NEW ORLEANS - Jubilant fans greeted the Super Bowl-winning Saints Monday, showering them with "Who Dat!" chants as they returned to their home city as champions.
At a suburban airport, thousands of fans decked in black-and-gold lined the road to cheer their team after its 31-17 win over the Indianapolis Colts.
"The Saints kept hope alive in this city that better days were coming," said Shannon Sims, a 45-year-old criminal court administrator, as she waited for the team. She said the Saints "were the force that kept us moving forward."
The city woke up hoarse, hungover and happy, wondering if that Super Bowl thing really happened.
In the French Quarter, stragglers — decked out in Saints jerseys and team colors_ remaining from the all-night party turned to coffee and beignets as dawn broke.
Richard Bourland said he came from nearby Gulfport, Miss., hoping to see history made and wasn't disappointed. The 57-year-old said he pulled his first all-nighter in at least 15 years celebrating.
"I came because it is a once-in-a-lifetime event," Bourland said as he sipped strong black coffee. "I wanted to experience a miracle and I did. I'm still trying to believe it."
Fans had trouble believing the Saints' Super Bowl victory, the first in their 43-year history — it was, after all, just their ninth winning season. Disbelief did not prevent them from throwing a huge "Lombardi Party," however.