Whew. 72% of last week’s NFL expert picks came in against the New Orleans Saints, and the black and gold proved them all wrong by winning a shutout at. This week, they’re facing even more doubters with 87% of this week’s game picks favoring the visiting Baltimore Ravens. NFL Pickwatch surveys weekly game picks from experts in the media and fan blogs from around the pro football landscape, and the outlook on the Saints this week isn’t any better than what we saw last week.
It’s actually worse — half as many experts like the Saints to repeat with a win over the Ravens on Monday night this week, with the group picking New Orleans falling from a 28% minority to a thin crowd of 13%. It makes sense when you look at the records (Baltimore is 5-3, while the Saints have an inverse mark at 3-5) and remember that Saints quarterback Andy Dalton has lost his last four games against his old AFC North rivals.
So it almost goes without saying that the Saints are facing long odds in this game. Baltimore is a very strong running team, averaging 165.6 yard on the ground each week. They’re also tied for the second-most rushing first downs (76) around the league. That’s a mismatch against the up-and-down Saints run defense, though New Orleans did just allow its lowest single-game rushing total (38 yards) of the season. With the Ravens managing injuries to two of their top three receiving threats in tight end Mark Andrews (488 receiving yards this season) and wide receiver Rashod Bateman (285), they’ll be looking to place an even greater emphasis on their run game this week. The Saints must be ready.