With less than two minutes remaining in the fourth quarter of last season's NFC Championship game, we witnessed one of the worst no-calls in NFL history. With the game tied at 20 points and the New Orleans Saints driving, Los Angeles Rams defensive back, Nickell Robey-Coleman slammed into wide receiver, Tommylee Lewis.
Robey-Coleman did not attempt to look at the ball. He full-on ran through Lewis, causing slight helmet to helmet contact before the pass had even arrived. No flag was thrown. The Saints had to settle for a field goal and the Rams won 26-23 in overtime.
The Saints and the entire city of New Orleans were angry after the loss. I don't believe any of that has changed. Was the loss upsetting? Sure. The three federal lawsuits filed against NFL officials after the game proves that.
According to ESPN and the Associated Press, one of those lawsuits was recently rejected by a judge. While the fans reacted dramatically, no one on the Saints is feeling sorry for themselves. The players want to get back on the football field and show the league that the Saints are a Super Bowl worthy team.
The largest potential distraction of the Saints offseason has also ended. The team gave stud wide receiver, Michael Thomas a five-year, $100 million extension. With the deal done, Thomas will report to training camp. There will be no holdout into the season. Thomas will be right alongside Drew Brees and Alvin Kamara when Week 1 arrives.
Head coach, Sean Payton has to be happy with how the offseason has gone so far. Thomas is committed and the Saints did alright in free agency. While the retirement of Pro Bowl center Max Unger was surprising, New Orleans did a good job of retaining or obtaining role players. The team signed Pro Bowl tight end Jared Cook in free agency. New Orleans also added center Nick Easton to help replace Unger and Latavius Murray to replace Mark Ingram.
The team also drafted versatile offensive lineman, Erik McCoy. McCoy can play at center. The team also selected two safeties to bolster depth at a weak position. Rookie fourth-round pick, Chauncey Gardner-Johnson was a great pickup. He will play a contributing role this coming season.
Look, the Saints were robbed in the NFC Championship game. There's no other way to look at it. Nothing can change the outcome of that game, so there's no point in dwelling on it. Payton and his team have dealt with adversity and failure in the past. Veteran coaches and players know how to handle themselves in tough situations. They use the pain as fuel to drive success in the following season.
Besides, we already saw the Saints bounce back from playoff catastrophe last season. Remember the Minnesota Miracle? That was against the Saints in the divisional round.
Despite that terrible ending to the 2017 season, New Orleans came out and went 13-3 in 2018. One of those losses came in Week 17 when New Orleans was playing a lot of backups as well.
The Saints have dealt with heart-breaking postseason losses in the past. The team has plenty of leaders who will not negatively dwell on the past. The Saints are still hungry for another Super Bowl title.
Make no mistake, New Orleans plans to take no prisoners in 2019.
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