Agreed. Not counting the 67-86 nightmare, of which I wasn’t alive for the first 9 years of - There was a brutal stretch from 93-99 where it felt like the Saints were going to always be the dregs of the league.
The franchise had never won a playoff game and it seemed like every move they made only made them more mediocre.
After Ditka, morale was so low as fans that we had gotten completely accustomed to mediocrity.
Also, the 2005 Katrina season was one of the worst morale experiences I’ve ever been though as a fan. I actually wept after the final Tiger Stadium game because it seemed almost a certainty that the team would be moved to San Antonio.