Greg McMahon: Unheralded Hero Of Saints’ Super Bowl Victory

There is plenty of praise to go around after the New Orleans Saints' brilliant Super Bowl victory.

Drew Brees has been lauded for his near-perfect second half. Tracy Porter has drawn rave reviews for the extensive film study that led to his game-clinching pick-six. And head coach Sean Payton's shrewd and courageous play-calling has pundits ranking him among the elite postseason coaches in NFL history.

But in a 31-17 win that required excellence in all facets of the game, one of Payton's most vital assistants deserves credit as well.

Run a Google search for "Greg McMahon" and you're more likely to find a press release about a namesake excelling in the consulting business than an article praising the Saints' special-teams coordinator for the outstanding execution of his personnel.

Yet, in what was the biggest game of his four-year tenure with the Saints, McMahon had his players ready to carry out whatever their gutsy head coach had in store.

Payton and McMahon know each other well — their relationship extends all the way back to their playing days at Eastern Illinois University in the late 1970s. McMahon was a defensive back for the Div. II Panthers when Payton was recruited to the team as a quarterback, and he was a member of EIU's 1978 national championship team. McMahon recalls being impressed by Payton immediately, the New Orleans Times-Picayune reports.

"I remember this about him: He had a presence about him, even as a freshman quarterback," McMahon told the newspaper. "He was really sharp. He redshirted the year I was there, but you could tell that he had this aura about him. And here it is, I don't know how many years later, and it's still that way."

The 48-year-old McMahon brought 24 years of collegiate coaching experience with him when he joined the Saints as an assistant special-teams instructor in 2006, the same year Payton was named head coach. McMahon was promoted to the special-teams coordinator position in 2008 and strove to implement the same consistent, opportunistic approach that was a trademark of his special-teams corps at Illinois and East Carolina.

In his first year on the job, McMahon's return unit was the only one to rank in the NFL's top 10 on both kickoffs and punts, largely because of his work in grooming the ultra-talented, yet still raw Reggie Bush. He also was instrumental in helping undrafted kicker Garrett Hartley get acclimated to the NFL in 2008, and the former Oklahoma Sooner rewarded the Saints by going a perfect 13-for-13 on his attempts.

This year put several new challenges on McMahon's plate, yet the veteran was one again up to the task. The Saints had a rookie punter — fifth-round pick Thomas Morstead — and a 45-year-old kicker, John Carney, who was signed because Hartley was dealt a four-game suspension for using a banned stimulant.

While Carney converted 13 of 17 field-goal tries despite diminished leg strength, McMahon worked to keep Hartley focused — knowing that the youngster could regain his role down the stretch and in the postseason. He also helped to ease the jittery Morstead's adjustment to the NFL and to maintain the elite kick-return corps, now led by Courtney Roby. When Hartley returned in Week 12, he was more than ready to resume his duties, going 9-for-11 in the remaining regular-season contests and 2-for-2 in the Saints' first two playoff games, including the game-winning 40-yard boot in overtime of the NFC championship game.

But McMahon's unit saved its best performance for the biggest stage on Sunday. While Payton beat Jim Caldwell and Brees outdueled Peyton Manning, McMahon's special teamers excelled under the radar, exhibiting the superbly polished play that their coordinator preaches and expects.

"I've coached special teams forever, and it's just something I think is unique," McMahon told the Times-Picayune. "It's a phase of football that I have a passion for. I always knew I wanted to coach, and you start down that track and I said, 'That's something I think I've got a passion for, and I've got an aptitude for.' And when you get special teams, you get offense, defense. You've got a kicker, a punter, a long snapper. You've got an elite returner. It's kind of a melting pot of personnel that makes it unique."

On Sunday, McMahon's kicker, Hartley, became the first in Super Bowl history to make three attempts of over 40 yards. His punter, Morstead, averaged 44 yards on two punts, one of which landed inside the Colts' 5-yard line, and perfectly executed an onside kick to begin the second half — the very first onside kick he had ever tried in a game. And his all-purpose man, Roby, averaged 25.5 yards on four kickoff returns, downed a pooch punt at the four and deftly tackled Colts returner T.J. Rushing for no gain on Morstead's other boot.

The Saints had to play flawless football to upset the Colts, and they did — on offense, defense, the sidelines and special teams.

That last aspect is one that is often taken for granted when it works, and lamented when it doesn't. It certainly worked in Super Bowl XLIV.

Brees, Porter and Payton are now royalty in the city of New Orleans.

But it was McMahon's unit that made things easy for the Big Easy.