While not technically rivals, the Vikings and the Saints fanbases both have valid reasons to be mad at the opposition.
That certainly adds fuel to the fire with what New Orleans has been doing with its roster lately. The Saints added Jaleel Johnson, a defensive tackle who started 16 games for Minnesota in 2020, to the practice squad.
To make matters stranger, the Saints then signed former Vikings DE Jalyn Holmes and CB Dylan Mabin to practice squad.
It’s hard to see what New Orleans saw in these players, but I guess Holmes and Johnson both have experience as mainstay starters, so that’s decent depth for the practice squad.
In case you weren’t aware, here’s a brief history:
Vikings fans may be mad about that blowout loss, if they agree with Mike Zimmer. Zimmer told NBC’s Peter King this offseason that the coach thought the Saints ran up the score in that game. That’s one wrinkle in a long saga between these two teams, despite not being in the same division.
Minnesota fans also have 2009, when Brett Favre and the Vikings fell short in the NFC Championship that season. Later, the league found evidence that then-defensive coordinator Gregg Williams deployed a bounty program that paid players for doing things such as injuring the opposition, and that program allegedly started in 2009.
Saints fans might be mad over the Minneapolis Miracle, when Vikings QB Case Keenum found WR Stefon Diggs along the sideline. A timely missed tackle led to Diggs taking the reception to the house, giving the Vikings the victory as time in regulation ran out.
The Vikings also beat the Saints in the 2019 season when Kirk Cousins found Kyle Rudolph for a game-winning touchdown reception in overtime of the playoffs. Some people thought Rudolph committed pass interference, but it wasn’t called.
So take your pick, the Vikings and Saints have plenty of reasons to beef with each other. Sure, it’s just New Orleans signing former Minnesota players to the practice squad this time, but you never know with these two.