It will go down as one of the biggest, boldest calls in Super Bowl history. It will be a play talked about down on the bayou for generations. Sean Payton came out of halftime of SuperBowl XLIV and called an on-side kick. Think about that. This wasn't Week 3 at Buffalo...this was a game with legacies and history on the line.
Down 10-6 at halftime, Sean Payton had to be thinking, 'we don't want to start the 2nd half giving the ball to Peyton Manning and the Colts.' The thought had to be in the back of his mind, 'we can't get down by two possessions.' If the Saints kicked off to start the second half and Manning drove the Colts down for a touchdown, suddenly its 17-6 and you're down two possessions. That means you now have to come up with two scores while not allowing the Colts to put up points on their possessions. That can seem like a pretty tall order.
Can you imagine that conversation at halftime? Picture Sean Payton and special teams coach Greg McMahon huddled quietly off to the side playing rock, paper, scissors to decide if they come out of the locker room with an onside kick. Once it was decided amongst the coaching staff, imagine the scene when they announced the game plan to the entire team, as they sat there in their locker stalls catching their breath. You get the sense with this group of guys, there was a collective cheer. A rallying cry if you will. While everyone got jacked up and was ready to explode out of the locker room, what do you think kicker, Thomas Morestead was thinking? When he heard the 2nd half was going to start with him attempting an on-side kick, I envision a Gatorade spit-take. "Come again coach?" Well, gameplan executed. Saints took the lead. Swagger back and their offense never looked back.
The people of New Orleans are no strangers to courage and overcoming adversity. It's rather fitting that their football team won it's first Super Bowl title by taking on the personality of it's city. A courageous call that will never be forgotten.
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