Saints and Superdome On the Way Back

In what promises to be an emotionally-charged Monday night, the New Orleans Saints will symbolically rise from the ashes of tragedy as the team returns to the Superdome for a home game for the first time since December of 2004. Making the return even sweeter is the fact that the team has opened the season with two consecutive road wins, and will face off with the Atlanta Falcons for early control of the NFC South.

With the state of the franchise last year, it would have been tough to envision a better scenario for the Saints' return.

Displaced when Hurricane Katrina devastated the area, many thought the Saints might never play in New Orleans again. But the team has sold every ticket this season for the first time in their 40-year history and nearly all the Superdome's 137 suites have been leased. Football appears to be making a comeback in the area, but the future of the team is still in great doubt, and in my view, there's still a good chance The Big Easy won't be home to the Saints five years down the road.

The city has come a long way in a year, but she still has a long way to go. A lot of businesses have been lost and it has been estimated that the population has been cut nearly in half. It's unclear at this time if there's still a strong enough fan base to support the team down the road.

The ticket sales look good now, but what happens when the emotion and civic pride settle down a little? And don't forget the Saints were pushing for a new stadium before Katrina and its aftermath ripped their current facilities to shreds. Raising funds for a brand new state-of-the-art NFL stadium might be impossible for an area that has higher priorities... especially when you take into consideration the money that was just pumped into refurbishing the Superdome.

The Saints' current lease expires in 2010, and it won't be much of a surprise if the team is worked into the NFL's plans to get back into the Los Angeles market.