I’m talking about two things here. One, Why are the New Orleans Saints the home team for the London game against the Chargers? And two, Why does the Saints schedule keep them away from home for 5 straight weeks? Or if you prefer, the Saints will not play in this chocolate city for 37 days in the fall. WTF?
Everyone in the city is thankful and grateful for the “love” that the NFL has shown the city since Katrina. This is not a attempt to diminish or not give the league credit for the attempts at making things work here during our difficult times. Plus I know that sporting event schedules are what they are. But damn, the way this has played out makes no sense whatsoever.
New Orleans is the last city that can “afford” to lose a home game right now. Not for the team, they’ll get their money back from the league. Plus I know that the Saints are honored to be playing overseas. It is an honor and I think everyone here is grateful for this honor. But the local businesses that frankly survive because of Sunday home games won’t be getting a check from the NFL. They will lose a day of revenues that might pay their bills for an entire month. The businesses that operate like squirrels, gathering their nuts all in one day and then slowly using them to survive the rest of the year are SOL. The support staff, the non-profits, the church groups that run concession stands are SOL. Need that week of revenue to keep your business aflot? Too bad sucker. While it is a great opportunity for the Saints and the city itself to be showcased in London, couldn’t the freaking Chargers have been the home team? It makes no sense and frankly is just plain stupid on the NFL’s part.
Now on to the second problem. 5 straight weeks on the road? Hell did the Saints win the Super Bowl and I missed it somehow? Didn’t they finish last season a weak 7-9? Wouldn’t you think that the teams that were successful would be dealing with 5 straight weeks on the road? Yeah I know one week is a bye, but when your at Carolina, London, Bye week, at Atlanta and at KC, it’s five freaking weeks on the road in a row. Again what the hell is going on here?
The people in the city have given up on people giving a crap about us down here. It took awhile but we finally got the point that the rest of America frankly could give a shit about the recovery. There are losers to vote for on American Idol, which holds folks attention much more than rebuilding a city in our own country can. We get it. Don’t like it, but we get it and have accepted it. But damn, when a business like the NFL, which pretty much controls everything in their own power, looks like they knelt down over the city and took a big ole steaming dump, it gets a little frustrating.
