This week’s matchup between the New Orleans Saints (4-4) and the Tennessee Titans (1-6) will give the Saints a chance to extend their three-game winning streak. The NFL’s fifth-leading passer, Drew Brees (2,382 yards, 15 TDs), will be on display in this contest. It starts at 1:00 p.m. ET on Sunday, Nov 8 and can be seen on CBS.
New Orleans won a close one against the Giants 52-49 last week. Drew Brees had an outstanding performance passing the ball in the win, completing 40 of 50 passes for 511 yards, seven TDs and one interception. Benjamin Watson also had a big day, contributing 147 yards and a TD on nine receptions. Tennessee didn’t have the same success as New Orleans, getting beat by the Texans 20-6. Wesley Woodyard led the Tennessee defense, registering seven tackles. Delanie Walker contributed as well, putting up 62 yards on six receptions.
The Saints are a considerable eight-point favorite and the Over/Under (O/U) for the matchup is unavailable at the moment.
Heading into Week 9 of league action, the Saints are 4-4 Straight Up (SU) and 4-3-1 Against The Spread (ATS). Over their last five games, the Saints have records of 4-1 SU and 3-1-1 ATS. The Saints offense is averaging 454.8 yards per contest over their last five games. As for the New Orleans defense, there are important areas to keep an eye on. The Saints defense should be ready for Tennessee, who rank 30th in the league with 2.3 turnovers committed per game. The Saints make it hard on their opponents right from the start, averaging 6.9 points in the first 15 minutes.
As for their opponent, the Titans have 1-6 SU and 3-4 ATS records this season. In the previous five games, Tennessee has a record of 0-5 SU and 2-3 ATS. Despite the home-field advantage, the Saints have struggled to stop their opponents’ rushing offense. The Titans will look to exploit a run defense that ranks 26th in the NFL with 122.8 rushing yards allowed per game at home. Shifting to the other side of the ball, the Tennessee defense can dominate if it takes advantage of some favorable matchups. The Titans run defense makes opponents earn every yard, allowing 3.3 yards per rush on the road. There are no road game jitters for the Titans, who average a league-best eight points in the first quarter of away games. Don’t be surprised to see lots of calls against the Saints when they take the field. New Orleans is among the most penalized teams in the league, receiving an average of 8.4 penalties per game.
Predictions: SU Winner – NO, ATS Winner – NO
Notes
New Orleans is 4-1-1 ATS in its last 6 games.
New Orleans is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games.
New Orleans is 3-6 SU in its last 9 games at home.
New Orleans is 14-6 SU in its last 20 games at home.
New Orleans is 2-6-1 ATS in its last 9 games at home.
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of New Orleans’s last 9 games when playing Tennessee.
New Orleans is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing Tennessee.
Tennessee is 1-2 SU this season, when leading at the half. New Orleans is 3-0 SU when taking a lead into halftime.
Remarkably, New Orleans is only 1-3 SU in games where it wins the turnover battle, yet undefeated (2-0 SU) when losing the turnover battle.
Tennessee has drawn an average of 8.0 penalties on opponents over its last five games. New Orleans is only 1-2 SU this season when penalized eight or more times in a game.
The Tennessee rushing attack is ranked 19th in the league this year, compared to the 24th-ranked run defense of New Orleans.
New Orleans has allowed 29.0 points per game at home this year, which ranks it only 26th in the league. Tennessee has scored 20.7 points per game on the road (ranked 19th overall).
