by Chuck Sommers
Saturday, Jan 07, 2023
Time: 1 p.m. ET
Venue: Caesars Superdome, New Orleans, LA
Where to watch: FOX
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: Saints -3.5; Saints -175, Panthers +150; O/U 42
FanDuel: Saints -3.5; Saints -176, Panthers +148; O/U 41.5
BetMGM: Saints -3.5; Saints -175, Panthers +145; O/U 41.5
Caesars: Saints -3.5; Saints -179, Panthers +150; O/U 42
Season record
Panthers: 6-10
Saints: 7-9
We’re coming down the home stretch of the NFL season and there’s still a lot left to get excited for on your TV screen (or your streaming device if you’re like me and watch Sunday Ticket on a Fire Stick. That works, too). Nevertheless, the final few weeks of the regular season are going to be hectic for everyone on the field, but just as much as everyone off it. You’re probably going to need to figure out which plays are the best ones in terms of teams sitting the star players for the playoff advantage, or which teams are going all in for the final playoff push. If you need that extra push, trust that our champion handicappers can get the job done for you. Matt Fargo has a 17-9-0 run over the last 30 days in the NFL. Brian Bitler has continued to stay consistent, despite a wild, unpredictable season, by going 16-9-0. Do you want a piece of this action? Make sure to stay locked to bigal.com and follow our champion handicappers so you can be a champion, too!
Panthers - Saints preview, analysis and prediction
Last week
Panthers: lost 30-24 at Buccaneers
Saints: won 20-10 at Eagles (Monday)
So much for this game being fun anymore. Thanks to the Carolina Panthers losing to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, this game against the New Orleans Saints will not have any division championship implications. May we all have a moment of silence for the slim hope to see Sam Darnold quarterback a playoff game in 2023.
The Panthers’ last-minute run to a division title ran out of steam last week in the 30-24 loss to the Buccaneers last week in which the Carolina secondary is still having nightmares of Mike Evans catching passes and scoring touchdowns.
But it was a coming-out party for Darnold, who had one of his best games ever with 341 yards and three touchdowns, and DJ Moore catching 6 passes for 117 yards and a touchdown to propel the offense. Carolina has failed to cover two of its last three but has still managed to put together a 5-2 run against the spread in its last seven.
Was that enough to put Darnold in the conversation for the starting job next year, or do the Panthers try to go all-out and draft a quarterback in April? That might require Carolina to trade up in some capacity, but it might be better than having to go the Baker Mayfield route and hoping for the best. Carolina has a lot to consider, as well as a new head coach that may or may not be Jim Harbaugh when all is said and done.
The Saints tried to hang around for as long as they did in the first year of the post-Sean Payton era, but they just ran out of time. They need to address the quarterback situation to figure out a long-term solution to throw the ball to Chris Olave and Michael Thomas, because Andy Dalton and Jameis Winston have shown they are not the options that need to go.
Despite winning three in a row, including that 20-10 win over the Philadelphia Eagles to greatly help the Dallas Cowboys keep the door ajar in the NFC East, the Saints ran out of gas with that run of losing four of five throughout November. Despite covering in three of the last four, the books record has coincided with their on-field record. How much that actually plays out into the true success of this season is about run-of-the-table.
Dalton did as well as he could. He threw just four incompletions and one of them was an interception, going 18 of 22 for 205 yards, but it was the defense that dominated. Marshon Lattimore returned from a lengthy injury absence and picked off Gardner Minshew for a touchdown to give the Saints the edge.
The Saints are laying 3.5 in this one, as expected, with the total resting at 42 at a majority of the books. Moneyline is also favoring the Saints as high as -170.
Prediction
Part of me wants to continue the momentum of what Carolina has done despite losing out as 3.5-point dogs against Tampa. But I like the momentum New Orleans has garnered with these last three wins and what they’re putting together on the map heading into the next year. They just need to figure out the quarterback situation. Saints 24, Panthers 17
Betting trends
Panthers are 2-12 ATS off an over the last 2 seasons.
Panthers are 0-6 ATS after a road game when both teams scored 24 points or more the last 3 seasons.
Saints are 8-1 ATS when revenging against an opponent the last 3 seasons.
Statistical leaders
Panthers:
Passing: Sam Darnold – 1,100 yards, 7 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: D’Onta Foreman – 846 yards, 5 TD
Receiving: DJ Moore – 878 yards, 7 TD
Defense: Brian Burns – 12.5 sacks
Saints:
Passing: Andy Dalton – 2,699 yards, 17 TD, 9 INT
Rushing: Alvin Kamara – 791 yards, 2 TD
Receiving: Chris Olava – 962 yards, 3 TD
Defense: Cameron Jordan – 8.5 sacks
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Chuck Sommers
About the Author:
Chuck Sommers has camped outside of sportsbooks since he can remember, learning the tricks and nuances of the trade. He still has nightmares of betting $5,000 on the Raiders in the Tuck Rule game but has since turned that to 25 years of veteran handicapping greatness. You can find him mostly in the shadows at the Red Rock or Aliante casinos wondering if the over is cashing on any given Sunday.
