Why the Saints are perfectly built to weather an active hurricane season and COVID-19

As if we needed more to worry about along the Gulf Coast, Mother Nature picked this moment in time to airmail us a pair of vexing storms to stir the pot amid the deadly COVID-19 pandemic.

The nerve of her.

I’m speaking about Marco and Laura.

Marco made landfall Monday night at the mouth of the Mississippi River as a weakened tropical storm after being downgraded from a bare-minimum hurricane overnight.

Laura, after wreaking havoc in the Caribbean as a tropical storm, is forecast to become a Category 3 hurricane and make landfall on the Louisiana or Texas coast late Wednesday night or early Thursday morning.

The experts weren’t kidding when they said this was going to be a hyperactive hurricane season. The end to 2020 can’t come soon enough for me. What say you?

That said, life goes on.

For you, for me, and for the New Orleans Saints who are scheduled to open the season against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sept. 13 (3:25 p.m., Fox) inside an empty Mercedes-Benz Superdome.

The potential for both storms striking in or around New Orleans this week prompted Saints officials to develop evacuation plans, reminiscent of the 2005 and ‘08 preseasons when Hurricanes Katrina and Gustav forced the team to seek safe harbor elsewhere.

On the eve of the 15th anniversary of the Katrina catastrophe, I see no reason to relive the grim details surrounding the Saints’ nomadic 3-13 season in ‘05 and ultimate house cleaning in football operations.

In ‘08, Gustav chased the Saints to Indianapolis where they practiced inside Lucas Oil Stadium for a week before returning to wrap up preparations to play the Buccaneers in Week 1 at the Superdome.

Undeterred, the Saints prevailed, 24-20.

Fortunately, it appears the Saints can stay put as neither storm is expected to alter their practice plans and game preparations for the Buccaneers.

As in dealing with COVID-19 since mid-March, it greatly behooves the Saints organization to have an established and proven head coach (Sean Payton), general manager (Mickey Loomis) and football operations, plus a veteran-packed roster during these uncertain and extremely challenging times.

Other less stable NFL franchises — Cincinnati, Cleveland, Detroit, Miami, New York Jets, Jacksonville and Washington come to mind — aren’t as fortunate.

Saints officials are already ahead of the storms having secured multiple floors for players, coaches and essential workers at a downtown hotel on the outskirts of the French Quarter through the first week of September. Payton has described the optional, temporary housing option as a “soft bubble’‘ for the team to safely and efficiently deal with the many league-mandated protocols stemming from COVID-19.

Whether it’s coronavirus or tropical disturbances or both, Payton is duty bound to keep his players’ collective eyes on the prize. How well Payton and his players do their jobs during these tumultuous and potentially life-changing times will go along way in determining how well the Black and Gold does this season.

Nobody said it would be easy. Then again, nobody said it would be this difficult, either.

For now, it appears the Saints have weathered the storm(s).