Baton Rouge, La. ? While the New Orleans Saints played their first game of the season in Louisiana on Sunday, state officials scrambled to make sure it wouldn’t be one of the last.

NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue said he was committed to keeping the team in New Orleans after meeting with team owner Tom Benson, Gov. Kathleen Blanco and other officials.

“The Saints are Louisiana’s team and have been since the late ’60s when my predecessor Pete Rozelle welcomed them to the league as New Orleans’ team and Louisiana’s team,” Tagliabue said. “Our focus continues to be on having the Saints in Louisiana.”

Tagliabue dismissed rumors that the Saints were headed to Los Angeles or elsewhere.

“I think the reports this week about the longterm landing spot being Los Angeles were nonsensical,” Tagliabue said. “L.A. has been the landing spot for the Indianapolis Colts, the Arizona Cardinals, the Seattle Seahawks, the Minnesota Vikings and any other number of teams. And the last time I looked, they were all operating in their communities and L.A. is off the radar screen.”

The Saints moved operations to San Antonio after Hurricane Katrina devastated the city and the Louisiana Superdome. San Antonio Mayor Phil Hardberger has lobbied hard to keep the Saints there, and believes Benson wants to stay in the city as well.

Tagliabue pointed out that under NFL guidelines, Benson is prohibited to talk about moving his team during the season. Still, Benson has made some moves that appear to back up Hardberger’s contention and has come under fire from Saints fans.

Benson’s attorneys sent a letter to state and federal officials Oct. 11, claiming that damages to the team’s training facility while it was used by federal agencies following the hurricane “effectively terminated” the club’s lease for the building. State officials toured the building this week and responded in a letter Friday to Benson that the facility suffered minimal damage and is ready to use.

Tagliabue appointed eight team owners to a New Orleans Advisory Committee, which is to help make decisions about the franchise’s future. He also said the NFL could provide financial assistance to the Saints on a temporary basis.

“I’m very encouraged by the messages I got,” Blanco said after the meetings.

The Superdome, where the Saints normally play their home games, had millions of dollars in damage from the hurricane and during its use as an emergency shelter for 25,000 storm victims. Doug Thornton, regional vice president for the company that manages the Dome, said repairs are underway and the building might be available for use by mid-October 2006

Owner takes swipe at TV crew

New Orleans Saints owner Tom Benson swatted at a New Orleans television station’s camera Sunday and got into an argument with a fan.

The WWL-TV camera crew said Benson lunged at them when they filmed him leaving the Saints game and that the owner then got into a shouting match with a fan. Video of the confrontation shows Benson bringing a raised hand down on the top of the camera before he is eased away from the camera crew, which continued filming.

Benson could not be reached for comment, and Saints officials did not immediately return a call seeking comment.

The team owner is going through a very rough patch with fans and Louisiana officials. The anger toward Benson stems from talks he apparently had with the San Antonio mayor about relocating the team to San Antonio.