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Houma native Joey Wilson got his son, Landon, an iPad for Christmas.
But it’s not what the small boy truly wanted from Santa yesterday morning. What he wants most is a gift that will have to come after the holiday season — one Santa may not have the jurisdiction to give.
Landon Wilson had a Super Bowl victory for the Saints atop his Christmas list this year — a wish that countless other locals hope gets granted in the coming weeks as the Who Dats move into the postseason as one of the top teams in the NFL.
Joey said Landon wrote a letter to Santa asking for the unique gift. The family explained that there were no promises, of course, but that the North Pole would see what it could do.
That was enough for the small boy, who is content to wait it out over the coming weeks.
“He’s all-in,” Joey Wilson said. “You know, he never was big into sports, but this year, a few of his little friends at school started to get on board with it and now, they’re all hooked. He got an iPad, but he also got some Saints gear — a Michael Thomas jersey. I’ve been showing him videos of stuff before his time so that he could appreciate the history of the team, as well.”
Little Landon is a young Who Dat, but other, older fans have eyes on the same thing that Landon does this holiday season — Saints victories and a possible Super Bowl championship.
Houma native Pat Weston said he thinks New Orleans has all of the guns in the arsenal to do it, though he said he’s concerned about the team’s health along the offensive line.
“We’re beat up at the line,” Weston said, pointing to injuries the team has had to endure throughout the year.
But Weston added that he thinks the Saints’ “best game” is better than any other team in the NFL’s “best game,” adding that he doesn’t fear the Los Angeles Rams, Chicago Bears, Dallas Cowboys or any of the other top NFC challengers in a one-game scenario in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.
“I don’t think that any of those teams can come into our dome and beat us if we play the way we’re capable of playing,” Weston said. “At the end of the day, it’s professional athletics and we know that sometimes an upset can happen. But when you’re in the position where anyone beating you is considered a huge upset, that’s a comfortable position to be in.”
Galliano woman Rose Billiot agrees.
She said that she’s watched the Saints for 40-plus years — starting as a little girl and now as an adult. She said she thinks this year’s Saints team is the best of all-time — a chance to be even better than the group that won the franchise’s only-ever Super Bowl in the 2009 season.
“These boys play with so much fire,” Billiot said. “With how last year ended, you can see that they came back focused and they want this really bad.”
Of course, in the NFL, nothing is a sure thing — no matter how good a team is. So what can stand in the team’s way in the next few weeks?
Well, locals had similar answers.
Everyone questioned agreed that the Saints’ strength is its offense, but that an injury to either Drew Brees, Michael Thomas or Alvin Kamara could cripple the offense.
Weston said his concern is more for Brees, who has slowed down significantly in recent weeks after a fast start to the year.
“He’s up there in age,” Weston said. “I just hope he can finish strong.”
“We want him to retire with one more ring,” Billiot added.
Other factors that locals mentioned is the play of the team’s secondary. New Orleans’ defense is vastly improved from where it’d been for a lot of the past half-decade, but elite quarterbacks have still been able to find holes in the secondary at times — especially early in the year.
But New Orleans has progressed throughout the year and hadn’t allowed 20 points in a game in more than a month (our press deadline was before the Steelers’ game).
“They’re getting better every week,” Houma native Mike Guidroz said. “It’s scary to think how good they might be if they can play their best on both sides of the ball in the games that matter the most in the next month that’s ahead.”
“No matter what happens, we’re proud of our boys,” Billiot added. “We’re just happy and grateful that they’ve been able to come this far and do this well. But it sure would be nice to put the star on top of the tree and get that Super Bowl. Boy, wouldn’t that be a nice gift from Santa? We’d sure love to see it.”
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