Vikings

5 Numbers That Tell the Story of the Vikings-Saints Game

Photo Credit: Chuck Cook (USA TODAY Sports)

The Minnesota Vikings gifted the New Orleans Saints a generous present this Christmas — a division title. To be honest, it was nice to watch a stress-free game against one of the strongest teams in the NFC, knowing that the Vikings are unlikely to make the playoffs.

I have mixed feelings about the game itself though. It’s a good sign the offense played well, especially considering the state of the offensive line and Kyle Rudolph’s absence. But, it’s hard to be happy with the performance overall. Minnesota’s defense allowed 52 points, the most by a Vikings team since 1963. And to many people’s surprise, Drew Brees accounted for none of those points.

A small part of me expected a repeat of the Minneapolis Miracle and the alleged Rudolph push-off game-winning touchdown in January, both of which sent the Saints packing from the playoffs. Maybe it’s because this wasn’t the playoffs, or because the Vikings were just not that good this year, but the Saints handily beat the Vikings this time around.

How badly did they beat the Vikings? Here are the five numbers that tell the story of the game:

0

After taking a look at the box score of the game it was surprising to see the efficiency of Minnesota’s offense. I’d expect a few nasty turnovers or mistakes to have put the Saints in such a good position to win. While Brees had two nasty interceptions, the Vikings had zero turnovers besides a failed 4th down garbage time attempt to close out the game.

It’s an identity crisis for Mike Zimmer I’m sure. He came out and said this is the worst defense he’s ever coached after the game, and that’s entirely fair. But the offense hung in there and had the game within one score multiple times, but the Saints offense (aka Alvin Kamara) never gave in.

Overall, this is a good sign for the future because the defense will be in a far better position to perform with the return of Micheal Pierce, Anthony Barr, Eric Kendricks, Mike Hughes, and Danielle Hunter. If the offense is really this good, next season looks bright for the Vikings.

2

Staying with the positive takeaways from the game, another bright spot has been the emergence of Irv Smith Jr. in the absence of Rudolph. It would’ve been fitting to see Rudolph the red zone reindeer catch two touchdowns on Christmas day, but in his place it was Smith who caught two wide open touchdowns on almost identical playcalls.

I don’t know if this game would be considered his breakout game because Smith has been solid when healthy all season, but this week cemented his position as a starting tight end. And let’s not forget how good Tyler Conklin has been as a receiver and blocker. In the past three games Rudolph has been out, Conklin has averaged 43 yards per game.

It’s safe to say the Vikings are set at the tight end position for years to come — even with the uncertainty of Rudolph’s future in Minnesota. The annual Rick Spielman tight end draft pick has finally paid off!

7

The biggest story of the game was Alvin Kamara’s six touchdown outing, tying the record held since 1929 by Ernie Nevers of the Chicago Cardinals. It was a fantasy football manager’s dream come true on championship week for many leagues. Or a nightmare if you were the one unlucky enough to face or bench the running back.

While the touchdowns themselves were enough to get me to root for the guy to break the record, the biggest issue for the Vikings was the fact that Kamara averaged seven yards per carry. Going into the game I knew Minnesota’s rush defense was bad, but that was downright embarrassing.

On the bright side I witnessed history. Vikings-Saints games never disappoint.

15

The poor performance of the line and middle of the field was one of the reasons Kamara feasted on the VIkings’ defense. It was surprising to see so many jersey numbers in the 40s and 30s on defense. It is usually not a good sign when you’re watching your favorite team and are not familiar with some of the players’ names in key positions.

So it shouldn’t be a surprise that the Vikings missed 15 tackles against the Saints. Seven of those misses were against Kamara. The biggest reason was the lack of depth and sheer amount of injuries affecting the first two levels of the defense, but it is embarrassing to see that happen to an NFL team that was supposed to be fighting for a playoff spot just a week before and is playing in primetime.

Knowing Zimmer this is going to be changed, and I can cut management some slack knowing that there are starters missing on every level of the defense. At this point, looking forward to next year’s defense is the healthiest way to go about the disaster that was on the field last night.

10

The Vikings’ sights should be focused on the 2021 draft now that the season is one game away from ending. Sure the Detroit Lions aren’t the best team, but if the Vikings are planning on taking advantage of draft order this is the week to lose. I’m not implying a tank because that’s not fair to the players and no one wants to lose, but if the Vikings do lose to the Lions their draft pick for 2021 looks like a great position to take a franchise player.

The Vikings’ goal should be a top ten pick in the draft. There are obvious moves that need to be made if they are planning on competing next season, and it starts with a draft pick to set the tone of the season. Sure, Spielman loves gathering picks in the draft, but to pick a true game-changer you need capital and that’s what Minnesota should look to get.

Next year would be a whole lot of fun with the return of the defense, an improving Justin Jefferson, one more year of Kirk Cousins lighting up the stat sheet — and an early Day 1 draft pick to prove they are chasing a ring with the window they have in front of them.

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