Broncos Defense A Major Problem For Saints

A trip to Denver in November might have made New Orleans bettors nervous – but they’ll be strangely intrigued instead as Taysom Hill leads the Saints (8-2 SU, 5-5 ATS) against the Broncos (4-6 SU, 6-4 ATS) on Sunday. Regular starter Drew Brees has struggled in late-season outdoor games, but he’ll sit out his second straight game due to injury.

Sportsbook Odds Analysis

The spread hasn’t budged much at all since Sportsbook at Saints -6, though you can find the odd -5.5. The total, on the other hand, has plummeted from 49.5 all the way down to 43.5 at the majority of sportsbooks.

New Orleans News & Notes

Week 1 of the Taysom Hill Experience was a roaring success from a game outcome perspective, as the Saints rolled to a 24-9 win over the Atlanta Falcons. Hill himself was solid as a passer (18-for-23, 233 yards) but did his damage on the ground with 51 yards and a pair of TDs. He’ll be an interesting DFS play, but only if he remains tight end-eligible as he was on some sites last week.

Bettors should expect Hill to get Alvin Kamara more involved in the passing game this week. Kamara saw just one target against the Falcons en route to the first zero-reception game of his NFL career. The Broncos have one of the best pass rushes in the league, which should mean less time for Hill to operate in the pocket – and more reliance on Kamara and the short passing game in general.

Denver News & Notes

After two dismal efforts in road losses to the Falcons and Raiders, the Broncos defense put it all together in a 20-13 home win over Miami last week. And if you can believe it, the offense might have been even more impressive despite putting up just 20 points. The Broncos racked up 459 yards of total offense in the victory, including 189 on the ground (on 33 attempts). 

One player to watch on the Denver side of the football: wide receiver Tim Patrick, who has become one of the most pleasant offensive surprises in the league so far. Patrick already has three 100-yard receiving performances to his credit, though you might want to ignore him in DFS this week against a Saints pass defense ranked 11th in the league in passing yards against.

Betting Pick: Broncos +6 (-110)

You’ll be in the minority with this play, but we like what we saw from the Denver defense last time out – and it should make things difficult enough for the Saints offense that the Broncos keep this one close.