The Minnesota Vikings will face the Los Angeles Rams on Monday night. Due to the wildfires in California, the game will be played in Glendale, Arizona.

These two teams met earlier this season in week eight, when the Rams beat the Vikings by a score of 30-20. The game ended in controversial fashion, with quarterback Sam Darnold having his facemask ripped in the end zone. 

This time around, things are different. The Vikings are 14-3 and the Rams finished 10-7, but they won their division in week 17 and sat some of their players last week against the Seattle Seahawks.

When taking a look at this matchup compared to the first one, there are a few things different between the two.

Vikings have a full week to prepare

The biggest difference between the two games is simple: both teams have a full week to prepare. 

Thursday night games might be real football, but they always feel a little weird and fluky. With eight days between each team’s last game, that won’t happen here.

Short weeks also give issues for other reasons, as the Vikings saw in their first meeting.

There won’t be a Puka Nacua surprise

This is a weird one. The Vikings didn’t know that star wide receiver Puka Nacua was going to play. His practice window was activated just days before the game on Thursday night and then was set to play when he was activated from injured reserve three hours before kickoff.

During his Tuesday press conference, defensive coordinator Brian Flores mentioned that they weren’t prepared for Nacua to return.

“He comes off of the IR short week, you know, quite honestly, we were a little bit surprised that he was out there, that he was brought up, and it was a night game on a Thursday,” said Flores. “So we found out, you know, let’s call it four hours before the game. So, there was a little bit of, I don’t want to say a word, scrambling, but hey, we had seen a little bit of them from the previous year, but not much this year. So there was a little bit of scrambling, and, you know, he was involved early. So obviously we’ll be, we know he’s going to be out there now this time out, and you know, we’ll do a better job, or I’ll do a better job, of making sure our guys are prepared.”

It’s tough enough when you have a short week, but it’s even worse when they have a surprise return to the lineup. They hit the trifecta, and Nacua was the biggest factor in the Rams’ winning the game. 

Flores was also blunt about how they went about things when they found out.

“I mean, we talk about the player. We talk about how they use them. We start talking matchups, who would go here, who would go there. It’s not a lot you can do and that, that type of situation. But, we’ll be in a better place to stand out. They look markedly different. They’re very different team with Puka out there, very different. You know, he brings an element in both the run and the pass game. That’s why he’s a player that he is. He opens things up for other players. Cooper Kupp being one certainly, and it’s really two, two number ones that you’re dealing with.”

The Vikings will have plenty of film to watch with both Nacua and Kupp on the field and their readiness level will be much higher.

Neutral site

This is one of the more interesting elements of the entire game. Due to the wildfires in Los Angeles, the game was moved to the home of the Arizona Cardinals in Glendale, Arizona. It’s just the second time a playoff game has ever moved locations. The other was the 1936 NFL Championship Game due to low ticket sales at Fenway Park.

Being a neutral site certainly favors the Vikings, especially due to the presence of snowbirds in the state. However, the first 52,000 tickets that were sold went to the season ticket holders of the Rams and Cardinals. How many Vikings fans will be there? That much is uncertain right now, but there are going to be plenty in the stands. If it’s more than what we would have seen in Los Angeles, it’s a net positive for the Vikings, especially as the last game these teams played was at SoFi Stadium.

Blake Cashman and T.J. Hockenson are healthy

The first meeting between these two teams had the Vikings in a tough spot. They were missing both inside linebacker Blake Cashman and tight end T.J. Hockenson with injuries. Hockenson was very close to returning from injury, as he returned the next week against the Indianapolis Colts.

Not having both of them ended up playing a huge factor in the game. Without Cashman, the Vikings have Ivan Pace Jr. playing that role and it didn’t go well. He got torched a couple of times in pass coverage, as he over-committed to one side and was taken advantage of multiple times, including the first touchdown to Kyren Williams on a Texas route.

Hockenson’s presence would have been huge for the Vikings, as he would have been huge in attacking the middle of the field, a spot where the Rams aren’t very strong. With him in tow going into Monday night, that could be a huge advantage.