Thursday Betting Preview: Saints to break through on the road in divisional clash
The Carolina Panthers host the New Orleans Saints in an NFC South clash in prime time on Thursday night.
The Saints are favored to take down the game despite an 0-4 road record thus far, with the public pounding New Orleans, while the wiseguys waited for the line to get to a full field goal before getting in on the underdog.
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New Orleans Saints at Carolina Panthers
Spread: Saints -3
Total: 49.5
Line movement:
| Team | Opening Line | Current Line | Action |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saints | -1.5 | -3 | 77% |
| Panthers | +1.5 | +3 | 23% |
| Team | Opening Total | Current Total | Action |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saints | 49 ov | 49.5 ov | 55% |
| Panthers | 49 un | 49.5 un | 45% |
Analysis: The Panthers looked to really turn a corner with consecutive strong performances, beating the Chicago Bears and playing the Bengals to a tie in Cincinnati.
The improvement started with better play at the quarterback position, where Cam Newton appeared to finally get unleashed by the team's coaching staff after having been limited early on by separate ankle and rib injuries.
But the team has taken a step back since then. The struggles begin up front, where the team's offensive line is consistently losing battles at the point of attack.
While the defense looked good in a low-scoring loss to the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday, the unit surrendered at least 37 points in four of the five weeks prior to that game, allowing an average of 34.8 points over that five-game span.
As bad as the Saints' 0-4 road record looks, they aren't a team that needs to figure out how to play on the road. They just need to do a better job of closing road games out.
The Saints held a lead inside the final four minutes of the fourth quarter in three of their four road games this season.
After this game, the Saints will play three in a row at home. Saints quarterback Drew Brees knows how important it will be to pick up the win here and carry some momentum through this favorable stretch.
"There's no more important game than this quick turnaround, the Thursday night game at Carolina," Brees said, according to The Sports Network. "This was the team that won the division last year. We are going to need our best performance to beat them."
Prediction: Saints 27, Panthers 20
The Play: Saints -3
The Trend: The Saints are 22-10 in prime-time games with Drew Brees at quarterback.
The Tweet:
Newton on Benjamin: "His role on this team has far surpassed any expectations.. Scary thing is he's still learning."
— Max Henson (@PanthersMax) October 28, 2014
Odds courtesy Scoresandodds.com. Statistics courtesy Pregame.com. Trends courtesy Covers.