It feels like forever since the Saints have been relevant

[SWJJ]

There is no difference in going 3-13 and 9-8 if the end result is the same. If the Saints don’t win the division, then it’s a failure. A failure that is magnified with a historically easy schedule.

There are no participation trophies.

I wholly disagree. 9-8 and fighting for a playoff spot and having hope is a much more enjoyable season than being 0-6 with no shot and giving up on the season midway thru.

 

[whodatbe]

Are the Saints relevant is an interesting question. If you were talking with national media or other fans, they would probably say no.

Then on the other hand, last 2 seasons, Saints were in it to the end to win the division.

I think certain people have a different, I guess value, of the word relevant. Meaning relevancy is the team makes the playoffs might make some noise or, the team is mention as a SB contender, or consistent 9-8 seasons may or may not be in the playoffs but a winning record.

 

[St. Geezy]

There is no difference in going 3-13 and 9-8 if the end result is the same. If the Saints don’t win the division, then it’s a failure. A failure that is magnified with a historically easy schedule.

There are no participation trophies.

Curious, as I can only see your 2011 SR sign-up date and don't want to surmise that that's how long you've been a fan or that you're very young. How old are you and how long have you been a fan of the Saints?

I can promise you, there is a significant difference between the feeling of 3-13 vs. 9-8.

3-13 usually entails some crazy 0-8/1-7 type start, to where you're not even paying attention the last two months of the year and you're embarrassed to even identify publicly as a fan of the team. Hell, even this very message board would become a ghost town.

 

[los226]

Curious, as I can only see your 2011 SR sign-up date and don't want to surmise that that's how long you've been a fan or that you're very young. How old are you and how long have you been a fan of the Saints?

I can promise you, there is a significant difference between the feeling of 3-13 vs. 9-8.

3-13 usually entails some crazy 0-8/1-7 type start, to where you're not even paying attention the last two months of the year and you're embarrassed to even identify publicly as a fan of the team. Hell, even this very message board would become a ghost town.

I am 39 y/o and have been a Saints fan since elementary. I became a bigger overall NFL fan at 21 y/o when I started gambling on it lol.

My personal feeling about the ‘23 Saints wouldn’t change if they won three or nine games.

I understand what you’re saying about having playoff hopes until the end being the reason that nine wins is better than three wins, but I personally lost playoff hopes after the Bears win.

The loss at GB was terrible!
They won the turnover battle, won the penalty battle, scored a special teams TD, and had a 17pt lead in the final quarter and still lost. Losing Carr late in the game is not a good enough reason to still lose that game. Payton lost Jameis at the beginning of the Tom Brady led TB game and still beat them easily with Trevor Seimian! Good coaches find a way and DA proved what he’s made of with that game.

Then they follow the GB loss with getting blown out by the Bucs at home. DA once again proving what he’s made of coming off the horrible GB loss.

Then, the last straw for me was when the Bagent led Bears came to the dome and turned the ball over five times and the Saints still only beat them by one score. That was a pathetic win.

Those three games were enough for me to see that they weren’t the best team in the division and wouldn’t make the playoffs. Those three games confirmed what we already knew about DA. So, I personally lost playoff hopes mid way through the season.

 

[Bill]

Those three games were enough for me to see that they weren’t the best team in the division and wouldn’t make the playoffs. Those three games confirmed what we already knew about DA. So, I personally lost playoff hopes mid way through the season.

I don't know about other Saints fans, but there was a time (back in the 70s & 80s) when my dream each season was just to see the Saints reach the playoffs. But I have moved on from that simple wish ever since the 2000 season when the Saints defeated the Rams for their first playoff victory. The bar got higher when we made it all the way to the NFC Championship game in 2006. But after having reached the pinnacle in 2009, I no longer think of 'backing into' the playoffs as a satisfying goal anymore.

So once I lose confidence that the Saints are capable of going the distance in the postseason, then missing the playoffs no longer bothers me. While I realize that anything can happen once you make it into the NFL's second season, I can't help but to view a Saints team who has struggled all season long as not being worthy of being in the playoffs.

Do I still want the Saints to make it into the playoffs even after a mediocre season? Of course I do. But I see such a season as being the proverbial 'handwriting on the wall'. I don't get nearly as excited and I 'brace myself' (translated: fully expect) to experience the inevitable early exit from the ranks of the real contenders. For me, it's just hard to get my expectations high for the playoffs when the Saints have proven throughout the season that they aren't ready for postseason glory.

Having seen my team bring home a Lombardi trophy once before has taken away a lot of the pressure & stress of seeing the Saints get back into the postseason. That's why it no longer bothers me when the Saints come close, but (mercifully) fail to make the playoffs. I want our team to be a true contender. So as you mentioned, having witnessed the disappointing losses that were a big part of the 2023 season just made our elimination from the playoffs at the end a lot easier to accept.

 

[SubmarineMike]

In years past, I welcomed the lack of a spotlight on us by the national media. But I found my feelings a bit different heading into last season. It was more of a "hey, don't forget about the Saints".

This year, the lack of media coverage is so obvious, I have to wonder if we're even a franchise anymore. Did Roger and the league drop us and I just didn't know it?

I know people are gonna say it's because of Allen's personality or because of zero playoff appearances the last few years. I get it.

But it just feels like even the really bad teams are getting much more attention this season than we are, and it's kinda pissing me off.

Last year was the "We just need a half-decent QB to complete the puzzle" we are going all the way year. Definitely excited for the beginning of the season.
Year before was the "Jameis is healthy lets goooooooo people don't know what's coming at them!" year. Didn't really pan out as expected, but going to Atlanta for the season opener was fun.

This year? I'm just hoping beyond hope for competence, and for the games to be fun to watch again. The past few years the Saints haven't shown anything that would merit media attention, or at least positive media attention.

 

[St. Geezy]

I don't know about other Saints fans, but there was a time (back in the 70s & 80s) when my dream each season was just to see the Saints reach the playoffs. But I have moved on from that simple wish ever since the 2000 season when the Saints defeated the Rams for their first playoff victory. The bar got higher when we made it all the way to the NFC Championship game in 2006. But after having reached the pinnacle in 2009, I no longer think of 'backing into' the playoffs as a satisfying goal anymore.

So once I lose confidence that the Saints are capable of going the distance in the postseason, then missing the playoffs no longer bothers me. While I realize that anything can happen once you make it into the NFL's second season, I can't help but to view a Saints team who has struggled all season long as not being worthy of being in the playoffs.

Do I still want the Saints to make it into the playoffs even after a mediocre season? Of course I do. But I see such a season as being the proverbial 'handwriting on the wall'. I don't get nearly as excited and I 'brace myself' (translated: fully expect) to experience the inevitable early exit from the ranks of the real contenders. For me, it's just hard to get my expectations high for the playoffs when the Saints have proven throughout the season that they aren't ready for postseason glory.

Having seen my team bring home a Lombardi trophy once before has taken away a lot of the pressure & stress of seeing the Saints get back into the postseason. That's why it no longer bothers me when the Saints come close, but (mercifully) fail to make the playoffs. I want our team to be a true contender. So as you mentioned, having witnessed the disappointing losses that were a big part of the 2023 season just made our elimination from the playoffs at the end a lot easier to accept.

This is a fair assessment, however it should be pointed out that there have been SB Champions/participants or conference title game participants that didn’t look too hot during the season and simply got rolling at the exact right time, so it’s not impossible to fathom.

This isn’t necessarily directed at you, but something I think is a problem with our fans is that our only SB winning experience came with a 13-0 start, so a lot of people think or feel that that’s what a SB season is supposed to look like.

In other words, if the team doesn’t come out firing on all cylinders, dominating most teams they play, dominating in the standings from the start, then the team isn’t worthy of much in their eyes, when the truth is, sometimes becoming a dominant team involves evolving over the course of a season.

 

[Elvis]

The Saints are always relevant to me, they just aren't always good.