Alvin Kamara scored on a 3-yard touchdown run in the second quarter. (Source: Rob Krieger)
Alvin Kamara scored on a 3-yard touchdown run in the second quarter. (Source: Rob Krieger)
NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) - On Oct. 5, the Falcons beat the Saints during the Domecoming anniversary game 45-24.
The game commemorated the 20th anniversary of the Superdome’s reopening after Hurricane Katrina.
New Orleans won the original Domecoming in 2006 23-3.
In the first Falcons drive of the game, Bijan Robinson scored on a 59-yard touchdown run to give Atlanta the early edge 7-0.
Robinson would score another touchdown in the contest, and Brian Robinson Jr. would outdo him with three touchdown runs.
Atlanta continued rolling behind quarterback Michael Penix Jr., who returned to the lineup for a 35-14 victory at Green Bay. Penix was an efficient 15 of 20 for 223 yards and a touchdown. His 31-yard scoring strike to Jahan Dotson in the fourth quarter sent Saints fans toward the exits en masse.
Saints running back Alvin Kamara scored his first two touchdowns of the season, the second cutting Atlanta’s lead to 31-17 early in the fourth quarter.
Before tonight, he had not scored a touchdown in more than a year. His last touchdown previously came in Week 1 of last season, when he scored a touchdown against the Arizona Cardinals on Sept. 7, 2025.
For a fourth time in four games, the Saints were playing from behind early — a challenge made more difficult by Daniel Carlson’s missed 52-yard field goal attempt and running back Kendre Miller’s lost fumble on the New Orleans 22-yard line one possession later.
Atlanta cashed in on the turnover when Bijan Robinson made it 14-0 on a 4-yard power run, set up in part by cornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry’s third-down defensive holding penalty.
Pregame ceremonies feature 2006 Saints players
Wearing white jerseys, retired players Drew Brees, Scott Fujita, Scott Shanle, Deuce McAllister, Devery Henderson and Curtis Deloatch joined Gleason on the field before kickoff to lead fans in the club’s familiar “Who dat!” chant. Gleason, using a wheelchair because of ALS, was joined by his son, Rivers, who raised his father’s arm and then pulled it down to signal the start of the chant.
Irma Thomas, a New Orleans native and resident who sang the national anthem when the dome reopened, returned to perform it again.
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell attended, spending pregame warmups on the home sideline conversing with Saints owner Gayle Benson and other dignitaries.
Before the game, Gleason shared a moment with former Falcons punter Michael Koenen outside the dome at the “Rebirth” statue that depicts both players at the moment of the punt block.
Earlier in the day, New Orleans Mayor Helena Moreno gave Gleason a key to the city.
The Saints are home again Sunday to face Kyler Murray and the Minnesota Vikings in a noon game at Caesars Superdome.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
See a spelling or grammar error in our story?Click Here to report it. Please include the headline.