Once famous, the Saints’ ‘Domefield advantage’ is a thing of the past

There was a lot of Detroit Lions blue in the stands for Sunday’s game at the Caesars Superdome, which saw cheers for the New Orleans Saints drowned out by visiting fans.

It’s a real shame. The Saints cultivated a strong “Domefield advantage” for years when Sean Payton and Drew Brees were running the show, making the historic venue one of the NFL’s toughest environments to play in. Derek Carr and Dennis Allen don’t bring the same inspiring presences those two future Hall of Famers once did.

That strong and reliable home crowd is no longer here. And no one knows that better than veterans with local ties like Tyrann Mathieu, who noted the boos from Saints fans when Carr took the field after an early interception. That kind of negative feedback is unpleasant, but it’s what they’ve earned by playing poorly.

“Obviously it’s disappointing. I think we all need to play better. I think growing up in this city, it’s no secret that we’re all invested. Obviously they have a right to apply pressure, so to speak, but at the end of the day we’re one family. One community. It’s going to take all of us,” Mathieu said in his postgame press conference.

He later added, “Obviously we have to play better. We have to give them something to cheer for. We have to give them something to be proud of. And so I think that responsibility falls on us as players.”

Mathieu is right. The Saints haven’t defended their home turf well enough in recent years; they won nearly as many games in 2020 alone (6) as in the last three years combined (8). And that’s creating opportunities for visiting fans to take over games and make their presence felt. Check out the sights and sounds from the game for yourself:

Story originally appeared on Saints Wire