With the NFC Wild Card teams on the hot seat, Sunday’s games proved to be as exciting as the AFC’s one day prior. The Minnesota Vikings (11-6) defeated the New Orleans Saints (13-4) 26-20 in overtime, leaving the Mercedes-Benz Superdome speechless.
Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins bares an unfortunate reputation as an inadequate big-game player, but this game took a big step towards changing that. Cousins was 19 of 31 for 242 yards and a touchdown. But his big plays came in overtime with a 43-yard throw to wide receiver Adam Thielen, followed by a 4-yard fade to tight end Kyle Rudolph for the walk-off touchdown.
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Running back Dalvin Cook proved huge on the run with 28 carries for 94 yards with two touchdowns.
Saints quarterbacks Drew Brees and Taysom Hill didn’t see the field in overtime.
Brees threw for 208 yards, going 26 0f 33 with one touchdown and one interception. Hill was 1 of 1 for 50 yards, adding some yardage on the run-game as well.
“Tip your hats to Minnesota,” said Saints coach Sean Payton. “They deserved to win… They made more plays than we did.”
The Vikings defense was on fire, stopping what has been a fairly dominant Saints offense. Minnesota’s defensive line, led by Everson Griffen and Danielle Hunter, kept heat on Brees and the rest of the defensive corps held the run and pass games to a minimum.
The Saints head home disappointed after what was a solid season. Looking into the future for Brees will be interesting as well heading into the offseason.
The Vikings will take on the 49ers in San Francisco as they seek to continue their season.
