Who Dat? ......Drew Dat!

Forty-four seconds left on the clock in the 4th quarter. Drew Brees of the Saints takes a knee to let the clock run out. That was it! The Saints had accomplished the improbable. The 5.5 point underdogs had just slayed the juggernaut that was the Colts. Not only were the Saints fans at the stadium in South Beach going berserk, the entire "Who Dat" nation all over the country were set to embark on a never-ending streak of celebration. It truly is 'Lombardi gras' season down Bourbon street in New Orleans. As the clock was winding down to zero, the Saints players completed the ceremonial gatorade shower of coach Sean Payton and along with their friends and families started flooding on to the field. Meanwhile, the Colts players quickly disappeared into the tunnel, dejected and disappointed. In fact, Peyton Manning did not even wait around looking for Brees to congratulate him as is typical football sportsmanship etiquette.

Brees with his teary eyes and his little baby boy in his arms stood around as if in disbelief. You could imagine the surreal feeling inside him, as well as other Saints players and residents of the New Orleans Saints. The city got the ultimate shot in its arm, while still on its road to recovery since that devastating hurricane Katrina, 6 years ago. There were many heroes for the Saints in the game, none bigger than the MVP of the Super Bowl, Drew Brees. It was clinical display for Quarterbacking on his part. You might even say he "Manning'ed" Peyton Manning on this day. After the half, everytime he touched the ball, there seemed to be an imminent threat of the Saints marching down the field and scoring. Every time the Colts scored, he kept coming back and kept the pressure on Peyton until he folded. Brees is, deservedly, now a legend in "Who Dat" Nation.

"Who Dat" in Super Bowl XLIV??

The Super Bowl in Miami!

Two weeks of partying hard in South Beach; the ceremonial (and totally inconsequential) pro-bowl right in the middle; Nation-wide sports writers have only two teams to talk about, and thankfully for many, Brett Favre is not on either of those teams. Add to it all the drama and bulletin board material on media day. Too bad there doesn't seem to be any single person on either team who could deliver saucy "punch lines". Still, I would kill to be down there amidst all those festivities. Especially since I do not have a horse in the game this year, all the hype seem more attractive to me than the actual game. In fact, outside of Colts and Saints fan, most football fans probably can't wait for the draft and the next season to start.

But seriously, the Colts vs Saints match up could very well turn out to be a shootout for the ages. Or could just blow in our faces with a one-sided blowout. It is a rarity that 2 No.1 seeds make the super bowl; has not happened in ages. The Colts are essentially undefeated this year, except for those games Week 16 and Week 17 when the Colts rested most of their starters and threw away those 2 games. Peyton Manning is playing out of his mind. He seems to be picking apart anything that opposing defenses throw at him. It will be a shocker if he lays an egg in one of the 2 biggest games of his life yet, the other being his Super Bowl win a few years ago against the Bears (incidentally also in Miami). The Saints on the other hand have ridden the hot arm of Drew Brees and their imaginative offensive mind of their coach Sean Payton. They love to spread the field with multiple receivers and throw the ball all over.