NEW ORLEANS SAINTS WEEKLY MEDIA INFORMATION GUIDE NEW ORLEANS SAINTS AT MINNESOTA VIKINGS OCTOBER 28, 2018 @ U.S. BANK STADIUM GAME INFORMATION • ROSTERS • DEPTH CHART • TEAM AND PLAYER STATISTICS NEW ORLEANS SAINTS (5-1) AT MINNESOTA VIKINGS (4-2-1) SUNDAY, OCTOBER 28, 2018 – 7:20 PM (CST) U.S. BANK STADIUM – MINNEAPOLIS, MN. TV: NBC (WDSU 6 locally) – Al Michaels (play-by-play), Cris Collinsworth (color analyst) and Michele Tafoya (sideline) NATIONAL RADIO: Westwood One Radio – Tom McCarthy (play-by-play) and Jason Taylor (color analyst) LOCAL RADIO: WWL (870 AM and 105.3 FM) – Zach Strief (play-by-play), Deuce McAllister (color analyst) and Steve Geller (sideline) SPANISH LANGUAGE RADIO: Louisiana Spanish Network (97.9 FM) – Marco Garcia (play-by-play), Juan Carlos Ramos and Victor Quinonez (color analysts) sion 33:31-26:29. QB Drew Brees again provided out- THE MATCHUP standing leadership for the Saints offense, erasing a fourth The NFC South-leading New Orleans Saints-who at 5-1 quarter ten-point deficit with a pair of touchdown drives only trail the 6-0 Los Angeles Rams for the best record in and a field goal drive against a defense that had not al- the NFC, play at the Minnesota Vikings in a Sunday night lowed an opponent to reach the end zone all season in the contest at U.S. Bank Stadium. The Vikings (4-2-1) current- second half of a contest. ly hold the first place spot in the NFC North, setting up a Against a Baltimore defense that was ranked third battle between division leaders. against the run going into the contest, RB Alvin Kamara New Orleans will travel to Minnesota with the confi- showed some tough inside running in posting a game-high dence that accompanies a 3-0 record on the road and a 64 yards rushing with a fourth quarter two-yard touchdown. fourth quarter come-from-behind 24-23 victory at the Balti- Kamara has used a combination of power and explosion to more Ravens on Sunday. The Vikings will also bring plenty posted a team-leading 725 yards, ranked eighth in the NFL of punch to the contest, returning after a hard-nosed 37-17 and score 46 points, tied for fifth in the league. victory at the New York Jets that featured a combination of Equally impressive has been third-year WR Michael offensive balance and three takeaways that led to ten sec- Thomas, who ranks among league leaders with 53 re- ond half Minnesota points. ceptions for 588 yards and four TDs. After dropping a 48-40 decision to Tampa Bay to open The defense has been led by DE Cameron Jordan, who the season on Sept. 9, New Orleans has been on fire with leads the team with five sacks and LB Demario Davis, a a five-game winning streak, the sixth such run since Head shrewd free agent acquisition who leads the club with 49 Coach Sean Payton took the reigns of the Saints in 2006. tackles in helping the run-stopping surge. LB A.J. Klein Payton has led the surge with a disciplined, creative ap- has 33 stops after leading the Saints with seven tackles on proach that has put players in position to make plays in all Sunday. three phases of the game. In bouncing back from a tough The Saints are on the road against the second consecu- opener, a toughness on a defense that ranks first in the tive week, opening 3-0 on the road for the first time since NFL in opponent rushing yards per game and opponent 2009 and for the fourth time in franchise history. Following rushing yards per play has also become a trademark of the Sunday night’s contest, New Orleans will look to take ad- Saints. vantage of a November stretch with three of their next four The matchup against a physical Ravens team on Sun- contests at home. day with similar excellence in all three phases required a In The NFC South This Week: The Tampa Bay Bucca- combination of consistency and big plays. A balance offen- neers (3-3) will travel to Cincinnati (4-3), the Carolina Pan- sive approach was powered by New Orleans outrushing thers (4-2) will host Baltimore (4-3), while Atlanta (3-4) will Baltimore 134-77 and winning the battle of time of posses- have a Week Eight bye. New Orleans at Minnesota: Week 8 2 THE COACHES 2009, when they advanced to the NFC Championship Game but fell to the Saints. The 2015 campaign ended with New Orleans Saints Head Coach Sean Payton has posted a nailbiter, as the club fell to the Seattle Seahawks, 10-9, in a 117-77 overall record (.603), including a 7-5 postseason the Wild Card round. Following an 8-8 campaign in 2016, in mark (.583) after the franchise had won only one playoff 2017, Zimmer led the Vikings to a 13-3 record, his second game prior to his arrival. Payton holds both the club’s top NFC North title as head coach and a first-round playoff win total and winning percentage. He continues to repre- bye. Prior to his arrival in Minnesota, Zimmer served as the sent the Saints as the model of stability not only within the defensive coordinator for the Cincinnati Bengals from 2008 NFC South, as he is the longest tenured head coach within to 2013. During that span, Bengals defenses ranked in the the division, but also among the most accomplished within top-15 in yards allowed each year and on two occasions the National Football League. Only New England’s Bill Bel- ranked in the top-five. He served briefly as defensive coor- ichick (2000), Cincinnati’s Marvin Lewis (2003) and Green dinator for Atlanta in 2007 after having held that position Bay’s Mike McCarthy (hired one week prior to Payton in with the Cowboys from 2000 to 2006. He originally entered 2006) have been with their teams longer. Payton is also the NFL in 1994 as a defensive assistant with the Cow- one of just eight active coaches to lead a team to a Super boys, was promoted to defensive backs coach in 1995, and Bowl victory. The others are Belichick, Seattle’s Pete Car- was to defensive coordinator in 2000. Zimmer was the de- roll, Oakland’s Jon Gruden (Tampa Bay in 2002), Balti- fensive coordinator for Washington State between 1989 and 1993. During his final season with the Cougars, the more’s John Harbaugh, McCarthy, Philadelphia’s Doug team ranked eighth nationwide in total defense and second Pederson and Pittsburgh’s Mike Tomlin. The 2017 Saints in rushing defense, allowing only 298.8 total yards per squad yielded an 11-5 regular season record, producing game and only 86.3 rushing yards per game. Before joining their first playoff berth since 2013, behind a squad led by Washington State, Zimmer was the defensive coordinator quarterback Drew Brees offensively and defensive end for Weber State from 1983 to 1988, prior to which he was Cameron Jordan defensively, this team featured seven an assistant coach there for two seasons. Zimmer began players selected to the Pro Bowl, tied for the most in club his coaching career in 1979 at the University of Missouri as history and four draft picks selected to the PFWA All- an assistant coach after graduating from Illinois State. Rookie Team, two more than any other club. With running back Alvin Kamara and cornerback Marshon Lattimore, the 2017 Saints were the first team to have both the Associat- ed Press NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year and Defensive SERIES HISTORY Rookie of the Year since 1967. The Saints defense saw Minnesota leads the regular season series, having improvement in virtually every major statistical category. won 19 of 29 contests since the teams first met on October New Orleans moved up ten spots in total defense, includ- 13, 1968 at Tulane Stadium and three of four postseason ing from 32nd to 15th against the pass. After ranking 31st meetings; the Black and Gold won that first matchup 20-17. in opponent points per game in 2016, New Orleans moved The Saints would not beat the Vikings again until Sept. 3, up to tenth in 2017, surrendering only 20.4 points per 1978, losing six straight contests in the interim. Though the game. Payton earned a bachelor’s degree in communica- Vikings have a firm grasp of the overall series record, the tions at Eastern Illinois, where as a quarterback he had Saints have fared much better since the 2006 arrival of 10,665 passing yards, at the time the third-highest total in Sean Payton as head coach and the free agent signing NCAA Division I-AA history. Payton was inducted into the of QB Drew Brees. The teams have met on seven occa- Eastern Illinois Hall of Fame in September of 2000 and had sions since then, five times in the regular season and twice his jersey retired in a ceremony in September of 2010. He in the postseason and New Orleans has captured four. The Saints and Vikings have met four times in the playoffs, received an honorary doctorate from his alma mater in including the Black and Gold’s first ever postseason game 2013. Payton was born December 29, 1963 in San Mateo, in 1987, which the Vikings seized at the Superdome, 44- Calif., and raised in Naperville, Ill., Payton has a daughter, 10. The third playoff meeting proved to be the charm, how- Meghan and a son, Connor.