Posted on 09/01/2005 6:17:43 PM PDT by KevinDavis
NEW YORK (Sept. 1, 2005) -- NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue says it's unlikely the Saints will play in New Orleans this season after the devastation Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath inflicted on the city.
"At this point you have to proceed on the assumption ... that they may be unable to play in New Orleans at all for the entire season," Tagliabue said in an interview with CNBC.
"If things evolve in a positive way, then that would be something that we could adjust to. But our assumption is that for planning purposes, we should assume it will be difficult if not impossible to play in New Orleans at all this year."
The Saints will move into a hotel in San Antonio, Texas, this weekend and practice in San Antonio in preparation for their regular-season opener at Carolina Sept. 11. They have spent this week in San Jose, Calif., and played their final exhibition Sept. 1 in Oakland.
But it still hasn't been decided where they will play their home opener Sept. 18 against the New York Giants or play the rest of their games.
The New Jersey Sports & Exposition Authority, which runs Giants Stadium, has offered to host the upcoming Giants-Saints game there. It would likely be played Monday, Sept. 19, because the Jets will play Miami that Sunday at Giants Stadium.
Tagliabue said moving the game to New Jersey was one possibility.
He also said games could be played at another NFL stadium or at a non-NFL stadium. He didn't name any specifically, but the Alamodome in San Antonio seats 65,000 for football, about the same as the Saints' regular home at the Superdome in New Orleans, which was heavily damaged by Katrina.
Tagliabue, who announced that the NFL was donating $1 million to the recovery effort, added that the emphasis should be the total recovery of the region hit by the hurricane. So did Gene Upshaw, the executive director of the NFL Players Association in a statement released, although Upshaw did not immediately say what form the union's help would take.
"We want to really emphasize above all that sport is a small part of life," Tagliabue said. "We want to use are visibility and the respect we have with the public and the respect our teams have to support the national recovery program. That's the big thing."
So for how long must we avoid discussion of all topics other than the hurricane? One week? One month? What?
In other news: Pope prays for world peace.
If they DO leave for LA, SA, or wherever, they won't be coming back...
I agree.
Duh
He's a sharp one, isn't he?
Stinkin' Giants trying to grab another home game.
I bet no one will call them the "aints" this year.
For the first time, the Superdome actually smells worse than the team.
It's unlikely that I will be elected Pope this year.
I love the deep insight.
Sad but true...
It's unlikely that I will be elected Pope this year.
IndpendentMind is probably a soccor fan. LOL
Wasn't the Sugar Bowl played there before the Superdome was built? At any rate, it does, but it faces the same problems as the dome...
Actually, Tulane does NOT have it's own stadium since the Sugar Bowl was 'inactivated' in the mid 70's and torn down in the late 70's/early 80's...Tulane has played their home football games mostly in the superdome with an occasional game at another outside stadium that is small and relatively new the past few years.
This is how I remember it as a Tulane alum from 1981....
Couldn't they use LSU's? The region certainly could use some vestige of normalcy and it would be good for morale.
Despite what the World Almanac may say, I don't think the Sugar Bowl is still standing. Tulane plays its games at the Superdome.
Mississippi -- Jackson/Starkville/Oxford -- are not NFL-sized stadia. LSU's home field in Baton Rouge is -- but yes, Benson has threatened for years to move the team.
The location of the Saints this season will be revealing. They had been talking about moving if the Superdome wasn't replaced, anyway, and Louisiana was making cash payments to them to keep them in New Orleans.
If they want to stay in Louisiana, they'll try to work out a deal to play in Baton Rouge, at LSU's stadium.
Without New Orleans, There isn't enough of a fan base in Louisiana to support a team though, and the recovery of New Orleans is in doubt. Louisiana has about 4 1/2 million people, around one million of which lived in the New Orleans metro area, and which probably produced over half of the revenue for the state.
I can't imagine significant support for a new stadium anywhere in the state at this time. Financially, the state can't do anything right now.
Both San Antonio and Los Angeles are looking for teams. If the Saints play in either of those cities, I wouldn't be surprised to see the situation become permanent.
Bought a car from a Benson dealership when we lived in Boerne NW of San Antonio and the kids received posters of Saints' players. He has been wanting to relocate with SA at the top of the list for sometime.
If they use the Alamodome, sure hope they have better artificial turf then the last game I saw played there in person.
Only if you count new refugees.
He didn't name any specifically, but the Alamodome in San Antonio seats 65,000 for football, about the same as the Saints' regular home at the Superdome in New Orleans
In most seasons, wouldn't a large high school stadium be enough to seat the fans?
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