Please leave the mindless hate and trash talking at the door; we have the beginnings of a great rivalry here. We do not have to like each other, but we can treat each other with respect. The quality of your enemy can say a lot about you after all.

I thought we could start with differences between last year’s teams and this year teams in light of the injuries.
While the Vikings had more people on the Injury Report (5 vs. 2 as questionable) which lists players who are not 100% but did end up playing, the Saints were leaders in having players on Injured Reserve, players who are officially done for the season. Minnesota only had Henderson on IJ; the Saints had 15 players including 2 pro-bowl talents.

Offense

The Saints were down their starting LT, 2 of their best blocking TE's, and their only real fullback and the closest thing to a backup for him as well. This allowed the already formidable Vikings defensive line to become even more aggressive and give Brees less time in the pocket. Our center was banged up as well, but then so were your tackles. Brees seemed to be allright stepping up into the pocket but was not being given the time to throw downfield.

Our running game was also slowed down without a fullback or either of our better blocking TE's. Pierre Thomas, although one of three backs he is still our main, was playing with fractured ribs. Jeremy Shockey was playing extremely gimpy as well, having reinjured his leg/ankle in the Cardinals game. With Evans (FB) on IJ as well as Campbell and Miller (both TE) we needed to rely heavily on Shockey and Pierre but both were limited in reps.

In short your defense did great against our weakened blocking scheme taking away the long ball, and fractured ribs and other injuries weakened our short game. Our offense had serious issues! I am not saying that your defensive line is not great, just that its greatness was magnified.

Defense

(Regarding Favre and the hits I'll post something below but do not want to derail the thread.)

We had lost a starting DE and his backup to IJ. We were also down 3 LB, a solid DT in rotation, 2 CB and a safety. Our main backup DE was on the injury report as well. Our top 3 CB were all returning from not playing for several games apiece and a bit rusty. Sharper was running on one knee and had micro fracture surgery after the Super Bowl on the other. Where he was the main ball hawk at the beginning of the season after week 10 or so he definitely had lost a step.

Our defense had trouble applying pressure with 2 starters and a backup out on the DL. The secondary was playing on one leg (I'd equate Sharper's condition with Winfield's) or had recently returned from missing games due to injury. Favre was masterful in taking advantage of a late rush and getting the ball downfield, even sacrificing his body to be able to hold on the ball long enough.

Yes, I am suggesting that a fresh season and fresh bodies will help the Saints more after all with 53 players and roughly 30 starters between offense and defense (various formations) we had to replace 14 more people than you did during the season. No, I am not saying that it would not still be a close game. I do think in the NFC championship game we needed a lot of things to go right for us which we cannot always count on. I think in a rematch we will be much more even and the shoe could be on the other foot - the Vikings will need some luck to win. You will be facing a much tougher team. As an example look at how we performed at Arizona and at the Super Bowl where our thinned out ranks had a greater chance for rest.

If this thread goes well I would like to look at offseason pickups and losses as well. I am hoping we can get into matchups and such as we go through preseason and head into one of the best opening night games ever!

P.S.

The illegal hits on Favre were done by Bobby McCray. He no longer plays for us. I am hoping this issue can die. Were some hits illegal? Yes, replay and the show with the head ref afterwards clearly showed that. The clearly illegal hits shouldn’t have happened. Those two illegal hits were not why Favre was brutalized though in my opinion.

Why Minnesota kept on calling for long plays forcing Favre to hold on to the ball for so long, why they didn’t start to keep an extra blocker back I do not know. Maybe it was AD's fumbles that made them rely too heavily on Favre. Maybe they did keep an extra blocker back but he did not play to the whistle or was just out of position. Maybe Favre refused to check down and willingly took the hit to get more yards. The Refs seemed set to allow "physical play" and like it or not you need to adapt. Dallas didn't adapt to you the week before and you destroyed Romo.

If Brees was being hit like Romo or Favre was I would be screaming at the Saints to start throwing more screens, run more draws, run double TE sets, fire the OL coordinator etc. I did not hate on the Dolphins when they consistently leveled him in the first half or when Ware smacked him down on his surgically repaired shoulder. I hated to see it but it is football, it is our responsibility to protect our man. I do not want my QB to wear the proverbial skirt and simply cry to a ref and point at a DE and get a penalty.

Good post, I look forward to reading what some of our posters here have to say.

Here's hoping the thread isn't derailed with the late hit talk. It's a moot argument and I'd rather see the discussion focus on this coming matchup.

Thanks for the welcome

I only included the late hit part because it is the elephant in the room and wanted to get it over with but wouldn't shed a tear to dodge it completely.

C'mon Vike fans, lets get a good discussion going. I had a great one with Arizona fans before that game, not so much with Chicago fans but you are better than them !

both teams havent changed much. both teams have a very good running game and pinpoint accuracy at the qb position. but both overall defenses are average at best. should be a close game again if everyone is healthy, especially the quarterbacks. i just hope we get our REVENGE and win.... even if it wont be a playoff game. both teams are almost mirror images of each other. the saints defense may not be as physical minus there enforcer mccray. saints have a better secondary, while the vikings are better at stopping the run. i see it a "pick em" game again. even though i am stilled pissed at how greg williams wanted to take favre out like they did kurt warner. i really dont want to see anyone get seriously hurt. i just hope we keep our cool and dont take any stupid costly penalties.

Welcome, I am glad you acknowledge the late hits. Thanks you. Most Saints fans just call us crybabies. The only prediction I have for this game is it will be awesome. If we win, we have beaten the defending Super Bowl Champs, and have gotten our sweet revenge. If we lose, we have lost to the defending Super Bowl Champs. It will hurt, but as long as we don't get blown out of the water, it will not affect our season. Time has helped heal the pain from that loss, and I'm glad Nola got that ultimate trophy. I thought last year was OUR time, because of Favre, but if Favre comes back this season, I believe this is our shot at it all over again. Saints have had a lousy history of losing, and now have that trophy we Viking Fans Loooong for so much. We have a history of winning, but always coming up a little short in the end. What ever happens, Skol to you my friend. Cherish your championship, because it won't come easy for you again.

i just hope we meet in the playoffs again. now that would be SWEEEEEEEEEEEEET. maybe the saints will have superbowl hangover.

Welcome, and good post...

I honestly think the Saints will win, unfortunately. The Superdome will be fired up, and so will the Saints. The Vikings will be too, but I think the crowd will be too much for the Vikings to overcome. I hope I'm wrong.

I predict Saints 27 Vikings 17.

OK, thanks for the thoughtful post, I guess.

But now I'm going to take issue. Your entire post is an injury report.

Honestly, I've heard this over and over from Saints fans, and I really just don't care. Every team suffers injuries. It's been duly noted that your team suffered more than the Vikings. And it's been discussed to death that the Vikings did not suffer a lot of injuries that caused players to miss games. But let's not forget, a number of our key players PLAYED with significant injuries that reduced their effectiveness -- most notable were pretty much every member of the O-linemen. Do you honestly think Adrian Peterson averages 3 yards per carry (as he did for most of the 2nd half of '09) with a healthy O-line? The guy was hit in the backfield more than any back in the league and still managed almost 1,400 yards and 18 TDs.

So while your post may not have featured the mindless hate and trash talking more typical of your Saints brethren, it's still the tired chorus of "we'd have blown you out if not for all the injuries." Comments like "In short your defense did great against our weakened blocking scheme" just don't sit well.

In the end, it was a heck of a hard-fought game, and your guys pulled it out. Why can't we just leave it at that?

The Saints will be favored in the opener, as they should be. They're the world champs playing at home.

That being said, I do not think you'll win the game.

Why would I? I'm a Vikings fan. Do you honestly expect me to say, "Oh yeah, you guys will be healthy, so we have no chance"?

We'll see come September.

Kapp I tried to make sure to avoid what you were talking about, and do not believe we would have blown you out except for the injuries. I did mention at the beginning of the post that I would like to start with the injury report. I didn't want to go into other areas so I could avoid the dreaded wall of text. I even acknowledged that you had more on the injury report. When looking at a rematch it makes sense to me to look at who is actually playing. So lets move on from the injury standpoint, that may even change between now and the first game. Let's look at personnel changes since the off season.

It looks like you shored up your secondary and got a back to replace Chester Taylor. I think it is rough for a rookie to start as a CB, there is a lot of learning at that position going from college to the NFL but your DL helps make any CB look good. Chester seemed like a solid 3rd down guy that defenses had to respect and I wonder how the new guy will work in his place. The aging Williams Wall is still in effect, do you expect any dropoff there ? On the flip side your 2 young guys on the OL should be better having played together, continuity is key there. How much do you think Steve has left in the tank ?

We basically gave away our ProBowl LT who was on IR all of last season, J Brown. I am hoping the year of experience helps out Bushrod, but at least getting Heath Evans (FB) back as well as our blocking TE should help cover what he is lacking. Our second round pick Charles Brown may even take over for him. Our defense is almost a flip of yours. Our best DE Will Smith is getting a bit older at the low 30's but should be solid still. We let the other one go (Charles Grant) (he was on IR for our game, not harping on the point just letting you know not to try and remember him) but replaced him with A Brown from Chicago. He seems a dependable if not flashy guy but also getting up in years. Since he was a division opponent of yours I would love to know your feelings on him. Our main backup DE was also cut leaving us a bit thin here, but I am sure you will be happy to hear that Bobby McCray who was the guilty party in te illegal hits and that started for us is no longer on our team. He was a fan favorite for awhile but had constant back injuries and was very weak against the run. A high camp bonus closed his fate.

We continued to inject youth into the secondary with our first draft pick P Robinson being a CB. Since we both chose CB within a few picks of each other it will be interesting to see how these two turnout. Ours will be fighting for a starting job as a 3rd or 4th in the nickel and dime packages. Greer and Porter are solid as 1 and 2. Malcom Jenkins, who used to be #3 or #4 may start the game as a safety. It is up in the air if Sharper can recover in time for the beginning of the season and was partially brought back as a seasoned vet to help Jenkins along.

We lost our starting Outside LB , that loss will be mostly felt in the locker room. He was solid, sometimes good but it was not a position of great strength for us. We have several LB challenging for the spot and it will be an interesting training camp battle. It will also be interesting to see how our DL draft pick A Woods does as that is a position that needs help. DT's seem to take awhile to grow into the position and I am hoping to see former #7 pick S Ellis finally turn the corner. He is our best DT but not by as much as he should be. Where it seems the Vikings focus on getting to the QB quickly by a strong 4 man push to cover their weakness in the secondary we tend to push the blitz and rely upon a strong secondary to makeup for line play. If Winfield comes back strong for you and your other CB and safety step up you could have a dominating defense. If our line gels people could be in for a big surprise from ours. Those are two key areas I am looking at come training camp.

I can only talk about my own team.

Winfield will be fine. He was playing at the highest level of his career before the foot injury, and it never healed completely. I'm going to assume it's healed, and he will play at a high level. He's not a cover corner ... he's a prototype Tampa 2 corner, good defender in the zone, very strong in run support.

The Williams Wall should be fine. Kevin is still pretty young and playing at the top of his game. Pat is getting long in the tooth, but played pretty well when healthy last year. Jimmy Kennedy was a hugely positive surprise as a backup for Pat and will help us again this year.

I'm not sure the DBs have been upgraded. The loss of Cedric Griffin hurts. He's another guy who plays the Tampa 2 well. Benny Sapp is fine as a nickel, but a bit small as a front-line corner. None of us know how much Lito Sheppard has left in the tank. We'll see. Our safeties were an issue last year, although they played well in the playoffs. Tyrell Johnson was somewhat more solid later in the year, and we're all hoping he continues to improve.

The return of E.J. Henderson, if it should happen, cannot be overstated. He is a potential All-Pro MLB, a big-play guy whose presence changes the entire picture for the Vikings' defense.

The O-line is a question mark. I'm in the camp who believes Steve Hutchinson still has a few great years left. He was hurt for much of last year. We're obviously hoping for a healthy Hutch. RG Anthony Hererra played the entire season with a weak shoulder following surgery before the '09 season. He is solid -- not spectacular -- when healthy. Nobody knows whether Bryant McKinnie is actually a Pro-Bowl left tackle, or simply a tub of goo whose reputation isn't deserved. At times, he can be very good. At other times, he can be very bad. John Sullivan was average at best in his first full season at center. He lacks size and strength ... he's going to have to bump up that strength in order to reach the next level.

If our O-line performs to the level they did in the first half of last year, we will be very good. If they perform the way they did between weeks 10 and 15, we'll struggle. Adrian Peterson, with all due respect to Chris Johnson, is still the best running back in football. All he needs is a little room. The O-line MUST get back to providing that for him.

I believe this game, as with last year's NFCCG, will come down to turnovers and penalties. In the NFCCG, we had no false starts and no holding penalties. That's quite an accomplishment in the Superdome. However, the turnovers have to stop. You guys are far, far too good to be giving the ball away.

We obviously believe Favre will be back. He will be healthy. He will know the team and his receivers, so he won't need those first 3-4 games to get accustomed, as he did last year. The health of Sidney Rice is of paramount importance. We're hearing talk of a hip issue. We need a healthy Rice. He's becoming one of the best in the league, and it would be a tall order to beat you guys without him.

Guys who I see as potentially ready for breakout seasons ...
Percy Harvin -- we haven't seen anything close to what this guy can do.
Chad Greenway -- he's so close. Very athletic OLB. He missed some tackles last year. Clean that up, and he's potentially a Pro-Bowler.
Jamarca Sanford -- the 6th-round safety really turned heads as a rookie. Hard hitter in the Bob Sanders mold. If Madieu Williams doesn't get his crap together, this young guy is going to take his job.
Ray Edwards -- our left DE began to show signs at the end of last year and had a monster playoffs. Will he realize the potential? This is the year to find out if he's for real.

Not sure what else I can say about our team. They will be highly motivated to beat New Orleans. It will be a tall order, but I honestly believe we can win this game.

Thanks Kapp that was a really informed post that helped me get a better feel for your team.


This game could be a classic, my hopes are for the rest of the NFC to be shown how high the bar is going to be r this season. Whichever way things go let's just make sure one of us keeps Dallas out of the Superbowl !

Do you seriously expect me or anyone else to buy the argument that a team that suffered injuries to 15 key players was still good enough to go to and win a Superbowl? That just doesn't fly. No pro team can afford to be that deep. While the Saints suffered injuries, I think it's pretty obvious that the injuries were not severe enough to seriously impact their ability to make a deep playoff run. If they had been I don't think they'd have sniffed the Superbowl. Heck, the Cowboys suffered a single injury to Flozell Adams in the prior playoff game against the Vikings and that single injury allowed Jared Allen to almost singlehandedly destroy Tony Romo. If the Saints had suffered even a single injury that was near that level of significance the Vikings would have easily exploited it. If I were a Saints fan I wouldn't spend much time worrying about those injuries or speculating on how much better the team would have been or will be with all players at 100%.

What I would be worried about if I were a Saints fan is how thoroughly the Viking defense shut down the Saint offense in the 2nd half of that game, and how easily the Viking offense racked up yards in the 2nd half. It really looked to me like the Vikings had solved whatever the Saints were doing on both sides of the ball. The only thing that kept the game close was the turnovers and unforced errors on the part of the Vikings, and of course the refs helped considerably in the overtime period.

One thing I'm pretty sure of, though, is that the Vikes will not need luck to win. What they will need is to execute and stop making stupid mistakes in bunches. If they do that and the Saints still beat them then good for the Saints. Whatever happens I just want to see both teams play a solid game and let the merits decide the winner. I don't want to see either side lose because of stupid mistakes, stupid penalties, injuries, or the refs.

This Sound good on a blog. If the Vikings stop the saints big plays and dont turn the ball over. I expect the Vikings to win a close one. It Should be a great game.

You're welcome.

I still take issue with the injury discussion. We didn't need luck in the NFCCG (it could be argued that YOUR team had luck on its side), and we won't need it in September. The Vikings are every bit as talented as the Saints, if not more. As Viking Lord said, we need good execution ... not luck.

In regards to the NFCC game all we really needed was to not turn the ball over. I think the majority of the team executed really well except for turnovers. I feel like the Vikings outplayed the Saints in nearly every other aspect of that game.

Any time one team has 5 turnovers and the other team has only 1 ... that should be a blowout, it shouldn't come down to a field goal in overtime. If the turn-over ratio was just even the Vikings win with very little question.

As far as the game in week 1 goes ... it's still too far away to tell for me. We're not sure exactly who's starting for both teams. For example, while most of us believe Favre coming back is a no-brainer, it's still no set in stone. Is Rice's injury serious? Etc, etc, etc.

Glad the Saints got rid of McCray,I like them a little more for that,just don't hope the coach didn't tell him to do that...

Its also nice to see a well-mannered Saints fan around here. I'd imagine most Saints fans are nice but its some of those bandwagon fans that give you a bad reputation

As for the game,I think its going to be a very close one. Both teams were banged up in the NFCCG and all should be healthy. I hate to say it but I gotta give it to the Saints

If Favre comes back: Saints 28,Vikings 24 (could go either way)

With T-Jack Saints 31,Vikings 10

No way do I give this game to the Saints.

Peterson will be playing angry and I wouldn't count on him fumbling either. It should be a good game either way.

I think a lot of bandwagon fans caused bad feelings all around. I think what happened is that he was a backup trying to make a move into a starter role and mistook orders to be aggressive into being dirty. Did we intend to hit Favre, definitely. But our game plan was supposed to be akin to what we did all year, similar to what your team did to Romo in the previous game. The only other big hit was a legal but vicious lock on Warner during an interception return. That was also McCray. But that it past now. Our DC Greg Williams preaches aggressiveness and turnovers but our starters were not known for racking up roughing the passer calls.

Our passing defense is usually pretty solid, before the injuries we were ranked in the top 15. I don't have full confidence in Sharper being back by the first game though and am concerned about Jenkins, he will be really good one day but that may be a year or two away. Our main defensive weakness looks to be between tackles runners (our rightside DE position finally got upgraded to a reliable run defender). Do you think Childress will put the ball in AD and Gerhart (sp?, your 2nd draft pick) more this game ? We are undersized in the middle as we tend to use a DE/DT tweener in there.

I dunno,I'm a bit of a pessimist. But I can't say they're going to lose because they are defending Super Bowl Champs. But we match up best with him... I'm conflicted!

McCray didn't misinterperit anything. Williams's goal was to take favre out of the game. "Remember me" shots. Remember? He knew that there was no way that they could stop the vikings machine of an offense, so he had to play dirty and take out the engine. If that sh*t happens again, you can expect to have Drew Brees peeled off the ground in pieces.

Seeing as how Adrian ran for 125 yards and 3 TDs against you guys in the NFCC game, I don't know about putting the ball in his hands more. That's a pretty good day's work. The only difference between Peterson having 125 yards and having 200+ yards is that he breaks long runs in his 200+ games, but the number of carries is typically around 25. In addition, last year they used him a lot more in the passing game ... he caught more passes in '09 than in his first two seasons combined. You can expect that to continue.

The difference early in '10 might be that with Chester Taylor gone, you could see more carries for A.P. But who knows? It's way too early to know what Gerhart will be ready to handle on opening day.

The thing you can bank on is that Childress will try to establish Peterson in the running game. If we can do that, as we did last January, it will be much tougher for your team to stop our offense.

the saints also figured that was there own shot at beating the cardinals my taking warner out.
the vikings outplayed the saints in the nfcc game. That being said, people agree that the Vikings beat themselves in the football game at the Superdome in New Orleans.

Nice post. I appreciate a respectful discussion on the last game and the upcoming one.

I never had anything against the saints, but my brother in law is such a miserable excuse for a fan and is the ultimate bandwagoner. After hearing WHO DAT in every conversation since the NFCC game I just want to see his team (until the next superbowl champs are crowned) get destroyed.

He is truly the worst fan ever. In the NBA he is now rapidly shifting his allegiance from the celtics to the heat. Of course he always has a lame excuse..."well I've always liked Reggie Bush"..."well I've always like Lebron". Give me a freaking break.

In sports where I have no rooting interest at all, I just find myself becoming invested because I am rooting against whoever he is rooting for.

I got a friend who does that too...If your a true fan,you always stick to your team

i also have friends that are casual nba and nfl fans and they are all of a sudden fans of the HOT team. lakers, saints, etc... they buy there gear. makes me sick.

Like my friend who said he liked the Cardinals (when they made their magical run to the Super Bowl) changed his mind when the Saints started winning (he even said the Cardinals suck)
And then when they beat the Vikings,the next day I went to school wearing my AP jersey and he comes up at me and yells WHO DAT? And I'm like #### DAT!

Don't hate Saints,hate their bandwagon fans

I don't expect Toby Gerhart to play a significant role on offense right out of the gate, so I don't see that as a replacement for Chester Taylor in the context of the opener against the Saints, and maybe not even in the context of the year as a whole. A 3rd down back needs to be able to read blitzes and pick them up in addition to knowing when to release, running good routes, and catching the ball well. By all accounts Gerhart is a smart guy and should pick things up fast, but that is a lot to ask of any rookie, especially in a high-pressure situation like the opener. I think it's far more likely that the Saints will get a healthy dose of AD on 3rd downs with some looks with Harvin and possibly even Darius Reynaud as the back in 3rd down situations. If Gerhart sees any action it will more than likely be on 1st and 2nd down to spell AD after a long run.

As for the CB situation, I think the chances of Cook starting are about zero. I think the most likely starting CBs for the Vikings will be some combination of Antoine Winfield, Lito Sheppard, and Benny Sapp, with Asher Allen also in the mix at nickel. Cook does match up well with the Saints larger receivers, but I just don't see him being ready to play a big role in the opener.

As for the Williams Wall, I'm not as concerned with that holding up as I am with the defensive line as a whole generating pressure on Brees. The Saints were a good running team last year, but in order for them to run consistently they need their passing game to be effective. So pressure on Brees and disruption by the front four is going to be key, and honestly that isn't what Pat Williams does well. He wasn't a huge factor in the last game and I don't see him being a big factor in this game, either, unless the Saints change their offensive philosophy completely and insist on running.

I assume you're talking about Steve Hutchinson, and I think he'll be fine. As Kapp pointed out much of the Viking offensive line played hurt last year. In fact, while the line takes a lot of heat for their play, they really struggled during and after the game against the Cardinals when both tackles were hurt on back-to-back plays. Herrera was recovering from a concussion and apparently was never 100% due to a shoulder injury he suffered the prior season, and of course Hutchinson played most of 2009 with a bum shoulder as well. If the offensive line is healthy I think they'll be effective. What they need to do more than anything else, including in the opener against the Saints, is open holes for the running game. If they can get AD going the Saints will be in real trouble because then Favre can pick his spots and the Vikings have numerous weapons in the passing game. If the Vikings continue to struggle with their running game, however, I expect to see Favre take a lot more hits like he did last year. I think the Vikings can still move and score even if the running game isn't clicking, but I'd rather not see Favre taking a lot of hits early in the season.



I don't think Bushrod was all that bad. Like I said in my prior post if he was a huge step down Jared Allen would have taken advantage of that. Bushrod did struggle against Ware in the Saint loss to the Cowboys, but he didn't appear to be a major liability in most other games and certainly wasn't in the game against the Vikings. If the Saints have to go to a rookie tackle in the opener I'll be very happy as I think Allen would eat any rookie for breakfast no matter how physically talented he might be. The Saints have a very solid offensive line. It is one of the key aspects of that team and it showed against the Vikings who did manage some pressure on Brees, but nowhere near what they'd managed against the Cowboys and many other teams during the year.

In terms of the Saint defensive line, it's not an overpowering unit by any means. I think if the Viking offensive line is healthy the Vikes match up very well against that line. Smith wasn't a huge factor in the Championship game and I don't see that changing in the upcoming game. Alex Brown has his moments, but if he were any good now I can't see why the Bears would have let him go. The Bears have really struggled to generate a pass rush for the last 2-3 seasons. Teams don't ditch guys that are bright spots, and I don't really recall Brown being much of a bright spot for them. If the Saints get pressure they'll do it a lot like they did last year IMHO - they'll blitz LB's and from the secondary and try to overload to get to Favre. And once again that's why it's key for the Vikings to get the running game cranking to nullify that and make it easier for Favre when the Vikes do decide to go to the air.

In terms of McCray I can't blame him for what the Saints did to Favre. All I can say is that if the same thing starts happening again don't be surprised to see quick retaliation against Brees.



It will be interesting to see how this year goes for the Saints secondary. They enjoyed a banner year last season in terms of creating turnovers and scoring off them. The Saints defense overall was pretty weak statistically (finished 25th overall, 26th against the pass, 21st against the run, and 20th in points against), yet they created enough turnovers to help the Saints finish the season with a +11 turnover ratio. The Saint defense finished 1st in the league with 5 TDs off interceptions and 1st in the league with 3 TDs scored off fumbles. By comparison our friends the Vikings scored exactly 1 defensive TD all season off a fumble and no TDs off interceptions. While most of the credit for the Saints prolific scoring goes to the offense, the defense did plenty of direct scoring on it's own by putting up a remarkable 56 points. The Saints led the league in points with 510, while the Vikings were 2nd with 470. Take away the defensive scores by both teams, however, and the Vikings outscored the Saints 463 to 454. It's a wash. Needless to say, if the Saints can keep up that level of defensive production I'll be surprised.



I see that defensive approach continuing for the Saints, quite honestly. But as I pointed out in a previous post in this thread, it does appear the Vikings moved the ball and controlled the clock pretty much at will in the 2nd half of the Championship game. The Saints only remained in the game due to the miscues by the Vikings. I remember watching the Atlanta Falcons beat the Vikings in the Championship game in 1998 and seeing the same sort of thing happen in the second half. In the second half of that game the Falcons started coming hard after Randall Cunningham every down and managed to throw him off. It didn't help that the Vikings went conservative in terms of their approach, either, but the following season it seemed every team took the same approach defensively and the Vikings had a much harder time moving the ball. It sure looked to me like the Vikings had solved the Saints on both sides of the ball in that 2nd half. Brees did not look comfortable and balls were sailing on him. The Saints couldn't get a consistent running game going to drain the clock. The Vikings were getting pressure and, most importantly, completely took away the Saint downfield passing attack. When on offense Favre was finding receivers and the Vikings broke off some nice runs that might have gone for more. It will be interesting to see if that continues or that was just an artifact of that game, but based on my experience it's not a good sign for the Saints.

Anyway, should be a good game. In my view most of the Vikings offensive stars have a lot of motivation to play big in this game. AD, Favre, Harvin, and Berrian all made critical mistakes and will want some redemption.

When the game is "cheap-shot the quarterback", I blame the coaches as much as the thug carrying out the orders. The cheap-shot hits on Warner and Favre completely changed both games and are not forgotten. The Saints defensive coaching staff is a bunch of classless punks. Just one fan's opinion.

Not trying to defend them but the hit on Warner was legal. The Saints picked off the ball (or recovered a fumble I don't remember which) and Warner was running to tackle the guy so then McCray blocked him. Yes,it shouldn't have been as hard as a hit (especially a QB) but there was nothing wrong with it.

Now the hits on Favre...total cheap shots

i agree kurt warner should have had his head on a swivel, but it was a cheapshot even though it was legal.