High Stakes Clash: See What Washington and Saints Have to Lose

Plenty is at stake for both New Orleans and Washington when they meet Sunday afternoon in a Week 15 clash.

Nov 15, 2015; New Orleans Saints defensive end Cameron Jordan (94) at the line of scrimmage against the Washington Redskins / Brad Mills-Imagn Images

One of the more underrated matchups of Week 15 might be 8-5 Washington playing at the 5-8 New Orleans Saints. It's an important contest for each squad, but from vastly different perspectives.

For the Saints, they desperately need a win to keep very faint playoff hopes alive in the NFC South. They've won three of four under interim coach Darren Rizzi. However, a seven-game losing streak at mid-season has put them in must-win situations while still needing outside help for a chance.

Washington's win before last week's bye snapped a three-game losing streak for them. They currently hold the seventh and final wild-card spot in the NFC and would essentially control their postseason fate with a win over the Saints.

New Orleans is only one game behind second place Atlanta and two games behind leader Tampa Bay in the NFC South. They split their season series against the Falcons. They'll have an opportunity to split the season series against the Buccaneers when they play at Tampa Bay in the season finale.

Mathematically, the Saints are still very much alive in the division race, though a wild-card spot is all but out of reach. However, they lose tiebreakers to both the Buccaneers and Falcons in terms of division and conference record. Therefore, a loss today, coupled with a Tampa Bay win over the Chargers, even makes a division title all but out of grasp realistically.

Nov 19, 2017; New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara (41) runs away from the Washington Redskins defense / Chuck Cook-Imagn Images

Washington sits three games behind 11-2 Philadelphia in the NFC East. They've lost to the Eagles once, with the rematch against them at home next week.

A Washington division title is still within reach, but they'll need a lot of help. More realistic is a wild-card spot. A loss to the Saints today, a conference opponent, would be a major blow for Washington in both the playoff standings and in terms of conference tiebreakers.

How The Saints Can Slow A Dynamic Washington Offense In Week 15

This is the 29th all-time meeting between the Saints and the Washington franchise. Washington owns a 17-11 lead in the series and a 9-5 advantage when these teams play in New Orleans, site of today's matchup.

The Saints have won the last three games between these teams. Their last meeting was in 2021, a 33-21 Saints victory in Washington. They last played in New Orleans during the 2018 season, resulting in a 43-19 Saints win. In that game, Saints QB Drew Brees took over the NFL lead for career passing yardage while throwing for 363 yards and three scores.

Neither New Orleans or Washington have qualified for the playoffs since the 2020-21 campaign. Both teams would lose in the postseason to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers that as the Buccaneers went on to win the Super Bowl.