New England at New Orleans

Defending champion New England is not the same team as a year ago because of injuries and with problems on both sides of the line. The team has little pass rush or linebacking depth after the retirement of LB Rob Ninkovich and LB Donte Hightower was injured in the opener. Hightower is their best player on defense and the run defense was shredded by the Chiefs. On offense, QB Tom Brady's favorite target, WR Julian Edelman, was lost for the year in preseason and his replacement, slot WR Danny Amendola, got a concussion last week and is questionable for this one. This is the home opener for the Saints, who have an ace QB of their own in Drew Brees and great backfield depth with RB Marc Ingram and newcomer RB Adrian Peterson. The Saints are 13-5 ATS as an underdog, while Coach Sean Payton is 34-21 ATS as a dog. These teams played here in 2009 in a game pitting Brees against Brady and Bill Belichick against Payton. That was a New England team that also had defensive concerns and they got crushed 38-17, part of a 21-8 ATS run by the Saints against AFC East opponents. Take the points on New Orleans.