Baltimore Ravens (5-3) vs New Orleans Saints (3-5)
- Spread: Ravens -1.5
- Over/Under: 46.5
Breakdown
Monday Night Football will see the Ravens travel to take on the Saints in the Caesars Superdome. Both these teams have been involved in many one-score games this season already and this game could continue that trend and be another close game for these teams. The Ravens offense is missing its biggest piece in the passing game, Mark Andrews. With the Ravens going on bye next week, taking it slow with their elite tight end seems like the smart move while he nurses knee and shoulder injuries. Ravens are also without two other key pieces of the offense, Gus Edwards, and Rashod Bateman. Gus Edwards is listed as doubtful for the game and will likely not play with a hamstring injury, while Bateman needed season-ending surgery to repair a Lisfranc injury to his left foot. Lamar Jackson will need to be on his game against a solid New Orleans defense. Lamar has been solid this year, racking up 1635 pass yards, and 15 passing touchdowns, to go along with 553 yards and 2 touchdowns rushing. Devin Duvernay will serve as the primary receiver in this matchup and will most likely be the top wide receiver for the rest of the season. Primary runners will be Kenyan Drake and Justice Hill.
The Saints have played better than their record shows. Only one loss this season has come by more than one possession and the Saints are coming off a dominant 24-0 win over the Raiders. Andy Dalton should continue to be the quarterback even though Jameis Winston seems to be healthy now. The Saints are also coming into this game banged up and will be without Michael Thomas as he was placed on IR with a toe injury and will most likely be out the rest of the season. Rookie wide receiver Chris Olave has been electric this season. The primary receiver on this team with Michael Thomas out and he has filled in well through 8 weeks, bringing in 547 yards and 2 touchdowns. The offense runs through Alvin Kamara, coming off of a ridiculous 158 total-yard game with 3 touchdowns. Kamara is effective in the run game but where he shines is the passing game, having 6 or more catches in each of the last 4 games. Ultimate gadget player Taysom Hill will factor into the offense in some aspect but it seems to be different every week.
Keys to Victory
Ravens: effective, high-percentage pass plays. The Ravens are going to do their thing on the ground, it’s the identity of the team and Lamar will play a huge factor in the run game. With the defenses, attention on the run game, utilize the play action and get the receiving options into the game. Duvernay and Kenyan Drake should be utilized with passes close to the line of scrimmage to gain yards after the catch. Isaiah Likely, the impressive rookie tight end who is filling in for Mark Andrews, should be heavily prominent in the passing game as well.
Saints: Involve Alvin Kamara in all facets of the offense. The Saints offense goes as Alvin Kamara goes. Kamara has produced very well since coming back from injury, weeks five through nine he has 581 total yards and 3 touchdowns.
Prop Bet Pick
Chris Olave Anytime Touchdown Scorer (+145)
Olave should see plenty of targets in this matchup. He and Kamara should be the bulk of the offense. He only has two touchdowns this season but I foresee this being a close game and the Saints needing to throw.
Isaiah Likely Anytime Touchdown Scorer (+160)
This one is a little more of a longshot but the tight end position is vital in this Ravens offense. Likely, who got his most playing time when Andrews got hurt last week, saw 7 targets and brought in 6 of them for 77 yards with a touchdown. It’s clear the talented rookie tight end can be a weapon for Lamar Jackson and should be prevalent in the redzone given his size.
DFS Plays
Ravens: Justice Hill. Kenyan Drake will most likely be the every-down back but Hill will see third-down plays and be a nice change of pace back. The split could be more even with Drake in this matchup with JK Dobbins on IR and Gus Edwards doubtful to play. It’s not shiny but he has a low cost and will be involved in the Ravens offense.
Isaiah Likely is also fairly inexpensive to put in your lineup and he will be heavily involved in the offense.
Saints: Juwan Johnson. Besides Kamara and Olave it is tough to trust anyone in this matchup. Johnson has proved to be the lead tight end and is heavily prominent in the redzone. If it’s not Taysom Hill running in a redzone touchdown, look for Johnson to have a shot as the top receiving tight end and endzone target.
