It's been 20 years since Saints returned home to the Superdome
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Fans in the Superdome on Sept. 25, 2006. Photo: Bob Rosato/Sports Illustrated via Getty Images
The New Orleans Saints celebrate the 20th anniversary of the team's post-Katrina Domecoming game on Monday.
Why it matters: There were a lot of impossibly tough moments in the months and years after Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans.
- But that moment on Monday Night Football — which introduced Drew Brees to the Superdome and memorialized Steve Gleason as a Saint forever — that was glorious.
Catch up quick: The Saints will play the Atlanta Falcons, the same division rival the team faced in the Domecoming game on Sept. 25, 2006.
- That game was special before anyone took the field that night because it was the Saints' first at home in the Superdome after it had taken a beating during the hurricane and served as a "shelter of last resort."
- The team spent its 2005 season playing home games primarily at the Alamodome in San Antonio and Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge.
State of play: The Saints won that night, fueled from the jump when New Orleans forced the Falcons into a three-and-out to start the game.
- That's when Gleason blocked Atlanta's punt, allowing the Saints' Curtis Deloatch to scoop the ball and bring it in for a touchdown. Watch the replay.
- Fans went nuts, a perfect example of how sports can create, enrich and help heal a community.
The bottom line: It's a big night for the Saints.
Here's how they're celebrating:
- Gleason's nonprofit, No White Flags, hosts a second-line at 3pm Monday, according to Team Gleason. It'll start with remarks by Mayor Helena Moreno at Gallier Hall at 3pm before parading to the Caesars Superdome. The Times-Picayune's Jeff Duncan reports that Brees plans to attend.
- Then, on Monday, Marc Broussard leads a pregame concert at Champions Square. He'll play selections off Gleason's new album, "Rebirth."
- Irma Thomas will join River Eckert for the national anthem.
- Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue headline the halftime show with Eric Church, Kirk Franklin, Juvenile, Cyril Neville and Ivan Neville.
- The Saints will honor Gleason and Deloatch as Legends of the Game. Expect other players from that year to make appearances, too.
How to watch: The New Orleans Saints play the Atlanta Falcons on Monday Night Football at 7:15pm Central.
- Watch on ESPN or tune in locally on WDSU.
Editor's note: The date of Monday's second-line has been corrected.