Technically, the New Orleans Saints had a few good moments against the Minnesota Vikings, like Jonas Sanker’s touchdown return or Khristian Boyd’s earlier forced fumble. On the other hand, if you have to start positive sentence with “technically,” that tells you what kind of day it was. There was just enough good to do a player of the game.
In a moment like the Saints are currently in, any sort of optimism is welcomed. The last 9 quarters have been brutal and have featured some of the worst football of the Kellen Moore era.
The list isn’t long, but here’s a few game balls to players who made a few plays during a bleak 60 minutes.
Saints saw a couple of spash plays from key defenders
Jonas Sanker scored half of Saints points
Jonas Sanker is easily the top player from this game. It's rare that a defensive player puts points on the board, so when they do, it deserves to be recognized. His fumble return touchdown will get lost in the shuffle of an ugly game, but it was the highlight moment for the Saints.
In terms of importance to the game, Sanker's touchdown was the most juice in the building all day long. His touchdown also essentially lapped everything the Saints offense did individually in just one play.
Shough had a net of 87 yards passing when you factor in the 9 yard sack he took. So much for a bold prediction of the Saints having a 60 yard rusher. They didn't even have 60 yards rushing total. Matter of fact, Sanker scored as many points as the offense did today.
Sanker was putting up the same yards as the passing and rushing attack on a fumble return. Yes, that's a sad declaration for the offense, but it was still a major play for Sanker. It was the biggest play of his career.~ Darrion Gray
Welcome back Carl Granderson
To be honest, it’s hard to pick a player of the game after a loss like this, but, with five tackles, 1.5 sacks, and two tackles for a loss, I’d say that Carl Granderson should be the guy who gets that nod this week. It’s thanks to him that the Vikings didn’t score more than three on their first drive, with a crucial 10-yard sack on first down. It makes you wonder what he could have done to help the team in their loss last week if he wasn’t injured~ Molly Bauer
Punting isn't sexy, but it was effective
My player of the game: Ryan Wright’s performance will go unnoticed, but he had a fantastic showing and held Minnesota’s offense at bay. The former Viking averaged 57.3 yards on his four punts and consistently flipped the field, giving Kyler Murray bad field position. They did have some decent returns, but that’s not on Wright.
Punting has been a major issue for the Saints recently. Lou Hedley, Matthew Hayball, and Kai Kroger all disappointed, averaging under 45 yards per punt. However, that’s not an issue anymore as the Saints’ nailed the free agent signing of Ryan Wright.
Punting is never fun, but it’s far better when there’s a reliable option who can pin the opposing offense within the 20.~ Drew Collings
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