Click here to see all recaps on a single page
| Other Week 5 Game Recaps | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ATL at GB | BUF at ARI | CHI at DET | CIN at DAL | IND at HOU | KC at CAR | MIN at NO | NE at SF |
| PIT at JAX | SD at MIA | SEA at NYG | TB at DEN | TEN at BAL | WAS at PHI | ||
Week 5 Game Recap: Minnesota Vikings 30, New Orleans Saints 27
What you need to know
| Minnesota Vikings |
QB Gus Frerotte had a terrible first half, but the defense and special teams picked him up by forcing four turnovers during the game and scoring a touchdown.
RB Adrian Peterson and Chester Taylor did not perform well against a stacked Saints box. They only managed 40 combined rushing yards.
WR Bernard Berrian led the way for the Vikings with a big 110 yard one touchdown performance. He was targeted an astounding 15 times and delivered a few big plays along the way.
| New Orleans Saints |
QB Drew Brees faced a lot of pressure and seemed off balance most of the game. He was able to show off his great accuracy and vision throughout the game, but a few unfortunate events led to two interceptions for Brees.
RB Reggie Bush was unable to get going from the backfield, but did catch seven balls and return two punts for spectacular touchdowns. Bush fumbled two times, but was not necessarily to blame for the fumbles. Deuce McAllister filled in as Bush's backup, but also struggled on the night.
WR Devery Henderson made a couple big plays down the field for the Saints. Lance Moore dropped a couple of passes and was unable to haul in two end zone targets early in the game.
What you ought to know
| QB Gus Frerotte, Pass: 19 - 36 - 222 - 1 TD / 0 INT, Rush: 2 - 4 - 0 |
Frerotte was far from special on Monday night, but he led the Vikings to victory when it mattered. He made a few big passes and was able to make the Saints pay for stacking up against Adrian Peterson. He was not incredibly accurate, but he was able to stick in the pocket in tough times and make a few key plays.
| RB Adrian Peterson, Rush: 21 - 32 - 0, Rec: 1 - 9 - 0 (5 targets) |
Peterson was unable to get going. He consistently faced eight man fronts and no holes were big enough for him to escape through. He faced a huge Saints push against the Vikings' offensive line and was tackled for a loss several times.
| RB Chester Taylor, Pass: 1 - 1 - 4 - 1 TD / 0 INT, Rush: 3 - 8 - 0, Rec: 2 - 14 - 0 (2 targets) |
Taylor was no more successful than Peterson on the ground, but he was able to come up with a big play passing the ball on a fake rushing attempt. Taylor only got three of the 24 carries between Peterson and himself. On a trick play, he threw a touchdown pass to TE Visanthe Shiancoe.
| WR Bobby Wade, Rec: 8 - 64 - 0 (11 targets) |
Wade saw a ton of targets, most coming in the second half. He is basically responsible for getting Frerotte into a rhythm, catching eight of the 11 balls thrown his way.
| WR Bernard Berrian, Rec: 6 - 110 - 1 (15 targets) |
Berrian had a huge night, catching half of Frerotte's total passing yards and being targeted a career high 15 times. He seemed like Frerotte's safety net against blitzes and was able to run solid routes all night. He only caught six balls due to tough coverage, but they were big ones.
| WR Aundrae Allison, Rec: 1 - 13 - 0 (5 targets) |
Allison had a very quiet night, accumulating only 13 yards on one reception (five targets). It seemed like Frerotte preferred to pass the ball the Berrian and Wade.
| TE Visanthe Shiancoe, Rec: 2 - 16 - 1 (2 targets) |
Shiancoe caught a touchdown pass from Chester Taylor on a trick play, but did not see much more offense coming his way.
| TE Garrett Mills (1 targets) |
Mills was the backup tight end and saw one target come his way which he was unable to catch.
| PK Ryan Longwell 3 - 3 FG, 3 - 3 XP, 12 points |
Longwell kicked the ball extremely well, making three field goals including a game winner in the final two minutes of the game.
| MIN Rush Defense |
The Minnesota rush defense was stellar, holding the Saints to 49 yards on the ground. They forced two fumbles from Reggie Bush, both of which they recovered. One of those was due to a severe face mask that was not called, but they ended up with the ball and ultimately that is what matters.
| MIN Pass Defense |
The Minnesota pass rush was very good, causing Drew Brees to be pressured all night. It forced him to throw two interceptions and have a crucial fumble that led to a touchdown.
| QB Drew Brees, Pass: 26 - 46 - 330 - 1 TD / 2 INT, Rush: 3 - 6 - 0 |
Brees was a little off balance all night, being forced to move around the pocket frequently. While he was able to do this and make some amazing throws, he was unable to lead his team to victory. He fumbled a ball which was returned for a touchdown and threw two interceptions, one of which was not his fault. He displayed his ability to fit the ball in tight windows and take advantage of the opponent, but it did not end up winning them the game as he was responsible for three turnovers.
| RB Reggie Bush, Rush: 12 - 29 - 0, Rec: 7 - 64 - 0 (9 targets) |
Bush was flashy as always, single handedly kept the Saints in the game by returning two punts for touchdowns. He was a force in the passing game as well, catching seven passes for 64 yards. He potentially cost the Saints the game though when he slipped in open field after a series of moves saw him break free to open field during a long reception run. He fumbled the ball twice but one of them legitimately was not his fault.
| RB Deuce McAllister, Rush: 6 - 13 - 0 |
McAllister was ineffective running the ball against the stingy Minnesota defense. He could not find much space to make anything happen.
| RB Aaron Stecker, Rec: 1 - 0 - 0 (3 targets) |
Stecker came in on a few passing plays to give Reggie Bush a breather.
| WR Devery Henderson, Rush: 1 - 7 - 0, Rec: 4 - 104 - 1 (11 targets) |
Henderson was targeted often and caught a touchdown pass up the seam. He was used as a deep receiver for the most part and had a couple drops on shorter routes.
| WR Lance Moore, Rec: 5 - 31 - 0 (9 targets) |
Moore was all over the place, but he could not catch the ball down the field. He also was responsible for one of Brees' interceptions due to bobbling the ball up into the air. He was targeted twice in the end zone but could not get either catch, neither of those being his fault. One involved a should have been pass interference and the other involved good coverage.
| WR Robert Meachem, Rec: 2 - 31 - 0 (3 targets) |
Meachem did not see many targets. He dropped a third down catch that would have resulted in a first down early. He was the third receiver but it seemed like Brees preferred Henderson and Moore to him.
| TE Billy Miller, Rec: 4 - 61 - 0 (6 targets) |
Miller played well, catching many passes over the middle and showing good size.
| TE Mark Campbell, Rec: 3 - 39 - 0 (4 targets) |
Campbell was the tight end behind Billy Miller.
| PK Martin Gramatica 2 - 4 FG, 3 - 3 XP, 9 points |
Gramatica had a rough night. He kicked the ball low on his first kick of the night, which led to a blocked kick that was returned for a touchdown. He also missed a go ahead field goal with two minutes left in the game.
| NO Rush Defense |
The Saints utterly dominated the offensive line of the Vikings, causing their impressive running attack to be subdued. They did often stack eight in the box though, opening up the passing game.
| NO Pass Defense |
The pass defense looked good in the first half when they kept Frerotte off balance, but it fell apart in the second half allowing a few big plays and coming up with no interceptions.
