New Orleans Saints fans were dreaming of a playoff berth for the first time since 2020 after Week 2, but four straight losses and an injury to starting QB Derek Carr have them looking to turn things around at home against former head coach Sean Payton the Denver Broncos in Week 7.
Payton will be returning to New Orleans, where he coached the Saints for 15 years, the highlight of which was leading the team to the NFL Championship in 2009.
In Week 6, the Broncos could not make it four wins in a row as they conceded 23 unanswered points to start their game with the Los Angeles Chargers. Denver's fourth quarter comeback fell short as they lost 23-16.
Rookie quarterback Bo Nix has failed to put it all together in the way that some of his fellow 2024 draft picks have, but he goes on the road to face a New Orleans’ defense that has been one of the worst in the NFL this year in what should be an intriguing matchup.
The New Orleans Saints’ defense has allowed an eye-catching 395.8 yards per game this year, the most of any team in the NFL.
They have had a tough recent schedule, taking on the Philadelphia Eagles, Kansas City Chiefs and Tampa Bay Buccaneers in their last four games.
However, there have been plenty of warning signs from their defense, which has struggled to stop both the rush (5.2 yards per attempt) and the pass (262.2 yards per game).
Their 51-27 defeat to the Bucs was a culmination of factors that have been brewing for some time.
The Saints already have an extensive injury report and it was added to as key players including wide receiver Chris Olave and safety Tyrann Mathieu left the Bucs blowout and may not feature here.
The short turnaround to this game will put even more pressure on this injury-hit roster.
Against the Bucs, rookie quarterback Spencer Rattler showed flashes of why the Saints have put their faith in him during Carr’s absence, helping his team put up 27 points in the second quarter alone, but his consistency will be an issue going forward.
The Broncos’ Bo Nix is a fellow rookie who has struggled to make as big an impact as he would have liked, with a passer rating of 73.7 putting him in the bottom seven of the league’s quarterbacks. However, if Nix is to put things right, he will not get many better opportunities than against this struggling Saints defense.
One area the Broncos will particularly have to improve in is their third-down conversions, which ranks 31st in the league at 25 percent.
Despite two rookie quarterbacks who have not performed especially strongly, the Saints’ defensive struggles and the fact that New Orleans have an easier matchup here than they have faced for some time, means that the Over is the pick.
The Over has hit in four of the Saints games this season and the line looks a little low given the factors at play.
As previously mentioned, the Saints defense is allowing the most yards in the NFL and the injury to safety Tyrann Mathieu puts even more pressure on their secondary.
Bo Nix can take advantage of that and go over the line for his passing yards. He has had more than 200 yards passing in four of his last five games, with the only exception being in a weather-affected game against the New York Jets, who have one of the best pass defenses in the league.
That is clearly not the case here and Nix can go Over 191.5 passing yards.
Read the latest betting picks and predictions for the NFL on site.
Denver Broncos | +100 ML |
New Orleans Saints | -120 ML |
Spread | NO Saints -1.0 |
Total Points | O/U 37.0 |
Alvin Kamara (NO Saints) | +100 |
Javonte Williams (DEN Broncos) | +150 |
Rashid Shaheed (NO Saints) | +200 |
Courtland Sutton (DEN Broncos) | +210 |
Bo Nix (DEN Broncos) | +260 |
Bub Means (NO Saints) | +300 |
Read the latest NFL news on site.
This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.