New Orleans Saints (0-1 SU, 0-1 ATS) vs. New York Giants (1-0 SU, 1-0 ATS)
Week 2 NFL
Date/Time: Sunday, September 18, 2016 at 1PM EST
Where: MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey
TV: Fox
By Loot, NFL Football Handicapper, Lootmeister.com
Betting Odds: NO +5/NYG -5
Over/Under Total: 51.5
The New Orleans Saints come to MetLife Stadium on Sunday to take on the New York Giants in week two action. The Giants went on the road in week one and managed a 1-point win over the Dallas Cowboys, 20-19. They get an irritated New Orleans team in their home opener. The Saints saw the Raiders score a last-minute TD and a two-point conversion to win in a 35-34 heart-breaker for New Orleans. They look to get in the win-column in week two with what looks to be a really challenging road-spot against a potentially-prolific Giants' offense.
The Saints were involved in a real back-and-forth slugfest against the Raiders in week one. They took a second-half lead, but were never safe with the upstart Raiders taking advantage of a Saints' defense that is still working on some different things. The Saints couldn't catch a break at the end. First came the last-minute touchdown, with Jack Del Rio boldly opting to go for the win with the two and getting it. New Orleans was even in there with a chance after all of that, with rookie kicker Wil Lutz narrowly missing a 61-yarder that would have salvaged the win.
The Saints offense is still a handful. They were over 500 yards in total offense, with Drew Brees going 28-for-41 for 423 yards and 4 TD passes with no picks. They ran the ball OK, with Mark Ingram also chipping in aerially. The real stars besides Brees were Willie Snead and Brandin Cooks. Snead had 172 yards and a score, with Cooks catching two TD balls to go with his 143 yards, including a Saints-record 98-yarder.
The real issue with the Saints isn't going to be the offense, even though with all that production, 34 points was a little low in terms of a bottom-line result. Still, the defense needs to be able to stop a nosebleed at some point. When things starting turning sour in the final quarter, it never sweetened—not even for a second. There was an extra emphasis on this side of the ball in the offseason and not every defense hits the ground running, but the absence of clutch was alarming, without one positive development when the game was on the line.
The Giants didn't have an easy time of it on Sunday against a Dallas team that was starting a rookie QB-RB duo. To their credit, the Dallas defense played really well. There were still some positive signs for the New York offense following their narrow win. Eli Manning was not prolific, as he was held to 207 yards in the air, but there were some good signs along with the typical production from Odell Beckham, Jr., as long-lost Giants' son Victor Cruz got back into the fold and caught a TD pass. Rookie Sterling Shepard caught a TD in his Giants debut. Tight end Larry Donnell, who could be a big red-zone threat this season, caught a TD pass. The Giants were able to control the game with the run at times, with Rashad Jennings and Shane Vereen peeling off some useful scampers along the way. Vereen also caught three balls and could become a real weapon in this offense.
Most refreshing for the Giants was how they stuffed up the Cowboys' run-game, while keeping their passing-game in-check. A lot of things didn't go so great, with the Giants getting no sacks and no turnovers. Dallas converted on an alarming 10 of 17 third down attempts. But they kept the Cowboys out of the end zone and were able to respond when the situation got critical. To give up 24 first downs, register no game-changing plays, turnovers, or sacks, be dominated in time-of-possession and still emerge with a win is impressive in a strange way. Look for them to be tested more severely against the Saints this week, an offense that bears little resemblance to what they faced in week one. Still, it's only fair to acknowledge that the work they did in free agency will likely pay off, with Kelvin Sheppard, Olivier Vernon, Damon Harrison, Janoris Jenkins, and others upgrading this unit.
These teams are vaguely similar. Their defenses have lagged behind their offenses, at least in recent campaigns. And the key to their offense lies in the pass-game. Each squad has fallen on hard times in recent seasons and did something about it in the offseason. Both teams enter 2016 eager to right the ship. It's a good time to remind ourselves of a typical week two betting mistake. Week one is an easy game to subscribe undue importance. It's all we have to go on of a recent nature, but it's still a one-game window, In other words, you won't see everything you need to see. At the same time, we did see some things in week one that we thought we were going to see, namely how the Saints still have a great offense, with a defense that can betray them at any point. Then again, let's get back to the one-game window principle, especially with a defense that has a lot of new faces. Maybe it's wrong to expect the Saints' defense to hit the ground running.
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If any team could improve this season, the Giants seem like the more appealing candidate. Not that they'll become huge factors this season, necessarily, but in the sense if you were to bet which team will improve the most on their win total from last year. The Giants' defense has a chance to be pretty good. Adding two viable targets like Cruz and Shepard, with a versatile weapon like Vereen and a run-game that could be on the upswing has the Giants looking like a team on the way up. Despite the massive changes made on the defense, they somehow appear more ready to thrive early in the season. This game could have a different complexion weeks from now, but it looks like New Orleans needs more time to iron out kinks along the "D." Again, we have to keep resisting the urge to put to much credence on one game. But I'm leaning in the Giants' direction.
Loot's Prediction to Cover the Point Spread: I'm betting on the New York Giants minus 5 points. Did you know... that you could be wagering on the New Orleans vs. New York game at discounted odds? There's a better than good chance that you're laying -110 odds (or more) with your book. Stop overpaying TODAY by making the switch to 5Dimes Sportsbook! You will be so glad that you did!
