Revenge
These two teams met in the playoffs two years ago and left us all speechless. It was a game to remember and one that future generations will talk about. Of course, I'm talking about "Minnesota Miracle". Vikings were in a horrible situation with just seconds left on the clock. Case Keenum stepped into his throw, found Stefon Diggs down the sideline, Saints defender missed the tackle and the rest is history. I'm pretty sure that the Saints didn't forget that loss and are extremely motivated to end Minnesota's season, just like it happened to them two years ago.
They cruised through the NFC South division, with all the other teams posting losing records. But having an easy division can be both a blessing and a curse. Because this team was not tested much throughout the regular season. They were beating good teams mostly with small margins and lost to 49ers at home in week 14, which was a true test of their ability. Looking at the injury report, there are some worries on the defensive side of the ball. Davenport and Rankins are on IR, which could hurt their ability to put pressure on Cousins. Eli Apple is also out for the game, but luckily they claimed Janoris Jenkins off waivers when he was cut by the Giants a month ago, so he's expected to start opposite of Marshon Lattimore.
Thin at corner
It is interesting that there were some rumors about Mike Zimmer being on a hot seat if the Vikings fail to do something in the playoffs. But Minnesota's owner Mark Wilf dismissed those with a statement, saying that they plan to keep Zimmer as their head coach. Offensive coordinator ken Stefanski, on the other hand, has a couple of head-coaching interviews lined up soon. He did a great job with this offense, since taking over from John DeFillipo late last season.
Vikings were battling Packers all the way for that division title but ran out of gas in the end. Losing 23-10 to their arch-rival in week 16 (and both their games vs Green Bay this season) decided the winner of the division. Green Bay got the 1st round bye, while Minnesota has to face a very tough opponent in a hostile environment on the road. Similar to the Saints, they have some issues with the cornerback position. Both Mackenzie Alexander and Mike Hughes are out, which forced them to bring back Marcus Sherels. He's more of a special teams player, which only shows you how desperate they are.
Saints vs Vikings best bet
Depth at the cornerback position is extremely important when going against the Saints. They love to spread the opposing defense out and find the right matchup. Meaning, you're defense is only as good as your backup corners. Not that long ago, that secondary was a strength of this defense. They had depth and they had true no.1 corner in Xavier Rhodes, whom they could trust to lock down his side of the field. That is not the case anymore. Injuries took away the depth, while Rhodes underperformed several throughout the regular season.Thomas should have a big game, but the line is just too high. Tre'quan Smith might be a wiser selection
I like Kamara under 40 yards receiving. He hasn't reached that line in last 5 of his games. Eric Kendircks is one of the best coverage linebackers in the league and I'm sure he'll be aware of where Kamara is every single time. Also, if Saints jump out into the lead like I think they could, they will probably run more, which will give Kamara fewer opportunities in the passing game.
