The 2002 season was the New Orleans Saints' 36th in the National Football League (NFL), their 27th playing home games at the Louisiana Superdome, and third under head coach Jim Haslett. They improved upon their previous season's performance of 7–9, winning nine games.2002 New Orleans Saints Despite the winning season, and ranking third in total offense in 2002, the team failed to qualify for the playoffs for the ninth time in the last 10 seasons. This was the first season in which the Saints wore gold jerseys. They did so during a home game against the Minnesota Vikings in week 15. They would not wear them again until the 2025 season
A bright moment during the season for the Saints was sweeping the eventual Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Those two wins were almost guaranteed to make New Orleans a playoff team; however, three consecutive losses, all to losing teams, including one to the 1–13 Cincinnati Bengals, knocked New Orleans out of playoff contention.
Offseason Additions SubtractionsWR Jerome Pathon (Colts) RB Ricky Williams (Dolphins)TE David Sloan (Lions) T Willie Roaf (Chiefs)CB Ken Irvin (Bills) DT La'Roi Glover (Cowboys)WR Jake Reed (Vikings) CB Fred Weary (Falcons)T Victor Riley (Chiefs) DE Joe Johnson (Packers)CB Dale Carter (Vikings) T Daryl Terrell (Jaguars)
NFL draft
Undrafted free agents
+ 2002 undrafted free agents of notePlayerPositionCollegeFrank CutoloWide receiverEastern IllinoisTodd ElstromWide receiverWashingtonChonn LaceySafetyTempleAndrew LeClairLinebackerNorth Dakota StateDerrick LewisWide receiverSan Diego StateJerry MontgomeryDefensive tackleIowaJeff ReedPlacekickerNorth CarolinaRick SherrodSafetyWest VirginiaDemetrius SmithFullbackSouthwest Missouri State
Personnel Staff
Roster
Regular season Schedule Under the NFL's new scheduling formula, the Saints' non-divisional conference opponents in 2002 were primarily from the NFC North, although they also played former divisional rival the San Francisco 49ers from the NFC West, and the Washington Redskins from the NFC East. Their non-conference opponents were from the AFC North.
Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance 1 September 8 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers W 26–20 1–0 Raymond James Stadium 65,554 2 September 15 Green Bay Packers W 35–20 2–0 Louisiana Superdome 67,958 3 September 22 at Chicago Bears W 29–23 3–0 Memorial Stadium 63,216 4 September 29 at Detroit Lions L 21–26 3–1 Ford Field 60,023 5 October 6 Pittsburgh Steelers W 32–29 4–1 Louisiana Superdome 67,734 6 October 13 at Washington Redskins W 43–27 5–1 FedExField 80,768 7 October 20 San Francisco 49ers W 35–27 6–1 Louisiana Superdome 67,903 8 October 27 Atlanta Falcons L 35–37 6–2 Louisiana Superdome 67,883 9 Bye 10 November 10 at Carolina Panthers W 34–24 7–2 Ericsson Stadium 72,566 11 November 17 at Atlanta Falcons L 17–24 7–3 Georgia Dome 70,382 12 November 24 Cleveland Browns L 15–24 7–4 Louisiana Superdome 68,295 13 December 1 Tampa Bay Buccaneers W 23–20 8–4 Louisiana Superdome 68,226 14 December 8 at Baltimore Ravens W 37–25 9–4 Ravens Stadium 69,334 15 December 15 Minnesota Vikings L 31–32 9–5 Louisiana Superdome 67,851 16 December 22 at Cincinnati Bengals L 13–20 9–6 Paul Brown Stadium 43,544 17 December 29 Carolina Panthers L 6–10 9–7 Louisiana Superdome 66,946
Game summaries Week 2: vs. Green Bay Packers
Week 3: at Chicago Bears
Week 4: at Detroit Lions
Week 15: vs. Minnesota Vikings
Standings Division
Conference
References
External links 2002 New Orleans Saints on Pro-Football-Reference.com