New Orleans Saints playoff football. Symptoms: heartbreak.
On Sunday, the Minnesota Vikings broke hearts at the Mercedes Benz Superdome, beating the Saints 26-20 on a walk-off touchdown toss from Kirk Cousins to Kyle Rudolph. The feeling of loss in a one-score game is all too familiar for the Saints faithful.
The Saints are now the first team in NFL history to have six straight playoff eliminations by one score and the second team since the Green Bay Packers from 2013-15 to be eliminated on three consecutive final plays, as noted by Adam Schefter of ESPN.
Last year, the Los Angeles Rams stormed back with the help of an obvious missed pass interference call to finish the Saints' season in the NFC Championship Game. The year before, the Vikings performed the “Minneapolis Miracle,” with Stefon Diggs ending the game on the spot.
New Orleans entered Sunday's loss to the Vikings as the heavy favorite. They were at home, hot and looked like one of the best teams in football. Meanwhile, the Vikings had a quarterback who historically was awful in big games.
However, postseason football is not predictable. Sunday's loss to the Vikings only proved that. Minnesota ran all over the Saints in the Superdome. Then, when Drew Brees and Wil Lutz stormed back, Kirk Cousins, of all people, was the one to seal the upset victory in New Orleans.
Now, the Saints can only go home with heartbreak. However, at least they can enter the offseason knowing they have a team that can get to the postseason.