they slipped back into oblivion. The Saints ended the 90s with a combined 15-33 record in the 1997, 1998, and 1999 NFL seasons.
The turn of the century brought about the winds of change for ‘The Black and Gold’. After just a solitary post-season appearance, the franchise has transformed into playoff regulars.
Led by long time New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees, and Head Coach Sean Payton led outfit features in the NFC South alongside Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The Saints finished their 2020 campaign with a 12-4 record and placed first in the NFC South. Brees led the franchise to a Wild Card Playoffs win vs the Chicago Bears 21-9. However, they fell to their divisional rival Tampa Bay Buccaneers 20-30 in the Divisional Playoffs.
Gayle Benson is the owner of the New Orleans Saints and NBA side New Orleans Pelicans. She took over the position after her husband Tom Benson died in 2018.
The businessman paid $70 million for the team ahead of the 1985 NFL season.
Benson’s primary aim was to ensure the city had a football team as the previous owners wished to cut their losses. The party interested in the purchase may have moved the team away from its base, which did not sit well with Benson, who took matters into his own hands.
At the time of the purchase, the Saints had yet to make it past the regular season in 18 attempts. Under Benson, the franchise’s fortunes changed as they made it to two playoffs in the next five seasons.
The New Orleans Saints have won the Super Bowl XLIV title for the 2009 NFL season. They beat the Indianapolis Colts – to follow up their maiden Conference Championship win and bring football’s biggest prize to the state of Louisiana for the first time.
Besides the solitary Vincent Lombardi Trophy triumph, the franchise has claimed the divisional title eight times. Furthermore, they have made it to the playoffs 13 times, with eight of these appearances coming after Drew Brees signed with the team ahead of the 2006 NFL season.
Their stronghold on the NFC South since 2002 exhibits the formidable unit they are. Despite sustained dominance in the new millennium, the New Orleans Saints are yet to produce a regular-season NFL MVP winner.
Nine individuals associated with the New Orleans Saints are part of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
The New Orleans Saints’ logo has changed in the NFL seasons that they have been in football. However, the central theme signifying the Fleur-de-lis.
For 33 years from 1967 to 1999, the Fleur-de-lis was black with a tracing of white within the structure.
In the year 2000, the New Orleans Saints introduced their primary color gold to replace the huge chunk of black in the middle.
The dark shade of gold became brighter ahead of the 2002 NFL season. After nine seasons with the crest, the Saints lightened the logo further in 2012. Ahead of the 2017 NFL season, the New Orleans Saints introduced their fifth logo. It featured a unique tinge of gold previously unseen on their logos.
BlockParty, a fan-focused hospitality and entertainment company entered into an exclusive agreement to become the official tailgate and hospitality partner of the Saints. The company will offer a limited three-game release of pre-game hospitality options to Saints fans. Additionally, the New Orleans Saints also have a tie-up with Window World.
Not to mention, the Invisalign brand was named official Clear Aligner Sponsor of the NFL and by extension, the New Orleans Saints. SeatGeek was also named as the Primary Ticketing platform of two New Orleans entities, the Saints and the Pelican.
The roster comprises three quarterbacks, five running backs, six wide receivers, three tight ends, eight offensive linemen, nine defensive linemen, five linebackers, eleven defensive backs, and three special teams players.
| Quarterbacks | 9 Drew Brees 7 Taysom Hill 2 Jameis Winston |
| Running Backs | 32 Michael Burton FB 41 Alvin Kamara 28 Latavius Murray 24 Dwayne Washington 88 Ty Montgomery |
| Wide Receivers | 12 Marquez Callaway 83 Juwan Johnson 11 Deonte Harris RS 17 Emmanuel Sanders 10 Tre’Quan Smith 13 Michael Thomas |
| Tight Ends | 87 Jared Cook 89 Josh Hill 82 Adam Trautman |
| Offensive linemen | 72 Terron Armstead T 73 Ethan Greenidge T 74 James Hurst T 68 Derrick Kelly II G 78 Erik McCoy C 75 Andrus Peat G 51 Cesar Ruiz G |
| Defensive linemen | 90 Malcom Brown DT 92 Marcus Davenport DE 96 Carl Granderson DE 91 Trey Hendrickson DE 94 Cameron Jordan DE 93 David Onyemata DT 98 Sheldon Rankins DT 97 Malcolm Roach DT 99 Shy Tuttle DT |
| linebackers | 47 Alex Anzalone MLB 53 Zack Baun OLB 56 Demario Davis OLB 55 Kaden Elliss OLB 52 Craig Robertson MLB |
| Defensive backs | 25 Ken Crawley CB 22 C. J. Gardner-Johnson SS 48 J. T. Gray SS 34 Justin Hardee CB 20 Janoris Jenkins CB 27 Malcolm Jenkins SS 23 Marshon Lattimore CB 21 Patrick Robinson CB 36 D. J. Swearinger FS 43 Marcus Williams FS 26 P. J. Williams FS |
| Special teams | 3 Wil Lutz K 6 Thomas Morstead P 49 Zach Wood LS |
There are several Player Foundations rooted towards community service including the Brees Dream Foundation that comes in with a mission to improve the quality of life for cancer patients and provide care, education, and opportunities for children and families. Furthermore, the Malcolm Jenkins Foundation transformed its Holiday Relief Initiative to safely feed families during COVID-19.
Not to mention, the Saints use the Ascend Fundraising Solutions platform to allow fans an opportunity to donate to local charitable organizations by participating in an electronic 50/50 raffle. At each game, half of the net proceeds collected will benefit a designated cause.
| Founded | 1966 |
| Owner | Gayle Benson |
| CEO | Ben Hales |
| Head Coach | Sean Payton |
| Stadium | Mercedes-Benz Superdome |
| Location | New Orleans, Louisiana |
| Sponsors | Invisalign, Blockparty, Seat Geek, ReplyBuy, Window World, Budlight, COX, Coca-Cola |
| Championships | League championships (1)
Super Bowl championships (1) 2009 (XLIV)
Conference championships (1) NFC: 2009
Division championships (9) NFC West: 1991, 2000
NFC South: 2006, 2009, 2011, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020 |
| Official Website | New Orleans Saints: www.neworleanssaints.com |