History of The New Orleans Saints - 1975-79

1975-79

In 1975 the Saints moved from Tulane Stadium into the Louisiana Superdome. Despite the new home, they went just 2-12; North was fired after six games and Ernie Hefferle was named interim head coach for the final eight games of the season.

For the 1976 season, Hank Stram was hired as head coach; he came with a proven track record (three AFL titles, one Super Bowl win) from his years with the Kansas City Chiefs (formerly the Dallas Texans). However, his talents proved ineffective in his first season as the Saints went 4-10; Manning sat out the entire season after undergoing elbow surgery just after Stram's hiring, forcing the quarterback duties to be split by backup Bobby Scott and Chicago Bears castoff Bobby Douglass. 1977 was not much better as the Saints went 3-11, including a humiliating 33-14 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on December 11, the Bucs' first victory in the NFL after 26 consecutive losses.

In 1978 Stram was replaced by Dick Nolan. The season saw an improvement in the Saints' fortunes; Manning had the best season of his career up to that point, passing for 3,416 yards and 17 touchdowns. He was named to the NFC Pro Bowl squad for the first time and was also named the NFC's Most Valuable Player by The Sporting News and UPI. The Saints put together a record of 7-9, their best ever mark. The Saints might have made the playoffs if not had been for a pair of losses to the hated Atlanta Falcons where the Falcons used the "Big Ben" play to score the winning touchdown in the final seconds of each contest, as well as a last-minute loss to the eventual World Champion Pittsburgh Steelers.

In 1979 the Saints built on the success of the previous year. After an 0-3 start (including a 40-34 overtime loss to the Falcons on opening day), the Saints won five of their next six games to take sole possession of the NFC West lead after nine games. The Saints were 7-6 heading into a Monday night game with the Oakland Raiders; their rivals for the NFC West title, the Rams, were 8-6. The Saints jumped out to a 35-14 lead and seemed certain to gain a share of first place with their win. But the Saints blew the lead and lost 42-35. The next week they were blown out 35-0 at the Superdome by the San Diego Chargers, ending their playoff hopes. The Saints, however, did manage to beat the Super Bowl-bound Rams (playing their last game at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum) in the final game of the regular season. This gave them an 8-8 record, the first non-losing season in team history.