Predicting the Final Score of New Orleans Saints vs. Detroit Lions

By Bryan Zarpentine @BZarp on October 18, 2014

One of the more intriguing games on the NFL Week 7 schedule is the New Orleans Saints visiting the Detroit Lions. The Saints have been one of the most disappointing teams in the league this year, while the Lions have been one of the more erratic teams, with both impressive wins and puzzling losses. Both teams need to win this game for different reasons, as New Orleans is trying to turn its season around, while Detroit needs to keep pace in a competitive division.

Once again, the Saints are one of the top offensive teams in the NFL, but they’ve struggled this year against quality defenses, which is exactly what they’ll be up against on Sunday. The Lions are allowing less than 200 yards passing, less than 75 yards rushing and less than 14 points per game this season. The competition they’ve faced has been a bit questionable, but they did limit the Green Bay Packers to just seven points back in Week 3, so the Detroit defense is for real.

The biggest key for the Saints’ offense is up front, where the Saints will have to contain the Lions’ ferocious defensive line that’s been great at getting after the quarterback. If Drew Brees has time in the pocket, he’s as dangerous as any quarterback in the league, but if the Lions can put consistent pressure on him, it could be tough for Brees and the Saints to sustain drives. It’ll also be crucial for New Orleans to establish a consistent running game with Khiry Robinson, as it will force the Detroit pass rush to ease up and help give Brees the time he needs in the pocket.

On the other side of the ball, neither the Detroit offense nor the New Orleans defense has been particularly impressive this season. Without a steady running game, the Lions have become one-dimensional on offense and haven’t been as potent in the passing game as in past years with Calvin Johnson battling an ankle injury as of late. If New Orleans is going to win this game, they may need their defense to keep the score low, which could be asking a lot after the Saints allowed a total of 69 points in its two games heading into last week’s bye.

Ultimately, it’ll be difficult for the Saints to put together a strong offensive performance against the Detroit defense. The Lions may not be getting up and down the field either, which will make this more of a defensive struggle than one would expect from two teams that have been offensive powerhouses in recent years. This will be a field goal game, and it’ll be the home team that gets the final three points from new kicker Matt Prater.

Prediction: Detroit 20, New Orleans 17

 

Bryan Zarpentine is a New York Mets writer at www.RantSports.com.  Like him on Facebook, follow him on twitter @BZarp and add him on Google.