Falcons vs Saints NFL Handicapping
The New Orleans Saints and Atlanta Falcons have alternated winning the NFC South in each of the last four seasons. If that trend continues, this will be the Saints’ year, and winning their opener against the Falcons will go a long way in accomplishing that feat.
Atlanta Falcons (13-3) at New Orleans Saints (7-9)
Date: Sunday September 8, 2013
Time: 1:00 PM ET
Venue: Mercedes-Benz Superdome
City: New Orleans, Louisiana
O/U Odds: 54
Spread: New Orleans -3
Money Line: New Orleans -165, Atlanta +145
[dfads params=’groups=63740&limit=1&return_javascript=0′]
NFL ATS Matchup Stats | NFL Betting Insight!
Check out our in-house Handicapper!!! Buy Razor Ray’s NFL Picks!
Sean Payton returns to the sideline for the Saints, and that may be the biggest boost any team received in the offseason. Drew Brees did just fine last year without him, but the team as a whole will be better served with their head coach back in the picture.
It was business as usual for Brees and the Saints’ passing attack last season.
*CLICK HERE* GRAB OUR BEST Expert NFL FOOTBALL Picks for 2013 GAMBLING season!
Jimmy Graham regressed slightly as he dealt with a wrist injury, Darren Sproles missed some time to injury, and Marques Colston was largely inconsistent, but Lance Moore and Joe Morgan stepped into larger roles to help compensate. The passing game will be just fine once again this year, but Payton will look to establish the ground game, and that starts with Mark Ingram.
Ingram has been a bust since being selected in the first round of the NFL Draft, but he’s going to get his chance to shake that label this season in what is shaping up to be a make or break year for the Alabama product.
Rob Ryan has been brought in to help fix a defense that was one of the worst in league history a year ago. He’ll start out in a hole with Will Smith out for the year and Jonathan Vilma expected to miss significant time, but there is still talent on the roster.
Curtis Lofton has established himself as a reliable middle linebacker, and defensive end Cameron Jordan appears poised for a big year. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
With the Saints out of the picture last year, the Falcons capitalized by breaking through to the NFC Championship Game, but couldn’t close the deal. They’ll look to build on last year’s momentum this year, and they’ll do so with a new toy in the backfield.
Steven Jackson will offer a significant upgrade to the production the team got from Michael Turner a year ago. He’ll be able to capitalize on cleaner running lanes than what he saw in St. Louis the last few seasons.
Matt Ryan, Julio Jones, Roddy White, and Tony Gonzalez took Atlanta’s passing game to new levels last year, but a regression may be in order.
The Falcons improved their pass defense with games like this one in mind. They had a ton of trouble generating a pass rush last season. Bringing in Osi Umenyiora should help that. First-round pick Desmond Trufant will be called on to play a role in the secondary from day one. Safeties Thomas DeCoud and William Moore combine to form one of the better safety tandems in football.
These teams always play each other tough.
It would be easier to back the Saints if the line was less than a full field goal, but they’ll be on a mission this year, and that mission starts in Week 1 against the Falcons.
The Saints are 16-5 ATS in their last 21 home games.
The play: New Orleans -3
