San Antonio seeks NFL team

SAN ANTONIO, Dec. 22 (UPI) -- San Antonio, which has been sheltering the New Orleans Saints since Hurricane Katrina, is now making a strong bid to make the team part of their city.

The Texas city's case will be made when a crowd of more than 60,000 is expected Saturday at the Alamodome to watch the Saints play the Detroit Lions. It will be the third time a crowd of that size has watched the Saints in the past three months.

"We've made the case," said Christian Archer, an aide to San Antonio Mayor Phil Hardberger. "We've done everything we can do to prove we're an NFL city. Now it's up to the commissioner," reports the San Antonio Express-News.

NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue has only said the Saints' future will not be decided until next month. But Saints owner Tom Benson is pushing to keep the team in San Antonio at least through next season. Tagliabue met this week with Benson and an eight-owner advisory committee.

But a league spokesman said the commissioner remains focused on returning the Saints to Louisiana next year.