First Look: Lions at Saints

The Saints enter Sunday as a 4.5-point underdog against the Lions. Vegas isn't wrong in their thinking, as New Orleans has their season on the ropes.

Sunday feels like a must-win situation for the Saints, but that's going to be a hard task hosting a very resurgent Lions team. New Orleans gave up their division lead when they lost to Atlanta on Sunday in a game that saw only field goals for the offense. Detroit is coming off a tough Thanksgiving loss against Green Bay, and will surely be a hungry team coming into the Superdome. Here's some of the many things we're paying close attention to leading up to kickoff.

Saints Storylines to Follow In Week 13

WHO'S ACTUALLY GOING TO PLAY?

The Saints are dealing with a laundry list of injuries, and there's going to be at least one player who we aren't expecting to see. Rashid Shaheed's thigh injury will likely sideline him this weekend, while Chris Olave is still in the concussion protocol. He was at practice on Wednesday, so that's an encouraging step in the right direction. Cam Jordan (ankle), Pete Werner (shoulder/oblique), Marcus Maye (shoulder), and Kendre Miller (ankle) didn't practice to start the week, while Blake Grupe (right groin) and Erik McCoy (shoulder) were limited.

Without Shaheed, New Orleans will have to get production from others that will have to step up. Olave feels like he's on track, but behind him would be rookie A.T. Perry, Lynn Bowden, Keith Kirkwood, and we would anticipate Marquez Callaway getting a look from the practice squad. This also feels like a game where Jimmy Graham should be active.

CAN THE SAINTS GET BACK ON TRACK?

The rails are seemingly off right now in New Orleans after another disappointing loss, and it hurt even more because it was the Falcons. The seats have to be at least warming up right now with the way things are going, and while the team can still play for the division, it's that or bust. There's just not a lot of hope to make it as a Wild Card this year.

Saints Run Defense vs. Lions Rushing Attack

SOLVING FOR THE RED ZONE

The red zone issues are a hot button, and the offensive effectiveness over the past several games leaves so much to the imagination. Dennis Allen said on Wednesday that the team is adding another day to work on the red zone (Thursday) in addition to their normal routine on Friday. A lot of Derek Carr is in focus, and they have to figure out this complex equation out before it's too late.

STOP THE BLEEDING DEFENSIVELY

The run defense and defense in general has not been particularly good since the first five games of the season. The fourth quarter saw Atlanta run wild on New Orleans, as all four of their runners averaged 4.3 yards/carry or better. We've heard lane integrity being a problem repeatedly and the tackling was also not on par last week. These things so late in the year are extremely troubling, and the one-two punch of David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs will surely put a stress test on the Saints. It has to improve, or else.

SHORT FUSE SUPERDOME

Fans are going to be very testy in this one, and rightfully so. There's been a couple of games this season where we've heard more boos than we had in combined years during the Sean Payton-Drew Brees era. While this might not totally affect the players, the bottom line is the product is not one that has a lot of optimism and the support and disinterest are growing. 

Saints QOTD: What would it take to change your opinion on Dennis Allen?

— John Hendrix (@JohnJHendrix) November 27, 2023

Polls are just those, but it's really something seeing how we're at the 'I've seen enough' phase. New Orleans has to pull out all the stops and they have to find a way to win, and at the same time it's hard to imagine the crowd being behind them with struggles early on. Six games left in the year, and this is the one you could turn the tide on things. Of course, this loss would be expected and would likely mean the Saints would have to win their final five.