Rapid Reaction: Saints 14, Vikings 9

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The New Orleans Saints started the 2010 campaign where they left off at the Superdome last season -- with a tight win over the Minnesota Vikings. This time, the Saints came up on the right end of a 14-9 squeaker. Here are a few notes on what we can take away from this contest.
First,The Vikings were hyper-aware of the Saints' pass pressure.From early in the game and through most of it, Minnesota ran a lot of max protect sets, and multiple tight ends and backs in some interesting setups.Second,The Saints are a running team.They forgot that early on -- Sean Payton called just three running plays in the first half -- and I was about to put out a missing persons report for running back Pierre Thomas(notes) in the first half. But after halftime, Thomas got in the game and wound up with 71 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries.Third,The Saints' defensive game plan was excellent. The 14-point total was the lowest for a Saints win in the Sean Payton era, which should be very encouraging to the team -- the great teams can beat good opponents in ugly games.

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