Alright, Who Dat Nation.
The first two weeks I picked against us.
Detroit?
Unfortunately, Tony was right.
Baltimore?
Tony was wrong — and I’ve never enjoyed being wrong so damn much.
So here we are.
Week 3.
The Raiders are coming to New Orleans 2–0. The Saints are 1–1. And for the first time this season, the boys are coming through that tunnel in the Dome.
I’ve made my pick.
And this time…
TONY’S TAKING THE SAINTS
There you go.
No “prove me wrong.”
No hedging.
No trying to take off the black-and-gold glasses.
Well… maybe they’re still sitting a little crooked on my face.
But I’ve seen enough through two games to believe New Orleans can win this football game.
Tony’s pick: Saints 27, Raiders 23.
And before we get into why, I’ve got to talk about something bigger than Sunday’s game.
Because this week I’ve been thinking about another night in that building.
A night I’ll never forget.
Tony Was There 20 Years Ago
September 25, 2006.
Twenty years ago this week.
If you were in that Dome that night, I don’t have to explain it to you.
You felt it.
And I was there.
The Saints hadn’t played a game in New Orleans since Hurricane Katrina. Our city had been through hell. People had lost homes. People had lost family. Neighborhoods were still trying to figure out what coming back even meant.
Then the Saints came home.
U2 and Green Day played before the game.
The Falcons got the ball.
They couldn’t move it.
Atlanta lined up to punt.
And then…
STEVE GLEASON.
Straight through the middle.
Blocked punt.
Curtis DeLoatch recovered it in the end zone.
TOUCHDOWN, NEW ORLEANS.
The Saints went on to beat Atlanta 23–3.
But those numbers don’t tell you what happened in that building.
I remember the noise.
I remember the feeling.
I remember looking around and realizing this wasn’t just people celebrating a blocked punt.
It felt like an entire city releasing something it had been holding inside for more than a year.
For a few hours, nobody was talking about insurance companies, FEMA trailers, blue roofs or what neighborhood was coming back.
We were Saints fans again.
We were home.
Twenty years later, I can still feel that moment.
And every time I walk into that Dome, some little piece of that night is still there.
That’s why Sunday’s home opener means a little more to Tony this week.
Now Let’s Talk About THESE Saints
Nostalgia isn’t beating Las Vegas.
The Raiders are 2–0 for a reason. They’re coming into New Orleans undefeated, and this isn’t some automatic home-opening victory we’re entitled to because the crowd is wearing black and gold.
But I’ve watched Tyler Shough these first two weeks.
And I’m starting to believe in this kid.
Against Detroit, he threw for 410 yards and three touchdowns and nearly completed an unbelievable comeback.
Against Baltimore, the numbers weren’t as flashy.
They were better where it mattered.
27 of 34.
252 yards.
One passing touchdown.
One rushing touchdown.
Zero interceptions.
And when New Orleans needed him in the fourth quarter?
He delivered.
Again.
Kellen Moore said after Baltimore that the game doesn’t seem too big for Shough. Through two weeks, we’ve seen why.
But Tyler Needs Some Damn Help
Here’s one thing I don’t want Sunday:
Shough running for his life.
Las Vegas can get after the quarterback, and the Saints cannot make a habit of asking their young quarterback to rescue them every fourth quarter.
Protect him.
Get the running game going.
Let Travis Etienne Jr. and that backfield take some pressure off him. Etienne dealt with a hamstring issue this week but practiced fully Friday and carries no game-status designation.
And then find No. 12.
Keep Feeding Olave
Chris Olave had 182 yards against Detroit.
Baltimore made stopping him a priority and he still caught eight balls for 86 yards and scored the touchdown that started that fourth-quarter comeback.
Las Vegas knows exactly where Shough wants to go.
I don’t care.
Find ways to get Olave the football.
But Baltimore also showed us something important.
If everybody concentrates on Olave, Shough is becoming comfortable finding somebody else.
That’s what this offense needs to become.
Not Shough-to-Olave or nothing.
Make defenses cover everybody.
Don’t Let 2–0 Scare You
Las Vegas is undefeated.
Good for them.
They’re also walking into our building.
The Raiders have Maxx Crosby coming after Shough, Brock Bowers creating problems at tight end and enough weapons that the Saints can’t afford one of those sleepy starts we’ve seen these first two weeks. The Raiders’ own preview identifies Crosby and Bowers among the matchup’s central players.
That’s probably my biggest concern Sunday.
STOP WAITING UNTIL THE FOURTH QUARTER.
Detroit taught us that this team won’t quit.
Baltimore taught us that this team can finish.
Now I want New Orleans to show us something else:
Start fast.
Let somebody else spend the afternoon trying to climb out of a hole.
And Let That Dome Be the Dome
The Saints haven’t played at home yet this season.
Sunday changes that.
I want Shough to experience what that building sounds like when the Saints give those people something to believe in.
I want the Raiders dealing with the noise.
I want false starts.
I want Crosby and that defense looking across the line and realizing the Saints aren’t the easy Sunday afternoon somebody might have circled before the season.
And I want the Who Dat Nation involved from the opening kick.
Because I’ve been inside that building when the crowd became part of the football game.
I know what it sounds like.
Twenty years ago, Steve Gleason blocked a punt and that Dome damn near exploded.
Nobody is asking these Saints to recreate September 25, 2006.
You couldn’t recreate it if you tried.
That night belonged to that city, that team and that moment in history. Gleason himself has reflected this week on how that one play became connected not just to his career, but to New Orleans’ recovery.
But Sunday’s team gets a chance to create its own memory.
Tony’s Pick
I’ve got the Saints.
SAINTS 27
RAIDERS 23
I want to see Shough continue growing.
I want Olave involved.
I want the offensive line protecting its quarterback.
I want the defense making Las Vegas earn every yard.
And most of all, I want to see whether the team that fought back in Detroit and finished the job in Baltimore can finally put together four quarters of football.
The Raiders are 2–0.
Let them come in undefeated.
They don’t have to leave that way.
Twenty years ago this week, I sat inside that Dome and watched a football game become something much bigger than football.
Sunday, I’ll be watching again.
Different players.
Different coaches.
Different Saints era.
Same Dome.
Same city.
Same Who Dat Nation.
Tony finally picked the Saints.
Now don’t make me regret it.
WHO DAT! ⚜️
— Anthony “Tony” from the Westbank
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