Monday, September 25, 2006

Reminder of my Sunday pick

Falcons (2-0) @ Saints (2-0), MNF, 8:30PM, ESPNFootball returns to a devastated region

Who woulda thunk when the schedule was announced that this game would be the marquee matchup at this point in the season. Not only are both teams surprisingly undefeated, with Atlanta's record coming courtesy of 2 dominating wins over division rivals Carolina & Tampa Bay and the Saints squeaking by Cleveland and pummelling Green Bay. But this game marks the return of pro football to the region devastated last August by Hurricane Katrina and to the site that became a symbol of government ineptitude and civil unrest, The Superdome. Fitting that the Red-Headed Stepchild that has become Monday Night Football on ESPN has this game, which is drawing media requests from 500+ sources all over the world and from agencies that have nothing to do with sports. A nice In-Your-Face to the glitzy-but-stale Sunday Night production on NBC (I'll take Kornheiser over Madden any day)
This one should have everything a fan could want: Undefeated teams?-check. Starpower? Mike Vick & Reggie Bush-check. Musical heavyweights? How 'bout U2 & Green Day? Emotional ceremonies?-check. Exciting football- remains to be seen, but with the hype and build up it will be hard to imagine a terrible football game. Look for the sheer emotional lift of 65,000+ hope-starved fans cheering their lungs out in unison for both the return of their beloved Saints and the home debut of Reggie Bush to form a wave of noise and luck that will propel the Saints to victory. Nice storyline at least. Hint to New Orleans: watch for the run.
MY PICK: Saints, 27-24

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