The Saints: On the Way to the Super Bowl, They're More Than a Football Team; They're Community Heroes

"Only in New Orleans is eating an unhealthy meal an act of civic duty," ESPN's Wright Thompson wrote in the context of the Saints doing their part to support community revival in post-Katrina New Orleans. "We have little gems in this city," the city's #1 chef John Besh told Thompson. "They've delved into it. They understand it. These guys have become part of the community."

From supporting local businesses as regular and loyal customers, to restoring the confidence of a city by playing their game better than ever, to just being part of the city rather than celebrities in it, the Saints have helped New Orleans stage a comeback greater, or at least faster, than most people, and certainly outsiders, probably expected.

Thompson quotes former CNN CEO and native New Orleanian Walter Isaacson saying, "The Saints have been the single most important thing to bring the city together and make us realize why New Orleans is magical." Rita Benson LeBlanc, owner and executive vice president of the Saints franchise, supports local charities and is a beloved local celebrity and hero.

It seems like New Orleans and the Saints have collectively epitomized what true local pride and team spirit should look like. New Orleans has done so much to rebuild itself after the damage wrought by Katrina, and with projects like The Green Project, a lot of it is excitingly sustainable. Though they still have work left to do, if the Saints win the Super Bowl on Sunday, I can't think of a city more entitled to celebrate its team's victory as if it were its own.