Vikings at Saints
Game Info
Kickoff: Friday 8/9 at 8:00 pm (ET)
Location: Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana
Betting Odds: NO -3 via Oddsshark
Network: KMSP, WVUE
Minnesota Vikings
Can Captain Kirk right the ship?
Kirk Cousins was not a sole factor in the Vikings failing to reach the playoffs in the first season of his three-year, $84M deal. He was the catalyst in Adam Thielen posting record numbers; eight straight 100-yard games receiving. Though overall, you can argue that Kirk did not live up to expectations. He did suffer from Dalvin Cook missing time and a rather shaky offensive line in front of him. Having addressed the line in free agency and the draft – see rookie center Garrett Bradbury – look for Cousins to potentially bounce back to the player that got him that big-money contract, unless he’s playing a team with a winning record…
Who’s next on the chart?
This goes for both the WR and RB rooms. We know what to expect of Thielen, Stefon Diggs, and Cook, but who is behind them all?
Chad Beebe could potentially be a breakout candidate in 2019. The assumption is that he will serve as the WR3 for Minnesota. At only 5’10”, 183lbs, Beebe is an elusive runner who has made a name for himself this summer, bumping out former first-round pick Laquon Treadwell to second-team duty. My guess is Beebe gets a ton of play against the Saints; whether he’s lined up at receiver or in the return game. In the backfield, there are some familiar names, but who will end up serving as the next man up behind Cook?
Rookie Alexander Mattison could very much be that option. The third-round rookie can find himself in a handcuff role early on and throughout the season, and I would rather see him over the likes of Ameer Abdullah – who was pretty much a non-factor for years in Detroit, and Mike Boone.
New Orleans Saints
Third times a charm?
Will 2019 be the year the Saints find themselves back in the Super Bowl? Having suffered from a defensive blunder, and non-penalty call in back to back playoffs, the Saints are still a favorite to come out of the NFC. Drew Brees is a year older but has not shown signs of slowing down. Throwing for 32 touchdowns, 3,992 yards and only five interceptions in 2018 was another sound season for the future Hall of Famer. The team made additions to the offense in a continued effort to build around Brees for what could be a final run at a Lombardi.
That being said, this preseason I would look for both Teddy Bridgewater and gadget QB Taysom Hill to see most of the snaps. This will be done in an obvious effort to keep Brees fresh, and for the fact that they both were involved pretty favorably last season as well in different capacities.
Ingram out, Murray in
After eight seasons with the Saints, Mark Ingram left in free agency to the Baltimore Ravens. The team wasted no time in finding a backup for Alvin Kamara and brought in former Viking Latavius Murray as the defacto Ingram replacement. You can bet Murray will play a very similar, if not the same, role that Ingram did in the Kamara era; more so goalline touches & the occasional change of pace back.
Receiving Options
Michael Thomas is here to stay, inking a five-year, $61M extension just last week. Next to him is the likes of Ted Ginn Jr & Tre’Quan Smith. After them, spots are up for grabs. On the TE front, Jared Cook was brought in after Benjamin Watson retired (and ultimately unretired to join the Patriots). He could carve out a nice role for himself as a reliable target in a pass-heavy offense.
–Matthew Cava