There's an iconic image outside the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, home of the New Orleans Saints. In Champions Square, there's a picture of Tracy Porter clinching the team's 2010 Super Bowl victory with a fourth-quarter interception. There's just one problem.
Running behind Porter is former Saints safety Darren Sharper. Sharper pleaded guilty to rape and sexual assault charges in multiple states, and is not someone the Saints want to be associated with. He's been sentenced to nine years in a federal prison.
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“It’s common sense. We don’t even want the perception that that’s an individual we’re celebrating,” Ben Hales, a team executive, told The New Orleans Advocate.
Hales realizes the image of Porter returning the interception is great, but it's just not worth having the image up there with Sharper being visible.
“The shame of it is, that’s an iconic moment from the Super Bowl. People can probably do the TV and radio call in their head," Hales said. "There just happens to be somebody in the background who is not someone our organization or the NFL Network is likely to be celebrating.”
This isn't the first time someone in charge has wanted to wipe their history clean of Sharper's presence. The College of William & Mary recently removed him from its athletics hall of fame.
