For some exploration of the possible origins of the Saints-Falcons rivalry, head here and read Bob Krieger's meditation on it, circa 1983. Happy 30th to the Gambit, by the way.

For more recent explorations on said rivalry, head to Cliff's neck of the woods and Coozan Pat's.

But, for a true look at what any sort of "Katrina coverage" in the context of Saints games means, I must refer you to the yaller blogger:

As the Saints embarked on the run that led to their championship last year, the Katrina linkage Godfrey is pronouncing himself brave enough to "call out" as "sloppy grandstanding" wasn't coming from us. It was coming from nationally based commentators and from network television crews covering the games. And it was awful. People could set their game clocks by the first Fox Sports stock footage of flooded homes. There were drinking games themed around it. It was tone deaf and phony and grating and you knew it was coming every time. But anyone with a eye on local coverage or, at the very least, a NOLA-centric Twitter feed knew how annoyed and offended most of us frequently were by it. 

From our perspective, the constant flogging of the Katrina meme not only re-hashed and, in fact, trivialized our experiences here after the flood but also called the focus away from a moment in time we had invested decades of communal yearning in the hope that we'd be around to see. Sure, the flood experience was something we could glom onto that a little but it wasn't the reason for our collective mania. When media people who don't know New Orleans very well watched Saints fans dance and parade in the streets for weeks after the Superbowl (without breaking or burning anything, mind you) the best explanation that fit their understanding was that we were exhibiting some sort of post-traumatic episode. How could they understand that this is just how we are? Not everybody gets it. 

When all is said and done, most longtime Saints fans know how much the Lombardi feather in the Saints' helmets meant to this whole community.  Most also know what it means to have the upper hand in the rivalry the Saints have with the Falcons.  But we also know not to beat someone when they're down, which is what happened to us for so, so long in more ways than just watching and listening to 40-plus football seasons of hurt, with a few too-close playoff appearances thrown in for variety.  People still think parts of this city are underwater five years later, for crying out loud.  The idiocy would be laughable if it weren't so willfully ignorant.

So I see celebrations of the puntalicious and kinda sloppy win the Saints got against their division rivals as being both poignant and yet still fun.

We love our team.  Those fellas love us back.  Keep on keepin' on, you Saints, you.

Update, 1:54 PM: More goodness on the "Katrina coverage" from Varg.

*Thanks to @jacobjmayer for the Saints on the Falcon picture.  This is his version, for your further enjoyment.