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MIAMI – Jeremy Shockey wasn’t sitting in a suite for this Super Bowl. Instead, he was a big part of the New Orleans Saints’ sweetest victory.
Shockey hauled in a touchdown catch for the go-ahead score Sunday night, helping the Saints beat the Indianapolis Colts 31-17 for their first NFL championship.
And for Shockey, that 2-yard score had to feel like redemption.
“A great feeling,” he said. “I work hard in my career, in my profession. … I don’t just do this for the money or anything. I’ve got metal in my leg. I’ve got broken bones. I’ve got ligaments that are torn, and I do this for the love of the game. The passion I have for it, it’s still there.”
Only two short years ago, that passion was in question.
Shockey was with the New York Giants – in name only – when they upset New England in the 2008 Super Bowl. He watched that title game from a suite above the field and felt like an outcast after breaking his left leg and missing their scintillating playoff run.
That essentially set up his trade to New Orleans. This ring, he can say he earned.
“I know there’s a lot of people out there that think, I don’t know, negative thoughts about me,” Shockey said.
But does he feel redeemed as a player now?
“Yes,” he said.
The statistics sheet will say he had only three catches for 13 yards in the title game. The Saints will quickly say that Shockey did so much more than that on the way to this championship.
The Saints were thought of by some as a finesse team until Shockey came along.
Just what New Orleans needed, Saints running back Reggie Bush said.
“I told him, ‘God had a different plan for you,’ ” Bush said.
“He’s got to appreciate it. I know he does. Shockey’s brought so much to this team, an attitude that we definitely needed. … We needed a guy like Shockey to bring that aggressiveness to our offense, and he’s been nothing but special from Day 1.”
On Sunday, Shockey got the best moment of his career.
“To be part of something that’s been building, an organization that’s never had any success in the postseason and being a part of that is very special,” Shockey said.
