EAGAN, Minn. – The Vikings (5-4) will host the Saints (5-4) at noon (CT) Sunday in Week 10.
This contest will mark the annual Salute to Service game, Driven by Polaris, and coincides with Legends Weekend, a yearly celebration of former Vikings who have contributed to the organization.
It will be the 38th overall meeting between the squads. Minnesota is 24-13 all-time, including 4-1 in the playoffs and 14-4 as the host (2-0 in playoffs).
Here are all the ways to catch the action, followed by three things the Vikings.com editorial staff will be watching for during the game.
BROADCAST TV
FOX (KMSP FOX 9 in the Twin Cities)
Play-by-Play: Adam Amin
Analyst: Mark Schlereth
Sideline reporter: Kristina Pink
ON MOBILE
People in the blue areas shown on the map from 506sports.com will be able to watch the game on their iOS mobile devices with the Vikings app or Vikings mobile site (Safari browser only). The Yahoo! Sports app for smartphones and tablets offers another method for viewing live local and prime-time NFL games.
REGIONAL RADIO
KFAN (100.3-FM), KTLK 1130-AM and the five-state Vikings Radio Network
Play-by-Play: Paul Allen
Analyst: Pete Bercich
Sideline reporter: Ben Leber
Note: The pregame radio show on the Vikings Radio Network will begin at 10 a.m. (CT).
Audio Streaming Option: Catch the audio broadcast on your smart devices through the KFAN channel on the iHeart app.
SPANISH RADIO
Catch the Vikings on Tico Sports at WREY "El Rey" 94.9 FM and 630 AM in the Twin Cities and on Tico-Sports.com, elrey949fm.com and Vikings.com.
Play-by-Play: Gabriel Rios
Analyst: Isaias Zendejas
SATELLITE RADIO
New Orleans: SiriusXM 111 or 384/Or in the app
Minnesota: SiriusXM 83 or 230/Or in the app
ADDITIONAL OPTIONS
Click here for the full bevy of options that include over-the-air, cable, satellite, over-the-top and streaming methods.
NFL+ AND NFL+ PREMIUM
Start your free trial of NFL+ today to watch Vikings preseason games live or on-demand.
NFL+ and NFL+ Premium provide all the action when you are on the go. It is available in the NFL app and at NFL.com/plus.
NFL+ is available for $6.99/month or $39.99/year and offers the following:
- Live out-of-market preseason games across devices
- Live local and prime-time regular-season and postseason games on your phone or tablet
- Live game audio (home, away & national calls) for every game of the season
- NFL Films' on-demand content, ad-free
NFL+ Premium is available for $14.99/month or $79.99/year and offers all the NFL+ features and the following:
- Full game replays across devices (ad-free)
- Condensed game replays across devices (ad-free)
- Coaches film (ad-free)
THREE THINGS WE'LL BE WATCHING
Defending Taysom Hill | By Ellis Williams
The Saints offense features a weapon unlike any other in the league.
Last week, Taysom Hill notched a touchdown pass and a touchdown reception in the Saints 24-17 win against the Bears. In his career, the 33-year-old Hill has 26 rushing touchdowns, 11 touchdown passes, and 10 touchdown receptions. He is the second player in NFL history with at least 25 rushing touchdowns, 10 touchdown passes, and 10 touchdown receptions, joining Hall of Famer Frank Gifford.
Hill is as versatile as any player in football. His ability to execute at quarterback, running back, tight end and receiver helps the Saints offense exploit opposing defenses depending on the personnel they deploy.
Vikings Defensive Coordinator Brian Flores said Hill influences games just by being on the field.
"He's a very good football player. Obviously [he] plays multiple positions. Very good runner, can throw it," Flores said. "[He] presents a lot of issues defensively. Is he playing quarterback, tight end, is he a running back?"
The question is rhetorical. Flores knows when Hill is on the field that, the Saints can both feature him as a primary ball carrier or target in the passing game. Or deploy him as a decoy to open up other playmakers.
Hill thrives in red-zone situations. Since Week 7, he has scored five touchdowns (three rushing, one passing, one receiving). All five came inside the 20-yard line, four from 3 or fewer yards.
Over the past two games, the Saints have converted seven of their nine opportunities in the red zone.
"[He] creates issues. He's a fantastic player. And is dynamic," Flores said. "When I say dynamic, I mean dynamic to their offense … I'm sure they try to get you to spend so much time on this, which you have to, and then there's only so much time to spend time on other things."
A second week with Dobbs | By Lindsey Young
Last week, I wrote about the Vikings running their offense through quarterback Jaren Hall. Fans got a small sample size of the rookie against the Falcons, but he suffered a concussion on Minnesota's second offensive series and was sidelined for the remainder of the game.
Enter Joshua Dobbs.
After being acquired by Minnesota Oct. 31 via trade, Dobbs hadn't yet taken first-team practice reps with the offense – and yet stepped in and led the team to an improbable win on the road.
"Just gotta hand it to him," Vikings Offensive Coordinator Wes Phillips said Tuesday. "Everyone's said it, but understanding to come in and do what he did in the five days of an offense in preparation, it's just really special."
Entering Sunday's game against the Saints, Dobbs now has the luxury of a week of practice reps and time in the playbook. Coaches have been able to dedicate their resources to prepping Dobbs for his first start as a Viking.
Asked if Minnesota will have to adjust its offense to fit Dobbs' strengths, Phillips noted it's important not to change the whole system because it "wouldn't be fair to the other guys." Rather, it's scheming to make sure Dobbs has targets at his disposal.
"I think he's capable of running, and has run, very similar plays to what we do," Phillips said. "The other thing is, the game plans aren't as toned down as you may think, even with Jaren starting the game. I think the best thing you can do for a young quarterback or a guy who's not there is get the [pass catchers] open. It may be a little more on the front end, a little more work for them, but if you can get the guy open for him, their job is a lot easier – as opposed to being more simple, more static. Rather than, 'Hey, he knows what to do, but everybody's gloved.'
"That's what we're trying to balance," Phillips added. "How much can we still scheme and still do the things where we feel like we might be able to get an edge, but also Josh being comfortable with those things?"
Containing Kamara | By Craig Peters
The Vikings run defense is continuing to leave a mark on teams. Minnesota has limited six of nine opponents to 83 or fewer rushing yards per game this season.
The team did well in bottlenecking Atlanta's top 10 rushing offense for much of the game last week, particularly at key spots on the field. Even though the Falcons did finish with 110 rushing yards, the team's average was 3.9 per carry, and no Falcons player had a gain of 15 or more on the ground.
Minnesota did even better in shutting down passes to running backs. Atlanta rookie Bijan Robinson (two catches for 8 yards), Tyler Allgeier (two catches for minus-9 yards) and former Viking Cordarrelle Patterson (one catch for 3 yards) combined for 2 yards on eight targets.
This week, Minnesota will face Alvin Kamara, who leads the Saints with 95 carries for 346 yards and two touchdowns. Beyond the ground game, Kamara leads all NFL running backs with 43 receptions, despite missing the first three games of the season. But his yards per reception of 6.3 is the lowest among the 29 players with at least 40 receptions through Week 9.
According to NFL Media Research, the Vikings defense has allowed 203 receiving yards to running backs, the fourth-fewest in the NFL this season.
