It’s been a controversial end to the NFL season for several teams, most recently, the New Orleans Saints. There has been an uproar all over the media over what fans are calling a “blatant interference penalty” that was not called by the officials. The “blown” call came in Sunday’s NFC Championship game as the score was tied and ultimately resulted in overtime for the New Orleans Saints and the Los Angeles Rams. After the play, the Saints kicked a field goal to take the lead, but the Rams answered with a field goal of their own, taking the game into overtime.
Rams went on to win by a score of 26-23. Fans immediately took to social media to let the NFL know they were upset (to say the least) about the call and felt it had cost the team the game. One fan has taken it a step further. Matt Bower, a Louisiana car dealer and apparently a die hard Saints fan, put his money where his mouth is. He put up not one, but two billboards here in Atlanta near the Mercedes Benz Stadium, where Super Bowl LIII will be played February 3rd. Just like ads during the Super Bowl, Atlanta billboard ads leading into the Super Bowl are not cheap.
Despite that, the messages are simple, but powerful. On one Atlanta billboard, the copy reads, “Saints Got Robbed” and staying true to the French roots of New Orleans, another says “NFL Bleaux it!” The signs went up Monday and are scheduled to stay up through the big game. Bowers says he’s taking quite a bit of heat on social media, but not letting it get to him. After the billboards in Atlanta went live, Bowers posted on Facebook, “I have thousands of people hating on me, but not giving a you know what. I’m not over this yet.”
The Rams will take on the New England Patriots in the big game here in Atlanta. Even though Bowers and other Saints fans most likely won’t be rooting for the Rams, New England is easily one of the most hated teams in the NFL, so fans of most other teams most likely will.