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The Saints won 36 first downs in their defeat against the Vikings on Christmas Day, and the most notable was how easy it was for them to convert: the Saints rarely made it to the third down, converting 30 of their 36 first downs into the first or second low. .
Saints coach Sean Payton said after the game that it reminded him of playing in the Canadian Football League, where teams only get three downs to win 10 yards, which means that if you don’t convert on the first or second downhill , usually kicks on the third descent.
“It was one of those CFL games we were converting into, getting first downs on the first and second downs,” said Payton, through the Associated Press. “They are one of the best trained defenders and they’ve put a lot of guys out and that can be difficult.”
As a player, Payton had a brief stint at CFL’s Ottawa Rough Riders, so he knows a little about football north of the border. And he knows that it is not always that the NFL teams get their first defeats as easily as the Saints against the Vikings.