NFC South Tilt: Atlanta Falcons at New Orleans Saints

With AP Photos.For Saints rookie sensation Alvin Kamara, a rematch with rival Atlanta is about unfinished business. The Saints will want revenge from what happened in Atlanta a few weeks ago, and the Falcons will have to play their best game of the season.

They have been the driving force behind New Orleans’ offense, which ranks first in the National Football League in yards per game (401.5), yards per play (6.4) and yards per rush (4.9).

-The Falcons defense held the Saints to season lows with 306 yards, 17 points and just 50 yards rushing in the last meeting.

The script hasn’t changed for the Detroit Lions, the team still needs to win its final two games to have a shot at extending the season.

“Annoying. Annoying, really. That’s all I can say”, Kamara said of the first and only game he has missed any part of due to injury so far in his young career.

The Saints backfield will be entering the game healthy and will likely look to keep their team on top of the division. This is as good as it gets for a regular season Saints game. “And I think that’s a key to success”.

There’s no more important game on the Week 16 schedule in terms of playoff implications than Sunday’s matchup between the Atlanta Falcons and New Orleans Saints.

If Atlanta (9-5) wins, it’ll have swept the season series with New Orleans for a second straight season and could move into a first-place tie with the Panthers.

The Buccaneers are 1-6 on the road, despite having the fifth-most yards per game on the road (356.0 pg).

Sean Payton said he regretted making a choke gesture toward Falcons running back Devonta Freeman. The Falcons have gone 5-2 when playing on the road this season. Going through those as a coach, you’re not ever disappointed about being in close games because you do gain some stuff from that.

But the flip side of this is that the long TD run by Ingram, which happened late in the fourth quarter, accounted for more than half of his yards. Wil that trend continue or can Ryan find his stride and help put his team in the best possible positon to defend their conference title? Obviously picking this rivalry straight up is hard since both teams are so dominant.

The Saints get another crack at the Falcons on Sunday just two weeks after that 20-17 loss in Atlanta. They could lose and still get into the playoffs with a win over Carolina next Sunday in Atlanta. “[But] you see him flying around, so we know he’s there”. Head coach Dan Quinn will have an update later in the week.

“That’s his prerogative and his opinion”. “Every game is different”.

The Saints are 10-0 SU and 7-3 ATS in their last 10 games as a favorite. The Steelers and Houston Texans square off at 3:30 p.m. on NBC, NFL Network and Amazon Prime, and the Oakland Raiders and Eagles meet in ESPN’s usual 7:30 game.

“Now, with the Saints set to play the Falcons again Sunday in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, there’s fear among some fans that the Saints could be about set to repeat history”, Dabe writes. So-who’s going to win?

The NFC South will not be decided exclusively by the result of this game. Middle linebacker A.J. Klein, who was the primary defensive signal caller, went on IR on Tuesday. The Saints D is the 9th highest scoring defense this season.