For Saints WR yesterdays preseason opener against the Arizona Cardinals was a night he'd been anxiously waiting for. It was a chance to prove to all the nay sayers from the "Who Dat" nation that he is no bust. With Marques Colston and Devery Henderson sitting this one out, hed have plenty of oppertunity to do so. He'd not disappoint.

Meachem had a few real nice catches but it was the touchdown catch that showed Saints fans what they had hoped to get from the first round pick last season. One that was mired by various injuries which kept him from suiting up the in the regular season.

He caught a short pass over the middle from quarterback Tyler Palko on third-and-6, then broke two tackles and sidestepped at least four others before reaching the pay dirt.

"It's a dream come true. I waited a whole year for that," said Meachem, who caught four passes for 129 yards, including a spectacular 60-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter.

Afterward, the Saints erupted on the sideline and took turns congratulating Meachem. Coach Sean Payton greeted him with a hug. Meachem also made a terrific play in the second quarter, extending his arms to make a diving catch of a 49-yard pass from quarterback Mark Brunell. He beat safety Aaron Francisco down the left side of the field and held onto the ball as he hit the turf at the Cardinals' 3-yard line.
All of Meachem's heroics, however, came after Brees had already set the tone for the Saints' offense on the game's opening drive.

"When your head coach does that, it is special. The support means a lot to me, it really does," said Meachem, the Saints' first-round pick in 2007 who didn't play a down last season, thanks mostly to a nagging knee injury. "This was a great night for me, but it's just the start for me.

My coaches told me to just keep working hard and not be satisfied with this and to use it as a building block."

Although just as Meachem said it's only the beggining of a long road to winning the Saints fans hearts and becoming a house hold name in the "Big Easy." It's a great start though and with some plays like that during the regular season he'll be well on his way.

Meachem is a lock to make the team so all he needs to do is concentrate on producing and becoming the best WR he possibly can. Which last night showed me he is working hard at doing just that. He far outshined any other reciever with TE Mark Campbell who made some tough catches a close second.

One game down and a seasons worth to go. The road to redemption has begun for Meachem and he's accepted the challenge. It's only the beggining hopefully it ends, at least this season with a Super Bowl victory.