The New Orleans Saints look to take control in the NFC South with a big division win over the Atlanta Falcons this weekend. The matchup will be the first of two this season between these two teams and will be a lot different from the last contest, which saw Taysom Hill start and win a 21-16 game that was close throughout. This time, it will be Trevor Siemian as the Saints try and string another win onto this streak.
New Orleans is going to be very unpredictable in this game. Siemian was solid in the last game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers but he will have to be a little more prepared now that a team is going to have a full week to get ready for him. He won’t have many weapons to get the football too either, as Michael Thomas was ruled out for the remainder of the season and the team wasn’t able to acquire anybody at the deadline despite numerous attempts at big name players. Alvin Kamara and Mark Ingram will likely be the focal point of this offense, at least until Siemian gets comfortable in the pocket. The Atlanta secondary has had some great games this season but they shouldn’t be considered a top ten defense just yet. This is probably one of the best matchups New Orleans could have gotten this weekend with all of their injuries and such. However, I always say that division games are the most unpredictable and if there was any time for a team to get upset, it would in one of these.
Atlanta will be without Calvin Ridley in this game as he battles some personal issues off the field regarding his own mental health. I hope both him and his family are all okay and that he will be able to return to the field at some point during this season. Matt Ryan, a guy who had his hand crushed last week, will need to heal quickly and play without his top target. Kyle Pitts is going to be the x-factor for them offensively, but may have a tough time if he is the only player for the Saints to key in on. Atlanta won’t win this game by playing elite defense, they will have to score points and be able to sustain drives late in the game, not just in the first half.
I think this is going to be a very exciting matchup, these two teams always have great games. I am going to roll with the Saints again in this one. They could be primed for a bad game after such an excellent one but I see them wanting to come out and steal the division lead from the Buccaneers right now. For those of you that don’t know, the Saints win over the Buccaneers gives them the tie breaker and puts them a game back. With Tampa Bay being on a bye week, the Saints could win and jump them due to the tie breaker. It would only be for a week or so until Tampa Bay could easily regain possession, but it is going to make for an interesting end to the season.