Kirk Cousins and the 2-1 Minnesota Vikings will travel across the pond this week to play the 1-2 New Orleans Saints at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Minnesota sports betting is not legal, but there is a trend that stands out about Sunday morning's matchup that would hold particular interest for NFL futures bettors.
Using data from NFL.com, MinnesotaBets tracked the playoff performance of each NFL team following a regular season game in London that same season, and the findings don't hold much promise for Vikings and/or Saints fans.
Vikings, Saints Will Look To Overcome Past London Trend
The NFL has been playing regular season games in London since 2007, but few of the teams that have made their way across the Atlantic have gone on to reach the promised land that same season.
In fact, only the 2007 New York Giants, who played against the Miami Dolphins in the first-ever NFL London regular season game, played in The Swinging City and then went on to win the Super Bowl, where Eli Manning and team defeated the 18-0 New England Patriots.
That 2007 Giants team is also the only team to have reached the Super Bowl in the same season they played in London.
Championship Games Also a Longshot
Including the 2007 Giants, only four teams total out of the 60 who have played in London have gone on to reach their respective conference championship games the same season.
The 2012 Patriots ran roughshod over the then-St. Louis Rams at Wembley Stadium in a 46-7 rout before going on to lose to Peyton Manning and the Colts in that season's AFC Championship.
The 2013 San Francisco 49ers took it to the Jacksonville Jaguars at Wembley one year later in a 42-10 win, before going on to lose to the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC Championship game.
Finally, none other than the 2017 Jaguars beat up on the Baltimore Ravens 44-7 early in that season before their Cinderella run to the AFC Championship game against the Patriots.
Odds To Win The NFC
Can Vikings or Saints Buck the Trend?
While both the Vikings and Saints have decent expectations this season under respective new coaches Kevin O'Connell and Dennis Allen, they will have to overcome the history of teams that travel across the pond in order to make a deep playoff run.
Currently, the Vikings are +1100 to win the NFC at BetMGM Sportsbook, while the Saints are +3000. For additional odds, such as Vikings playoff chances, be sure to follow our Vikings odds hub.
