Saints vs. Falcons: Preview, score prediction for Week 14
New Orleans Saints vs. Atlanta Falcons
There are always quirks in the NFL schedule. However, one such instance in the 2017 season is that the New Orleans Saints and Atlanta Falcons have yet to face one another. That all changes on Thursday Night Football in Week 14, though, as the NFC South leading Saints head to the ATL to face their rivals.
The home Falcons are coming off of a tough loss to the Minnesota Vikings last week. However, they’re still very much in the playoff hunt currently and, though it’d take a ton of work to usurp New Orleans from the top spot in the division, they can certainly play their way into a Wild Card spot. A win on Thursday, though, is critical to having that happen.
Meanwhile, New Orleans controls their own destiny right now. They have a one-game lead over the Carolina Panthers and a two-game cushion over their Week 14 opponents. If they can keep on track, they should be able to capture the division title with relative ease.
Keys to Victory
For the Saints, there are two big keys in this matchup. First off, they must continue to move the ball on the ground consistently with Alvin Kamara and Mark Ingram. Shockingly, that’s been the best part of their offense this season. Thus, it’ll be interesting to see if, after an off-week, they’ll be able to keep that part of their game moving well.
On defense for New Orleans, they must find a way to contain Julio Jones. It’s no mistake that Jones was stifled last week for the Falcons and they lost to Minnesota. Simultaneously, finding ways to free up the talented receiver is huge for the success of Atlanta on Thursday night.
Much like with the visiting team from the Big Easy, Steve Sarkisian must feed Devonta Freeman. This offense works best when it’s balanced and Freeman has proved more than capable of carrying a sizable load. Yet, they’ve not been featuring him nearly enough as of late, but they need to so to offset the control that the Saints could hold over the flow of the game.
Betting Odds
Point Spread: Atlanta -1
Moneyline: Atlanta -120, New Orleans +100
Over/Under: 52
Next: NFL: 5 Teams on upset alert in Week 14
Prediction
Perhaps it’s the sour taste from last week, but it’s hard to think that the Falcons are on the same level as the Saints right now. At the end of the day, I think New Orleans will control the flow of the game, leaving even the best Atlanta offensive attack somewhat impotent by comparison. Thus, there will be a continued party in the Big Easy.
Final Score: New Orleans Saints: 37, Atlanta Falcons: 28