To the Unsung Hero, Devery Henderson

Our search for fresh new front page talent here on Canal Street Chronicles continues. In case you missed the introduction to our little talent search, be sure to read it first before continuing. Remember, any and all criticism must be 100% constructive and positive in nature. Keep Da Chronic classy!

Now I present to you the ninth submission of our writer search.

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The team donning the white jerseys appeared anxious, tentative, overwhelmed by the moment. The team in blue on the other hand had dominated the first quarter, led by 10 points and looked like they would run away with Peyton Manning's right; actually, his birthright: a second ring, cementing forever his place among the elite of the elite of quarterbacks in the National Football League. Somewhere in the belly of Sun Life Stadium, the engraver was practicing his carving of the words Indianapolis Colts Superbowl XLIV Champions on the Lombardi trophy.

But then that pesky team from The City that Care Forgot - or is it The City that Never Gives Up - decided that it hadn't gotten the memo. So what if they weren't supposed to fight back? So what if their blood wasn't as blue as those Colts uniforms? It was red and hot, black and gold and by Bacchus, by Laveau and all the New Orleans' saints they'd shed some of it if they had to, but they wouldn't go quietly. And as they started punching back, an unsung hero in an unsung drive answered the call. With 35 seconds left in the first half and trailing by 7, Drew Brees heaved a pass from his own 48 yard line. A leaping Devery Henderson's number 19 flashed across the screen as he went for a gain of 19 yards to the Colts 33. Brees spiked the ball; with 23 seconds to go, they would need another 6 or 7 yards to give kicker Garrett Hartley a shot at something less than a precarious 50-yard field goal. A shot at cutting the deficit to only 4 points, in what looked like a rout early on; 6 more yards to believe that they did indeed belong on this field, on this stage. On 2nd and 10, Brees took the snap in the shotgun, looked to Number 19 and let the ball go: 6 yards reception and the final timeout. From there it would be a 45-yard field goal attempt, well within Hartley's range. After a 1-yard throw and run out of bounce on 3rd and 4, Hartley converted a 44 yard field goal. As the referees whistled for halftime, the Colts were still in the lead, but the Saints had seen the bully bleed. Well after the black and gold confetti had been cleaned from the field, Sean Payton would make the apropos statement that Devery Henderson "quietly had a great game". Henderson finished the game with 7 receptions for 63 yards and his run-blocking was equally crucial to arguably, the Saints most memorable win to date. As we are often mistakenly prone to comparing football fields to battlefields, it dawned on me a few days ago that some of the analogies do apply; Memorial Day is beautiful in that we remember that although generals lead the charge in battle, little-known foot soldiers often are the ones who bring home victory. Devery Henderson might now be departed from this Saints team as we look forward to a new season, but let's remember and appreciate what old Number 19 gave to our beloved New Orleans Saints and to all of us who bleed Black and Gold.