SmashMouth

Before Sunday night’s game, the Minnesota Vikings replayed the “Minneapolis Miracle” three times on the video boards.

The stakes in this game weren’t as high as the meeting last January, but the New Orleans Saints earned a little revenge with a 30-20 victory at U.S. Bank Stadium.

Aside from some early struggled by the secondary, this was a dominant game by the Saints (5-1) to extend their winning streak to six games.

What went right: The Saints defense made timely plays that made up for some poor play early in the game. The defensive turnaround began with 1:11 left in the second quarter when Alex Anzalone forced a fumble by Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen at the New Orleans 14, and cornerback Marshon Lattimore returned it to the Minnesota 33, plus the Saints added 15 more yards thanks to a penalty on Vikings receiver Laquon Treadwell throwing his helmet.



The Saints scored a touchdown two plays later, completing what was a minimum swing of 10 points to take a 17-13 lead into halftime.

Then, in the third quarter, cornerback P.J. Williams intercepted a pass by Kirk Cousins and returned it for a 45-yard touchdown. It was vindication for Williams, who struggled mightily in the first half.

The first drive for the offense was a thing of beauty as the Saints took an early 7-0 lead. Sean Payton did a great job mixing up the calls and keeping the Vikings guessing, and the diversity of plays likely helped the Saints offense for the rest of the game.

The Saints pass rush also stepped in the game, led by two sacks apiece from Sheldon Rankins and Marcus Davenport.

Kicker Wil Lutz his all three of his field-goal attempts, one from 52 yards and two from 42.

What went wrong: The Saints pass defense was atrocious for the first 28 minutes of the game. Cousins repeatedly exploited matchups against Williams, and Minnesota finished the first half with 242 yards. If not for that fumble, the Vikings likely would’ve had a 16-10 or 20-10 lead at halftime.

Brees’ first interception of the season was a low moment. It ended a streak of 231 attempts without a pick to start this year, but the Vikings didn’t turn the takeaway into points because of that Thielen fumble.

Player of the game: Lattimore, whose lockdown coverage — along with the fumble recovery — helped the Saints significantly.

Injuries: In the game, Saints safety Vonn Bell exited with an apparent injury in the fourth quarter. Vikings running back Roc Thomas (hamstring) left in the first half and did not return.

NOLA

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