Cornerback Tracy Porter and safety Brett Maxie are the latest inductees into the Saints Hall of Fame. The New Orleans Saints made the announcement Wednesday morning.
This remains an exclusive club, with a limit of two players that can be selected to the Saints Hall of Fame to each year. The committee has opted for only one inductee in each of the previous two years, so this breaks the streak of solo inductions.
Tracy Porter is once again etched into Saints history
Porter is part of one of if not the most iconic play in Saints history when he intercepted Peyton Manning in Super Bowl 44. The Saints had just scored a touchdown to take the lead and go up by 7 points. On the ensuing drive, Porter picked off Manning and took it to the house. The score gave the Saints a two-score lead with three minutes left and iced the game.
Porter's interception will go down as the play that clinched the Saints' first and only Super Bowl victory at the moment. It also capped off a special season for Porter. The game prior to the Super Bowl, Porter intercepted Brett Favre in the NFC Championship Game to push the matchup to overtime. With pivotal interceptions versus Favre and Manning, Porter took the mantle of "The Legend Killer" from Randy Orton.
2009 was Porter's best showing before he made it to the postseason. His four interceptions make up half of his career interceptions with the Saints. He also set a career high with 12 pass deflections. He followed that up with the aforementioned two memorable playoff interceptions.
Brett Maxie had a knack for takeaways
When you think about the Saints defense in the mid-80's, you appropriately think of the Dome Patrol linebackers. Maxie was a part of that defense as well and registered 20 takeaways during his time with the Saints.
Maxie registered 15 interceptions over the course of his career. He took the ball to the end zone on three of his interceptions. Maxie also tagged on five fumble recoveries.
In addition to the forced turnovers, Maxie made one of the biggest plays in Saints history as well. He made a tackle on the goal line that secured the first winning season in team history.