NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Monday Night Football this week is about more than the New Orleans Saints facing the Atlanta Falcons in the Caesars Superdome.
The team is billing the game as bigger than the rivalry and more memorable than any home game in 20 years. It is the Saints’ 2026 Rebirth Celebration, two decades after the post-Katrina reopening of the Dome.
“We are putting on the biggest show and bringing in the most entertainment that we have in 20 years,” Saints Cheer Krewe member Cate Tallant said.
The lineup includes New Orleans music icon Irma Thomas and young pianist River Eckert performing the national anthem, along with reflections on the Dome reopening 20 years ago.
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According to the Saints, Steve Gleason and Curtis Deloach will be honored as legends of the game, along with several members of the 2006 team.
The halftime show will feature Trombone Shorty, Eric Church, two Neville Brothers, Juvenile and more. The Saints Cheer Krewe will take the field for a special performance that includes a revival of “The Saints Are Coming.”
“I’m a part of something bigger because New Orleans is just rooted in so much tenacity,” Saints Cheer Krewe member Taylor Davis said. “They don’t forget. It just means more to be around them, and it brings that tenacity out of me and it makes me want to perform even bigger, brighter.”
Squad members say bringing memories of the 2006 victory back to life and celebrating how far the city has come since Hurricane Katrina is personal.
“I am from New Orleans. I did grow up here, and I saw firsthand what they experienced through Katrina. I think this game means so much to the fans. I hope that they can tell that through my dancing I am feeling the same things and celebrating the same things. That’s what this game is about, celebrating us coming back to the Dome,” Tallant said.
Fans who remember the 2006 Domecoming recall those emotions and are ready to relive history.
“Fresh home from Katrina,” Saints fan Kenya Taylor remembered. “Then we beat the Falcons, so that really was amazing to us … (This) Monday night we will destroy the Falcons.”
Before kickoff Monday, fans can head to Champions Square at 4 p.m. for expanded pregame performances, including a Saints Cheer Krewe show at 4:35 p.m., followed by a fan line dance tutorial.
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