Willie Roaf: Chiefs were great, but the Saints will always be “his” team

"I’m wearing a Saints hat, Roaf said. You know things happen for a reason in life and I had to go through what I had to deal with and I needed a fresh start anyway, went through the knee surgery, went to Kansas City and played hard, and I think the experiences made me a better person. I think if I had to stay on that turf I wouldn’t have made it but another year or two but the fact that I went and played on that grass and played well in Kansas City with that real good group of players for those three of four years, I think that’s what solidified and helped me get in this early."

Roaf played his college football at Louisiana Tech, before coming to the Saints organization. He spent his first nine seasons (1993-2001) in the NFL with the Saints.

He became a starter at offensive tackle his rookie season and never looked back.

In his second season, Roaf was selected to the Pro Bowl for the first of seven consecutive times with the Saints.

In 2002, Roaf went to the Kansas City Chiefs and was selected to the Pro Bowl in all four of his seasons (2002-2005) with the Chiefs before retiring.

While clearly the Chief’s faithful claim Roaf as their own, his latest statement proves that his heart will always belong to the New Orleans Saints.

Roaf will be inducted into the NFL’s Pro Football Hall of Fame as a Saint, joining linebacker Rickey Jackson as the only other “official” Saint player to have been awarded the honor.

Defensive end Doug Atkins, running back Earl Campbell, and running back Jim Taylor are all Hall of Fame players with connections to the Saints, but each played in New Orleans during the twilight of their careers.