Welcome everyone to the final New Orleans Saints preview of the year! This week, it’s the Saints taking on the Atlanta Falcons.
Last Time Out: The last time these two teams took the field, the Falcons were able to take down the Carolina Panthers by the score of 33-16. The Saints were also victors last week against divisional foes with a 31-24 game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Last Meeting: The last time these two faced off it was the Falcons who came away with a convincing victory on Monday Night Football by the score of 45-32. The Falcons lead the overall series 50-45.
What to Watch For:
Playing Spoiler Again: Much like last week, the New Orleans Saints have an opportunity to play the spoiler. Last week, it was dashing any chance of the Buccaneers making the playoffs while this week it’s trying to make the Falcons playoff route tougher. It may not be what the Saints fans want to hear, but with a chance to end the season at .500 makes me think that this team will be showing up on Sunday afternoon.
Different Run Defense: The Saints are a very different team defensively than the team that was unable to stop Atlanta from scoring at will. The last time they faced off the Falcons ran it down their throats with over 200 yards on the ground. Looking at just last week, the Saints were able to hold the Buccaneers down to 89 yards, however they were without Doug Martin in that matchup. Even without their top guy, holding a team to under 100 yards on the ground is a good look. One of the biggest reasons why they have improved has been because of rookie Sheldon Rankins, who has been making up for lost time after being injured during the first half of the season. The Falcons will need to put some more focus on getting things done through the air if they want to get that win.
Should the Saints Win? With the Saints being one win away from .500, you would think this question would be a no-brainer. However, there’s no real right answer because of the fact that you want to see them play spoiler but at the same time you could wind up in the second half of the draft and that might affect you as you’re trying to prepare for life after Brees.
Saints Will Win If:
The Saints will end the season on a somewhat positive note if they can continue doing what they’ve done offensively. They’ve been performing at the level many fans have grown accustomed to after having two weeks at the most crucial point of their season where they could barely sniff the endzone and Brees looked completely inefficient.
Falcons Will Win If:
The Falcons can increase their chances of making it to the big game if they can get pressure on Drew Brees. That’s been one of the focal points all season long and it still holds true. Another big point of emphasis has to be winning the turnover battle. Look back at the Monday Night matchup where former LSU Tiger Deion Jones was able to get a pick six that would put the game out of reach. If they can get pressure on Brees, the turnovers won’t be too far behind.
-Clint Domingue