Falcons vs. Saints Betting Preview Week 4

It's a matter of which variation of either team shows up for this game in Week 4.

The Atlanta Falcons take on the New Orleans Saints in Atlanta.

The Saints have won six of the last nine in this series and probably should be 3-0 coming into this one.

Saquon Barkley's 2 fourth-quarter touchdowns helped to lift the Eagles over the Saints in a defensive 15-12 thriller last weekend.

Which Saints (2-1) are going to show up? The team that blew out Carolina and Dallas by a combined score of 91-29? Or the team that struggled offensively and gave up two fourth-quarter touchdowns a week ago in a loss to the Eagles?

Which Falcons (1-2) are going to show up? The team that lost at home to both Pittsburgh and Kansas City? Or the team that pulled off a gritty win at Philadelphia with a last-minute drive that was downright perfection?

Atlanta quarterback Kirk Cousins struggled to cope with a 22-17 loss to the two-time reigning Super Bowl champion Chiefs, who twice stopped the Falcons on fourth down inside the red zone in the closing minutes.

“I was pretty sick to my stomach walking off the field,” Cousins said. But, he quickly added, “This is all stuff that you go back, you talk about it, you resolve it and you’ll be better the next week.”

His New Orleans counterpart, Derek Carr, insisted that his team's true nature showed in the first two games.

“Hopefully, when you get into a good building like we have here, you’re always just trying to find answers,” he said. “We have those answers. We have those things that we’re holding onto.”

The Falcons -2.5 line is dead on, according to Sagarin.  They arrive at 2.11. The line initially opened at Atlanta -1.

2.5/3 with an accurate line bodes well for the favorite (the Falcons) based on our model data over two years.  Granted, its a 77% coverage rate and we prefer underlays in this spot.  While we like Atlanta's chances for a cover here, we'll be looking at other considerations before pulling the trigger so stay tuned.