NFC Championship: “Will Saints Make History?”

By: TOMMY GAHN
NFL Analyst

Forty years ago a movie called “Number One” was made. Charlton Heston played a Saints quarterback that helped New Orleans win a Super Bowl earlier in his career. The ironic part of the movie is he portrays an aging quarterback that was contemplating retirement, but decides to try to help his team win another Super Bowl. It appears to be the Kurt Warner or Brett Farve story to me. The owner of the Saints at the time was John Mecom Jr., and he played third string quarterback in the movie.

The Saints tore up the Cards 45-14 to advance to the NFC title game. They will face the Vikings, who beat the Cowboys 34-3 in Minnesota. This is the first time since 2006 the number one seed will play the number two seed. The Bears beat the Saints 39-14 in Chicago. The Saints played the Vikings last year. Minnsota defeated New Orleans 30-27 in the Super Dome last year. Reggie Bush retuned two punts for touchdowns. The Saints had four turnovers and the Vikings didn’t have any.

The Saints and the Vikings have met twice in the playoffs. The Vikings beat the Saints 44-10 in New Orleans in ‘87 and 34-16 in Minnesota in 2000. The Vikings’ last appearance in the conference championship was in 2000. The Giants shutout the Vikings 41-0 in New York. The Vikings last road playoff victory was in 2004 when they defeated the Packers 31-17.

Minnesota has a balanced offense, and the standouts are quarterback Brett Farve, running back Adrian Peterson, receivers Sidney Rice, Percy Harvin and Bernard Berrian. The Vikings’ defense is formidable. Defensive ends Jared Allen and Ray Edwards put pressure on the quarterback and defensive tackles Kevin and Pat Williams are tough to run against. The
Vikings defense is weakened by the absence of middle linebacker E.J. Henderson who was injured in December. He was replaced by rookie Jasper Brinkley. Antoine Winnfield has been bothered by a foot injury but is a play-maker and a hard hitter.

The Saints’ offense seems to be back on track. They were able to run the ball and didn’t have any turnovers. Halfback Pierre Thomas, tight end Jeremy Shockey and receiver Robert Meachum were injured in last week’s game, but they should be able to play Sunday. The defense was finally healthy and was able to put pressure on Warner to help slow down the Arizona aerial attack.

The Vikings use the Cover-2 defense. If the Saints are able to protect Brees, he will find the open areas in the zone coverage. The cornerbacks play bump and run coverage and try to knock the receivers off their routes. If Brees is pressured and throws to a spot and the receiver is not there the pass may be intercepted. One of the areas that is vulnerable in the Cover-2 defense is the deep middle of the field. The quarterback has to throw over the middle linebacker who has to go back 20-30 yards. Tight end Jeremy Shockey should be able to win most of these battles. If Brees is rushed, he will still be able to throw a short pass to Bush, Thomas or Lance Moore.

The Saints need to be able to run the football to control the clock and slow down the Vikings’ pass rush. If the Saints are able to not allow big plays in the running game, put pressure on Farve and force turnovers they will win. I expect a close game. Field position may play an important role in the game. Percy Harvin of the Vikings and Reggie Bush of the Saints may have big impacts on the game.

I have a feeling the Saints are going to the Super Bowl.