Minnesota Vikings: 3 Takeaways from Divisional Round win over Saints

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MINNEAPOLIS, MN – JANUARY 14: Drew Brees #9 of the New Orleans Saints fumbles the ball while being sacked by Everson Griffen #97 of the Minnesota Vikings in the second quarter of the NFC Divisional Playoff game on January 14, 2018 at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Max Unger #60 of the New Orleans Saints recovered the ball on the play. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images) /

2. Vikings defense dominated the Saints on third down

It took every last second of this Divisional Round match-up to get the job done, but at the end of the day, the Vikings are moving on. While everyone will be talking about Stefon Diggs’ amazing touchdown catch at the end of regulation, it was the Vikings defensive success on third-down that ended up winning the football game.

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The Saints were held to 2-of-9 on third-down attempts Sunday evening. That said, it doesn’t take an expert statistician to figure out New Orleans offense struggled to move-the-chains in key situations on Sunday.

In the postseason, you just can’t dig a hole too big, especially on the road. While New Orleans offense was able to pick-up some big plays in the second-half, which could’ve won the game, it was the Vikings defensive dominance in the first-half that truly kept this victory out of reach for the Big Easy.

Again, Minnesota football fans should be extremely proud of their squad’s defensive effort against an extremely good Saints offense this weekend. Not only will it prepare them for a tough match-up in the NFC Championship, but it’ll also be great practice for the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LII.

I’m not saying it’s a guarantee, but this season is starting to feel like destiny.

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