New England Patriots @ New Orleans Saints Preview and Prediction

Where to watch

The Pats are at on the road for the second week in a row facing the New Orleans Saints at the Caesars Superdome at 1 p.m. EST, Sunday October 12th, live on CBS-WBZ and on 98.5 FM The Sports Hub radio.

Last time out and series history

Last time out was a forgetful embarrassing 34-0 thrashing in Foxborough, the second worst home loss New England has suffered in its history. The good news is history is on the Patriots side, with a 10-6 winning record in the 16 matchups against the Saints. I would really like a thrashing to help get that bad taste of the last Saints loss out of the Pats mouths. 

What and who to look out for 

Drake Maye has really stepped into his shoes and is hanging with the NFL's elite QBs in multiple measures this season. Started slow (although, most of the team started slow, it must be said) but he has really become a leader and impressed as the weeks go by. He has reduced his mistakes and errors, increased his efficiency and playmaking ability, and become a kingpin component as a leader of the team. He has paid back Vrabel's trust in him when he gave him the nod for a captaincy position. In this game, ball security will be a huge factor, don't turn the ball over or fumble unnecessarily and I can't see the team having too much issue getting the win. New Orleans have 12 sacks in 5 games and sit 15th in the league in sacks. The OL has done well but Drake is a part of not taking sacks too, and must avoid them to help the team not concede negative plays.

Stefon Diggs has come to light as the Pats WR1 with breakout games against Carolina and his former Buffalo Bills. This game presents some favourable matchups for a guy like Diggs so I'm expecting New England to exploit that and punish New Orleans. The other receivers carried more of the load earlier in the year like Hollins and Boutte but Diggs has impressed in the last two games. I want the other guys to chip in with contributions but if we can keep getting this level out of Stefon, we shouldn't have too many issues with the Saints.

Rhamondre Stevenson has had what I can only describe as a topsy turvy year, a yo-yoing up and down season that has been full of mistakes, namely the fumbles, but also some moments of great production and contribution to the team. With Gibson out for the year, and rookie RB Henderson not performing as we had hoped, our running game is anchored to Mondre. Kinda like Maye, just don't fumble the football and we'll be alright.

Will Campbell is a hell of a player. His stats are very promising as a rookie and has shored up the left side of our line. Pass protection is vital in this game and it will, at least by the stats, be one of his easier front seven units to deal with so it is crucial we get this right.

Patriots front seven has been pretty good, probably a little above average in some aspects, but top ten in others. We must rattle Rattler and make his day a nightmare, we have the players in Barmore, Williams and Landry to achieve this. The defense has been pretty good in most games and I think it's fair to say it has to continue to be that way for us to continue winning.

Christian Gonzalez returned against Carolina for his first game back from his hamstring injury that sidelined the star CB since July. He was listed as questionable on the injury report this week and practiced away from the team as well, but the team stated that this was normal and was a planned activity. Will he play? Who knows but if he doesn't our secondary has been the weakest aspect of the defense and it was shown to be the case in the Vegas and Pittsburgh losses. The last two games where Gonzalez was out there, our secondary play was much better so we need him to play, I expect him to play. But if there is a concern for the health of that hamstring, I'd sit him early and trust that our guys can get a W without him. Bring him in later if needs be.

Odds and predictions

The Pats are the bookies favourites by 3.5 points. My prediction is that this one will be tighter than a lot of people think, the Pats are a much better team on paper, and they are currently hotter, but they absolutely are capable of producing a stinker too. I'm going with the Pats 35-28 with the Pats getting a fourth quarter TD to win.