Here's how the last two seasons ended for the Saints. In the 2017 season, the Saints faced the Vikings in the NFC Divisional Playoff. They had the game all but sealed, then a pass to Stefon Diggs connects, and Diggs ducks a tackle and goes all the way. The Minneapolis Miracle. 2018: Saints host the NFC Championship against the high powered Rams. Saints up by three late. Rams commit blatant Pass Interference. Ref is right next to the infraction. NO WHISTLE! NO FLAG! Rams tie the game with a FG, force OT, Rams with with a FG to reach Super Bowl LIII. Even this season had some mishigots; a DPI non-call in the Niners/Seahawks game resulted in the Niners winning in Seattle on the final game of the regular season. Because of this, the 13-3 Niners got homefield, the 13-3 Packers only had a bye, and most of all, the 13-3 Saints are hosting WC Weekend.
They will face a Minnesota Vikings team who, despite stumbling in the last two weeks, made the playoffs at the #6 seed in the NFC. The Vikings spent the entire season on the Green Bay Packers' tail in the NFC North, behind QB Kirk Cousins, Dalvin Cook moving down the field, and the aforementioned Stefon Diggs. The last two weeks were not kind to them, especially Week 16, where they fizzled at home against the Packers. They actually clinched a playoff spot before taking the field that night, as the Rams loss put the Vikings in for the second time in the last three seasons.
Notes: I'm pretty certain the 2019 Saints are the first 13-3 team to play on Wild Card Weekend. This speaks to how dangerously stacked the NFC is. The 12-4 Chiefs have a bye; the 13-3 Saints don't. And we know the narrative regarding Cousins: he can't beat teams with a winning record, and the playoffs are full of them, even the Eagles. That narrative will continue, though; there's no way the Vikings get past the Saints.
Prediction: Saints by 14
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