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Week 15’s Monday Night Football feature will highlight a Super Bowl XLIV rematch, with the New Orleans Saints hosting the Indianapolis Colts from inside the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. Monday night’s game will mark just the third matchup between the two teams since the Saints’ 31-17 victory in Super Bowl XLIV nearly a decade ago.

New Orleans has won both of the previous matchups, with many fans probably recalling the 2011 blowout in which the Saints pummeled the Curtis Painter-led Colts 62-7. Both teams played a much more even game during the ir2015 meeting, but New Orleans was able to edge out the 27-21 win on the road.

Both franchises have storied histories, each as unique as the other. But, what has happened to the two franchises since Super Bowl XLIV, when Drew Brees and Peyton Manning last shared the field? And what may lie ahead for both teams?

New Orleans Saints

New Orleans has enjoyed a period of largely sustained success, as they have made the playoffs six times in the ten seasons (including this year) following their Super Bowl victory. There is an argument to be made that in three of those six seasons (2011, 2017, 2018) the Saints were a Super Bowl-caliber team, but we’ll never know given each year’s dramatic playoff exit.

While the six seasons of playoff appearances are the highlights of the last decade, there have been plenty of downs to help offset the positives. The Saints recorded a 7-9 record in each of these seasons they did not make the playoffs, often lowering the bar for historically-bad defense. The Bountygate controversy played some part of that when head coach Sean Payton was suspended for the entirety of the 2012 season.

Despite some blemishes, the last decade has been very good to the Saints. Drew Brees has cemented himself as one of the greatest quarterbacks to play the game after breaking nearly every single record in the book. Now, he will play tonight with one more on the line: the NFL record for career passing touchdowns. He will need three touchdowns to break Colts legend Peyton Manning’s record 539 touchdown passes. There is more than just playoff seeding at stake during Monday night’s matchup. New Orleans are eyeing another Super Bowl run, and looked poised to make a deep playoff push if they can build momentum against the Colts.

Indianapolis Colts

In the ten years following Super Bowl XLIV, the Colts have not quite enjoyed the same successes as their opponent. After their Super Bowl loss, Indianapolis continued to play well as evidenced by making the playoffs in five of those years (2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2018). However, only the 2014 squad truly looked like a contender. The Colts also experienced multiple losing seasons, including a 2011 season which saw them achieve an unsightly 2-14.

While the Saints have enjoyed stability, particularly at the quarterback position, Indianapolis has seen turmoil. Their franchise quarterback Manning left for the Denver Broncos, and his replacement, Andrew Luck, looked like he was making an early case for the Hall of Fame. Instead, Luck retired in 2019, making way for Jacoby Brissett.

Indianapolis is a proud franchise, and will always do whatever it takes to at least be competitive. Despite a huge blow to start the season, the Colts have played to an admirable 6-7, and will look to add New Orleans to their list of beaten foes during primetime on Monday Night Football.

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