Roger Goodell, Saints seeking permission to host fans for Week 5 Chargers game

The New Orleans Saints and NFL commissioner Roger Goodell are seeking to host more than 17,000 fans at the Superdome against the Chargers.

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The New Orleans Saints sent a letter to season-ticket holders on Friday informing them of potential changes for Week 5’s game on “Monday Night Football” with the Los Angeles Chargers. With the city moving into Phase 3 of its COVID-19 reopening plan, the Saints filed a formal request with New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell to host fans at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on Oct. 12.

Even NFL commissioner Roger Goodell got involved, emailing Cantrell’s office. His message was referenced in the Saints’ letter, which said:

Roger Goodell emailed the mayor requesting that she allow the fans to attend Saints games, the NFL will have half the teams hosting fans and right now, New Orleans has one of the lowest positivity rates of any NFL city. Goodell was positive to the mayor that we could pull this off safely.

Goodell’s relationship with Saints fans is infamously frosty; not just for his weak response to the 2018 NFC championship game no-call, but for lingering resentment over the 2012 Bountygate debacle. Cantrell made light of his role here, joking in a press conference that she was, “Still a little salty about the flag on the play. I wish he would have said how great he loved the Saints two years ago.”

But back to the Saints’ proposal: they expressed confidence after testing their COVID-19 health and safety procedures during Week 3’s prime-time game with the Green Bay Packers, when 750 family members of Saints players, coaches, and staffers were hosted at the Superdome. Now they want to reach as high as 25% of the Superdome’s maximum occupancy, or about 17,500 fans.

Other NFL venues are beginning to welcome crowds of even larger sizes. Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has boasted that 25,000 fans will crowd AT&T Stadium at their next home game. While it’s still a far cry from the usually-packed arenas you’ll see around the league, it is a step towards that direction.

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