(My Sportsbook) - Forget about how the New Orleans Saints fell apart in the fourth quarter of Sunday's NFC Championship game. Don't dwell on the countless number of uncharacteristic mistakes Sean Payton's troops made over the course of the day, which ultimately cost the star-crossed franchise its first opportunity to showcase itself on football's biggest stage.

Instead, New Orleans fans, think about all the terrific memories the Saints gave you during this glorious 2006 season.

Like that magical Monday night in September, when the Saints made their much- anticipated return to the rebuilt Louisiana Superdome and rewarded the long- suffering people of New Orleans with a resounding 23-3 victory over the Atlanta Falcons. Or Reggie Bush's dazzling punt-return touchdown to beat Tampa Bay two weeks later. Or the way the team dismantled the Dallas Cowboys in front of a national television audience in December, the game that proved to everyone that the Saints were more than just a feel-good novelty.

Then there was last week's hard-fought triumph over the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Divisional Playoffs, just the second postseason win in the club's 40- year tenure.

Sure, things definitely went wrong for New Orleans in Sunday's season-ending 39-14 defeat to the Chicago Bears. But a whole lot more went right for the Saints in this turnaround campaign.

New Orleans' dramatic reversal of fortunes began with a number of brilliant offseason decisions by general manager Mickey Loomis. The first was to hire the 43-year-old Payton, whose innovative play-calling and ability to relate to his players were an essential ingredient to the Saints' success.

Then Loomis took a chance on free-agent Drew Brees, considered damaged goods by most organizations because of a career-threatening injury to his throwing shoulder that the quarterback suffered in the 2005 regular-season finale. There's little question that move has paid off handsomely.

Lastly, the Saints struck gold in April's college draft, landing a bountiful crop that produced immediate benefits. Bush's selection with the No. 2 overall pick was a no-brainer, but New Orleans wound up with the steal of the draft when it nabbed wide receiver Marques Colston in the late seventh round. The Hofstra product became the first Saints rookie to compile 1,000 receiving yards in a season and led the team with eight touchdown catches.

This year's draft also netted New Orleans two more key contributors in Roman Harper (second round) and Jahri Evans (fourth). Harper immediately claimed the starting strong safety job before suffering a season-ending knee injury in Week 5, while Evans started every game at right guard on an offensive line that jelled into one of the league's better units.

The draft has actually been a boon for New Orleans over the last few years, as director of player personnel Rick Mueller's recent track record has been nearly spotless. In 2005, Mueller took Jammal Brown, who has already emerged into a Pro Bowl left tackle, in round one. The previous year brought another standout performer in defensive end Will Smith, who recorded 10 1/2 sacks this season to garner his first career Pro Bowl berth.

TOUGH TO BEAR

Sunday's title game was characterized by frequent shifts in momentum, as New Orleans dug itself into a 16-0 hole as the first half neared a close, then responded with back-to-back touchdown drives to cut Chicago's lead to two points. The last score came when Brees hit Bush down the left sideline on a wheel route, and the game-breaking rookie outraced the Bear defense for an 88- yard touchdown, the longest play in NFL history for a conference championship contest.

That would also be the final highlight of the day for the Saints, who were outscored 21-0 in the fourth quarter and victimized by miscues and breakdowns throughout the game.

A pair of costly first-half fumbles, one by Colston and another from kick returner Michael Lewis, contributed to the early deficit. New Orleans would turn the ball over twice more during the day, as Brees fumbled while being sacked by Adewale Ogunyele early in the fourth quarter and was intercepted on the Saints' ensuing drive.

"This is not the way we wanted to come out here and play," said offensive tackle Jon Stinchomb. "It doesn't feel much worse."

New Orleans also struggled to stop the run on defense and never really tried to establish a ground game on offense, a curious decision by Payton considering how successful the Saints were running the ball in the win over Philadelphia during the divisional round.

Deuce McAllister had just six carries for 18 yards on Sunday, one week after he piled up a franchise playoff-record 143 rushing yards against the Eagles.

Conversely, Chicago finished with 196 yards on the ground and managed to keep the Saints' potent offense at bay by holding the football for more than 35 minutes.

On the positive side, the Saints still trailed the NFC's top-seeded team by a mere four points heading into the final quarter despite not coming close to playing their best game.

"There was a point in the game where I felt the momentum shifted a little bit in our favor in that third quarter, but we just couldn't capitalize on it," said Payton.

Brees ended with 354 yards and two touchdowns while completing 27-of-49 passes, while Bush amassed game-highs of seven catches and 132 receiving yards.

A LOOK AHEAD

New Orleans led the NFL in total yards and finished fifth overall in points during the regular season, and should return just about everyone from its high-powered attack in 2007. Barring a rash of unforeseen injuries, there's no reason to believe the Saints won't be one of the league's best offenses again next season.

Though much improved from a year ago, the defense could use a shoring up in a few areas, however. The most glaring need is at cornerback, where 11-year- veteran Fred Thomas was picked on constantly by opposing quarterbacks and has clearly lost a step at age 33. The Saints had trouble at times defending the deep pass and could also use more consistency out of second-year free safety Josh Bullocks, who has the speed and instincts to become an above-average player at the position.

Depth at defensive tackle will likely also be addressed in the offseason. Hollis Thomas will be an unrestricted free agent and Brian Young, a high- energy but undersized player, is a very good pass rusher but can be pushed around some at the line of scrimmage. Middle linebacker, where Mark Simoneau is merely adequate, may be another area targeted.

The Saints' most sought-after free agent may be linebacker Scott Shanle, who put together a solid season on the weak side and is a player the team would like to have back.

Provided those holes are filled and Brees remains healthy, New Orleans should remain a major contender in the NFC next season. This is a young and talented team you can expect to be hungry to atone for its disappointing performance in the title game.