Cousins delivers in OT as Vikings stun Saints
NEW ORLEANS — Putting an end to the big-game narrative that has hung over him throughout his NFL career, quarterback Kirk Cousins led the Minnesota Vikings to their first road playoff victory since 2004 with a 26-20 win over the New Orleans Saints on Sunday.
Continuing the trend of close games with crazy finishes during wild-card weekend, the Vikings punched their ticket to the divisional round in overtime when Cousins connected with tight end Kyle Rudolph for a 4-yard touchdown on third down. This is the first wild-card weekend that featured three games within three points in the final two minutes of regulation since 2013.
It was the biggest upset for the Vikings since they beat the Green Bay Packers during the 2004 wild-card round. The Saints were favored to win Sunday’s game by a touchdown.
Cousins won the first playoff game of his career after completing 4 of 5 pass attempts for 63 yards and a touchdown on the Vikings’ overtime drive. The quarterback hit four different receivers on the game-winning drive: Dalvin Cook, Stefon Diggs, Adam Thielen and Rudolph.
Cousins’ game-winning TD to Rudolph was thrown under duress. Prior to that throw, he had only one passing touchdown under pressure all season on 99 attempts.
Cousins’ 43-yard pass to Thielen that got the Vikings down inside New Orleans’ 2-yard line carried the most air yards on a completion (40) since Cousins joined the Vikings in 2018. Cousins finished with a 96.4 passer rating, completing 19 of 31 attempts for 242 yards and a touchdown.
Cook, who returned to action for the first time since injuring his shoulder in Los Angeles, sparked Minnesota’s offense with 94 yards rushing and two touchdowns.
The Vikings now head to San Francisco for their divisional-round matchup with the 49ers at 4:35 p.m. ET on Saturday. San Francisco opened as a 7-point favorite over Minnesota at Caesars Sportsbook.