It took some time but somehow the Lions now have possession of the best record in the NFC North after handing Minnesota a 16-13 loss on Thanksgiving. With the win, the Lions have also extended their win streak to three games and they hope to ride that momentum to New Orleans next in Week 13.
As usual, Detroit’s passing game consisted most of the Lions’ offensive life with Matthew Stafford throwing for 232 yards and a touchdown on 23 of 40 completions. Stafford could have a better outing next time though against New Orleans’ softer defense that is just 27th in the NFL against the pass.
Just don’t expect much from Detroit’s backfield, however. The Lions only had 94 rushing yards in the Minnesota game and things are not looking up for it versus the Saints, who are 12th against the run.
While containing Drew Brees and the Saints’ offense is obviously a challenge, Detroit has actually done better defensively the last three games. The Lions are allowing just 16.0 PPG during that stretch.
There was nothing saintly in the way New Orleans beat the Rams on Sunday. The Saints took LA to the woodshed, as they racked up 555 total yards on their way to a decisive 49-21 win, their first in three games.
Drew Brees destroyed the Rams on the air with 310 passing yards and four touchdowns with no interception on 28 of 36 completions. While we mentioned that the Lions’ defense have been better of late, Brees can still look forward to possibly another huge showing, considering that Detroit’s pass rush hasn’t recorded a sack in the past two weeks.
And it’s not like the Saints will just pin their hopes on Brees—not with a robust backfield that has been fantastic thus far this season. The Saints are ninth in the league with 114.6 rushing yards per game. Mark Ingram, who rushed for 146 of the team’s 209 total rushing yards against LA, should have a great day ramming the ball down Detroit’s defense that allows 102.5 rushing yards per contest.
On the flipside, the Saints’ defense has lots of issues, as one can tell from the 27.9 points it allows per game. One thing the Saints have been doing relatively well on that side of the ball is limiting opposing run offenses, as they are 12th against the run overall.
The Saints are 3-1 SU and ATS in its last four home games.
