The Carolina Panthers are five games away from a perfect regular season. The runaway leaders in the NFC – and the last undefeated team in the NFL – have been blowing teams out lately, and have a relatively easy end-of-season slate. They now have a full 10 days to prepare for a potential division-clinching trip to New Orleans to face the struggling Saints, who are currently on a three-game losing skid.
Read on for our preview of this NFC South showdown. Meanwhile, check out more Week 13 division battles with out previews of the Chiefs vs. Raiders and Packers vs. Lions.
[sc:Football ]
Carolina Panthers vs. New Orleans Saints Preview
Where: Mercedes-Benz Superdome, New Orleans
When: Sunday, December 6, 5:25 PM ET
Line: Carolina Panthers (-7) at New Orleans Saints (+7); total 49.0 – view all NFL lines
TV Broadcast: FOX
Betting on the Carolina Panthers (11-0)
Who can stop these Carolina Panthers? Cam Newton and co. recorded their third-consecutive blowout with a 33-14 demolition of the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving. The Panthers have now won their last three games by an average of three touchdowns. They comfortably covered all three, and improved to a very impressive 9-2 ATS this season.
[sc:NFL240banner ]Newton cooled off after a string of strong passing games, finishing just 16-of-27 for 183 yards with no touchdowns. But the defense provided the points with two first half pick-sixes of Tony Romo and three interceptions overall. The Panthers D now has a staggering 28 takeaways this season, by far the most in the NFL.
Newton had nine touchdowns against one interception in the three games prior to Thanksgiving, and has a great chance to have another huge game through the air against a hopeless Saints pass defense ranked dead last per DVOA.
The Panthers offense as a whole had a huge game last time they were in New Orleans. Newton had three touchdowns while the running game (with help from Newton) had 271 yards and two touchdowns in a 41-10 win that sparked Carolina’s current 14-game regular season winning streak.
Meanwhile, the Panthers D has limited New Orleans to just 18.3 points per game over their last four meetings, with Carolina winning three of those games. Look for that dominant unit to continue having its way against a struggling Saints offense that has scored just 20 points in its last two games.
So, what exactly do the Saints do well these days? It wasn’t defense in their losses to the Titans (34-28) and Redskins (47-14), which resulted in the firing of defensive coordinator Rob Ryan. But against the Texans, it was the offense that failed them as they lost 24-6. The Saints have lost three in a row and are now just 4-6-1 ATS on the season.
The Saints failed to score a touchdown for the first time in the decade-long Sean Payton-Drew Brees era. They couldn’t get anything going on the ground or through the air all night long. They were also hampered by back-breaking penalties that were a big reason why they went just 1-of-9 on third down.
Brees and co. won’t have it any easier as they face a Panthers defense that’s one of the best in the league. But as bad as the Saints have been, it’s never a good idea to completely count Drew Brees out, especially at home in a division matchup.
Even though Brees didn’t play in their meeting with Carolina earlier this season, backup Luke McCown led the Saints with 310 passing yards as they covered as 10-point underdogs in a 27-22 loss at Carolina.
With Brees at the helm, the Saints have shown that they can still put points on the board in the Superdome. They’re averaging 34.3 points per game in their last four home games.
Writer’s Prediction
Newton and the Panthers pound the Saints at the Superdome, 35-21.
