What Up With Dat?: My Favorite Games and Other Answers

Below are answers to this weeks reader questions submitted Wednesday. There will be answers to more of your questions later today. Special thanks to all those that participated. Feel free to continue the discussion in the comment section below.

Before getting started today, I just want to give a shout out to Tennessee Saint, who came up with our edited and new What Up With Dat? logo without ever being asked. I love the initiative! 

Favorite game in 2010, 2009, 2008. However, you can only pick games you went to. - Jon B.

2010 - The Cowboys game for sure. I got the rare opportunity to watch it with my family in New York on Thanksgiving and obviously, it had quite an exciting ending. The Steelers game comes in a close second because I got to see some of the players wearing the robes I made for them after the game.  

2009 - Definitely the NFC Championship Game. I don't care whether the Saints gave their best effort or not, it was an emotional roller coaster with a beautiful ending. I will never forget what the Superdome felt like on that night.

2008 - I will say the game against the Chargers at Wembley Stadium just because it was in London and so unique. I doubt I will ever travel that far to see the Saints again. Plus, they won. 

As the years have gone by, CSC has gotten bigger and bigger. It used to be able to get interviews only with guys like Al Woods, etc.; now, players who are actually on the starting roster are giving interviews. Is CSC now becoming well known to the players on the team, and what is the reception of the players to such a devoted and organized Saints blog? - Andrew Tessier

I think there's a compliment in this question somewhere, so thank you! To be honest, our recent success in obtaining interviews may have a bit to do with the lockout. The players don't have any of the coaches in their ear, telling them what they can and can't do. We know Payton doesn't like dot coms. I don't think players are reading Canal Street Chronicles regularly but I'm sure they check in from time to time. Sometimes I go out of my way to show them an article we've written, though it's usually only the nice ones. However, I still don't know whether they realize how large of a community we are here and how much information actually get's filtered through here.  

How do you think the football lockout will affect the Saints chances this year. Has Drew Brees practice sessions had a posotive effect? Assuming there will be a football season this year.   - Mari A.

I think it's important to remember that every team is going through the same thing and experiencing the same problems. So in relation to the rest of the league, I'd say their chances this year are no worse. If anything, I think they're ahead of the curve thanks to the leadership of Drew Brees and Jonathan Vilma. The player practices at Tulane certainly can't be hurting and they seem to be more organized and get more player participation than the other teams doing the same thing. I will also say that if any coaches are breaking the lockout rules and secretly communicating with their players, Sean Payton is probably one of them. He just seems like that kind of guy, and I'm okay with it. 

If all things are equal...which would you rather be: a coach, GM or owner...and why? Please take money off the table for this question as well as fear of being fired.   - Jeff B. 

This question is easier for me to answer than you might think. A coach...with a hands off owner. Let's face it, coaches are the most hands on and have the most day-to-day control of the team and on-field product. I think more than the other three, their actions determine the direction of each game and the entire season. General Managers make personnel decisions but coaches seem to have just as much say in these matters as well so being a coach is almost like getting the best of both worlds. The only reason I'd consider being an owner would be because that inevitably means I'd be filthy rich, but that's off the table as you said. 

Now that there is rarely a post that has 0 comments, when did you realize that you made it?  - CSC M.

I don't think we'll ever have a post with zero comments as long as coldpizza's breathing. Zing! Seriously though, the idea that I've "made it" is pretty funny to me. On a personal level, that term seems to have a celebrity connotation and I would not consider myself famous or well known by any means. If you're referring to the blog as a whole, I still don't think we've reached our full potential. Obviously, being in the locker room after the Super Bowl was just surreal and I couldn't help but think that a silly writer of a blog didn't deserve to be there. It's also a trip sometimes when I meet someone and after getting to know them I learn that they read Canal Street Chronicles or know someone who does. That's always a trip. But in reality, there is a lot more work to be done. I'm never satisfied and I think that's what's driven me to be successful in business and in pleasure.