Aaron Brooks and John Carney to Saints Hall of Fame

The picture you see is a Sports Illustrated cover of the Saints’ first regular season game after Hurricane Katrina. While that was by far Aaron Brooks’ worst season as a Saint as the team went 3-13, they won their first game to go 1-0 on a game winning John Carney field goal thanks to a drive orchestrated by Brooks. It may not have the sizzle of the return to the Superdome a year later and the Steve Gleason blocked punt, but at the time the win meant a huge deal to the fan base. I will never forget that kick Carney made. I choose to remember those two players by that moment.

Of course, Brooks and Carney will both forever be more associated for one negative play each than anything else. In Carney’s case, it was the missed extra point after the River City Relay:

[youtube=://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kTGco82JKHo&w=420&h=315]

In Brooks’s case, it was of course this:

[youtube=://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SHIFLNWZBfA&w=420&h=315]

But that’s not to say these two players weren’t good and didn’t have special moments. Aaron Brooks was the quarterback when the Saints got their first ever playoff victory against the Rams in 2000. Up until the Brees/Payton era started in 2006, the Brooks led victory was the biggest in team history. Carney was also instrumental in 2009 on the Super Bowl team when Garrett Hartley was struggling and he made some kicks before helping Hartley find his groove.

Statistically their inclusion is a no brainer and very little debate can be had when you consider the numbers. Carney is the second highest scorer in team history, behind only Morten Andersen. Carney also made 82.8% of his field goals as a Saint which is best all time with a minimum of 3 attempts (Andersen was 77.6%). Brooks is 3rd all time in passing yards, 2nd all time in passing touchdowns, 4th all time in rating (minimum 300 attempts), and 3rd all time in wins.

When you consider the fact that these two were pretty good players, especially factoring in the woeful state of the franchise before 1987, it’s unfair that they are so often associated with one bad play. In Brooks’ case the grin rightfully catches fan ire as well, but the bottom line is these two guys on the field were some of the best players in our beloved franchise’s history. Especially before the Sean Payton/Drew Brees era in 2006.

Personally I’d like to extend a congratulations to both for the great memories and their time as Saints players. Those seasons were roller-coaster years but there were some truly special memories to hold on to, and these two were a big part of some.