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FOXBORO - There is perhaps no stadium in America that has more meaning to the New England Patriots, other than their own, than the Louisiana Superdome.

The Patriots played in their first Super Bowl there in January 1986. The accomplishment was significant, but the outcome (Bears, 46-10) is better left forgotten.

The Patriots' second Super Bowl there wasn't as notorious (save for Desmond Howard's long return), but at least a 35-21 loss to the Packers served as an indication that the team had shed its losing ways and was on the verge of a period of prosperity on and off the field.

And finally, the Patriots' 20-17 victory over the Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI almost seven years ago signaled the start of a dynasty.

Somehow it has all come back to New Orleans for the Patriots - even though they rarely play the team that calls the Big Easy home. Indeed, it was 11 years ago when the Patriots (then on Pete Carroll's watch) last played the Saints in the Superdome, a 30-27 win. Tonight, a championship venue will have a game worthy of champions played within it.

The Saints are 10-0, clinging to the status of being the last NFC unbeaten team. The Patriots are 7-3, but starting to show signs that they will contend to play in the final game of the season, two months from now in Miami.

"It's a huge game and they're a real good football team," Patriots' coach Bill Belichick said of tonight's nationally televised game from the Superdome (8:30 p.m.; Ch. 5, ESPN). "They are undefeated, they're playing at home and it's Monday night. They are a hard team to stop and I just think it's going to come down to everybody doing their job."

"Undefeated" is a word not heard often in New Orleans. The Saints are one of just five NFL teams that have never played in a Super Bowl, and as veteran safety Darren Sharper said, it's almost regarded as a curse or a jinx to acknowledge the team's current success.

"You don't hear it too often," he said. "You know the fact that the team we're playing Monday has done it recently, you heard about it more. But before that, you didn't hear about a team going undefeated. You didn't imagine a team doing that. And to have a chance to be able to do that is something you have to cherish, appreciate and go out there and take the task head-on and know that it's not going to be easy. But if you do accomplish that goal, it's something no one can take from you."

As Belichick said last week, New Orleans is putting up offensive numbers similar to the 2007 Patriots for a reason. Drew Brees is the closest any team has come yet to duplicating what Tom Brady means to the Patriots.

But he's not alone.

"It's not one guy you've got to gang up on," Belichick said. "They're all good - the quarterback is good, the running backs (Reggie Bush, Pierre Thomas, Mike Bell) are good, the tight ends (Jeremy Shockey, ex-Patriot David Thomas) are good, the offensive line is good, the receivers are good. They have a good scheme. Sean (Payton, head coach) is an excellent coach that puts a lot of pressure on the defense from an X and O standpoint. He forces you to deal with a lot of different concepts, a lot of formations, a lot of personnel groupings, all those things, so it's really hard to single out one of them and say, 'We're going to do this,' because there're 20 other things you've got to worry about, too."

But it all starts with Brees, whose career was infused with new life when he left San Diego and headed to the bayou.

"He's on fire right now," Patriots' linebacker Tully Banta-Cain said. "If you don't have any water to put it out, he's going to keep burning you up. Any time you have a threatening quarterback like that, the only way to beat them is pressure, and obviously the guys on the back end behind us doing the job and vice versa. We definitely have our hands full with him and everybody he has to go to." Pressuring Brees and trying to separate him from his strong supporting cast would seem to be a no-brainer. But Banta-Cain, arguably the Patriots' most effective pass-rusher, says the Saints make it difficult to get to their meal ticket.

"He makes quick decisions, he has a quick release," Banta-Cain said. "So it's very tough and frustrating for a lot of defenses because you can get to him, and he's still getting the ball off and getting the ball into tight places. And the guys are still making the plays. It's a credit to him and the receivers making the plays, so you've just go to play even tighter."

Payton, speaking to reporters via conference call, said it hasn't been a conscious decision of his to emulate what the Patriots have done offensively in the past. It's been more of an attempt to emulate the organizational approach.

"I don't think you look to duplicate, or try to duplicate," he said. "We spend more time doing all the right things and trying to pay close attention to what New England's done as an organization. Certainly, they've been at the forefront of our league and if you're in business, it would be silly not to pay attention to how they've been successful, their formula and their recipe.

"We tried when we came here in 2006 to begin to change the culture," Payton added. "We've got all the film at our disposal so we spent a lot of time looking through the top teams, not just offensively, but on defense and the kicking game. They're an organization that's done a lot of things well, overall, for a long period of time. We pay close attention each year to the different things that they're doing to have success."

And at 10-0, how close might Payton think the Saints are to that goal?

"We still have a long ways to go," he said. "When you say 'there,' where they've been is pretty impressive. When you look at the playoff wins that they've shared in, there have been new faces there, and yet there's Bill and Tom, and there have been a number of people in the organization that have remained constant.

"They clearly will be the best team we've seen to date on our schedule," he added.

MARK FARINELLA may be reached at 508-236-0315 or via e-mail at mfarinel@thesunchronicle.com. Read Farinella's blog, "Blogging Fearlessly," at thesunchronicle.com/farinella.