In a game that appears to be between quarterbacks and wide receivers, the Minnesota Vikings have the opportunity to beat the New Orleans Saints in the most fundamental ways on Sunday; running the ball, stopping the run, and pressuring the quarterback.

The Minnesota Vikings are a team that few people give a serious chance to derail the New Orleans Saints from their roll to the top of the offensive stat sheets and a 13-3 season in a Wildcard playoff on Sunday.

Sean Payton and his team have averaged over 36 points in their last seven football games. QB Drew Brees adds to the NFL’s historical book with touchdown passes in every passing week and his primary receiver (Michael Thomas) just broke a record for receptions that many thought would never be matched or surpassed.

They are a juggernaut, an offensive enterprise that might be sometimes matched in points, but rarely held from running big numbers. Given the chance, Drew Brees and the Saints will score from wherever they are on the field, against any defense in the NFL, in every game situation.

But, despite their rare personnel and exclusive firepower, they can be beaten.

Offensive Balance, Defensive Vigilance

In Week 10 of the 2019 season, the 1-7 Atlanta Falcons came to New Orleans and beat the Saints soundly in their Superdome, 26-9. They did so by blending a game of offensive balance against the combustible Saints and a defense that did a lot of bending but only minimal breaking against Sean Payton‘s high-octane offense.

The Falcons used a platooned attack of RBs Devonta Freeman and Brian Hill to control the game clock by over 13 minutes, even while Saints WR Michael Thomas and RB Alvin Kamara combined for 21 catches and 202 yards for New Orleans.

The Saints had no turnovers, but while Atlanta rushed 34 times for 143 yards, the Saints handed the ball off only 11 times for 52 yards. In essence, they did what the Packers did to the Vikings in Week 16. They shut down the run and forced the Saints to depend on the pass.

Atlanta sacked Brees six times in the game, killing offensive drives throughout. They also understood that ‘Mr. Gadget’, QB/RB/WR Taysom Hill was a threat and kept him to 14 yards on the contest.

Cowboy Concepts

Against Dallas in Week 10, the Vikings completely eliminated Dallas RB Ezekial Elliott from the game. The Cowboys rushed for a total of 50 yards while the Minnesota offense punished them for 153.

They did not stop Dallas from passing (they had 393 yards in the air) but Minnesota won the football game.

There is no way that this Vikings’ secondary can keep Drew Brees and Michael Thomas from being the stars of the game for New Orleans on Sunday. However, they can stop them from being the winners of the playoff contest.

No one is quite sure whether or not Dalvin Cook can play anywhere near his top form on Sunday. His combination of shoulder and sternum injuries have no doubt hindered his play. Since the middle of November, Cook has carried the ball 47 times for only 144 yards, a 3.0 yard per-carry average.

For this upcoming Wildcard game, Cook will have been shut down for three weeks. Who knows how his body will respond to impact? The Vikings will also have to rely on backup Alex Mattison, who brings more bent brows to the Minnesota idea of upset after suffering a high-ankle sprain a few weeks ago.

This game, so imperative to this team, this franchise and it’s fans, is now squarely on the shoulders of one Rick Dennison, hired by this organization to be its “Run Game Coordinator” in 2019. He and Vikings’ offensive coordinator, Kevin Stefanski, better not be crossing their fingers as they send their running backs out to face a New Orleans defense with tens of thousands of rowdy Saints fans behind them.

If Dennison and Stefanski can’t forge a plan to control the clock with a blend of the most fit tailbacks in his stable on Sunday, the Vikings will have to play a game of vertical passing that will be highly unlikely to win in a very loud Superdome.