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sports nut: The stadium scene.

The Saints Go Marching HomePlus, how the Colts finally beat the Patriots.

By Josh Levin
Posted Monday, Jan. 22, 2007, at 2:04 PM ET
Bears win. Click image to expand.

With 1:50 to go in the first half, Drew Brees and the Saints offense took the field down 16-0. But then Brees lofted a long third-down pass to Marques Colston, fired to Terrance Copper for another first down, and zipped a slant to Colston to get the Saints in the end zone. In a mere 70 seconds, the Saints had reclaimed their mojo. Chicago was toast.

After that glorious second half—three ankle-breaking Reggie Bush touchdown runs, four Fred Thomas interceptions—it's hard to believe the Bears ever held the lead. But if it weren't for that first-half drive, the Saints might not have won, much less captured the NFC crown by the shocking score of 89-16. For Chicagoans, the 73-point final margin was an unpleasant echo of the Bears' 73-0 victory in the 1940 NFL championship game. Now, in light of Commissioner Roger Goodell's announcement that the Bears must disband forever, it's unclear if anyone in the Windy City will ever smile again. Perhaps it's inappropriate to think about the Bears today, with work sensibly suspended on this (and every subsequent) Jan. 22 so that every American can worship the Saints in the manner they see fit. But if your mind flits to the piteous, downtrodden Illinoisan people, please, pray for them.

OK, that's not exactly how it happened. The Bears beat my New Orleans Saints 39-14. A game that was closer than the score indicated, by the way. (The Saints deserved to lose by, at most, 24 points.) Justin Peters, your gumbo-filled beignets are on the way.

Why did the Saints lose? The fumbles had a lot to do with it, which is particularly vexing considering I explicitly told the Saints not to fumble. Beyond that, I'm not much in the mood for detailed analysis. So, in the interest of balanced subjectivity, I talked to some Bears lovers to find out how Sunday's game looked from the other side. "Drew Brees looked a lot like Rex Grossman," gloated northwest Indiana native Mike DeBonis. Ben Healy, who grew up in Hinsdale, Ill., said: "I think the Bears defense looked great. They took control of the game." When asked if he'd like to thank anyone for Sunday's victory, Healy said he'd "just like to thank the Bears." He also plans to wear a Bears stocking cap for the next two weeks, which he expects to spend "thinking about the Bears a lot and being happy about it."

And that's about all I have to say about that. I will, however, leave Saints fans with two notes of consolation. First, the Saints are a young team with a great coach—they'll be in contention for years to come. Second, professional football is a brutal, incapacitating sport. By "missing out" on the Super Bowl, the Saints players will add years to their lives. Compare that with the fate of, say, Chicago's massive defensive tackle Tank Johnson. Thanks to the Bears' extra-long schedule, by the age of 40 he won't have the joint flexibility to pick up his guns.

New Orleanians can also take a bit of solace in the performance of native son Peyton Manning. After years of close calls and playoff chokes, Manning capped the Colts' comeback from an 18-point deficit with a last-gasp touchdown drive. Indianapolis clinched the game when Tom Brady threw an interception in the final minute. It's worth emphasizing that, unlike my extended Saints reverie above, everything in the previous two sentences is true. The Colts beat the heretofore-invincible Patriots 38-34. Peyton Manning was clutch. Tom Brady choked in the playoffs. Tony Dungy is going to the Super Bowl. Bill Belichick is going home.

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Josh Levin is a Slate associate editor. You can e-mail him at .
Photograph of the Bears' Adewale Ogunleye dumping Gatorade on coach Lovie Smith by Al Bello/Getty Images.
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