NFL Preview: Saints Host Vikings in Season Opener

The 2010 NFL season kicks off in New Orleans this Thursday night when the Saints welcome Minnesota to the Superdome.

About that ankle
The Minnesota Vikings enter 2010 with questions looming large about the health of Brett Favre. The Vikings’ quarterback injured his ankle in an NFC Championship game loss to the Saints last January. The brief glimpses of Favre since his off-season surgery haven’t been promising; with the old gunslinger looking stiff and immobile in limited pre-season action. Favre will get a chance to put things right in the season’s kickoff game when the Vikings travel to New Orleans. Normally this season-opening game sees more pressure on the defending Super Bowl champions. Minnesota is a strange case however, with the continued soap opera surrounding its starting quarterback taking center stage.

It’s not like the Saints are short of intriguing storylines. Aside from the questions about whether they can repeat as Super Bowl champions, there are all the inspiring stories about how the team has helped New Orleans. On a darker note, there is also the ongoing sage involving Reggie Bush. The Saints running back looks likely to be stripped of the Heisman Trophy he won while at USC.

That winning feeling
Since 2004, the defending Super Bowl Champions are 6-0 in kickoff games. The party atmosphere and an extra urge to start in style gives the home team an edge in these encounters.

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NFL betting fans should keep that in mind when looking at this game. The defense may not be quite the threat it was last season but with an explosive offense and a whole city backing them, I like New Orleans to win on opening night. Take the Saints as a -6.0 point favorite at -110 to win with Sports Interaction.

Falcons look to stifle Dixon
The other big game in week 1 featuring a NFC South team sees Atlanta travel to Pittsburgh. The Steelers enter this game minus Ben Roethlisberger and the man expected to fill in for him, Byron Leftwich. The former Jaguars and Buccaneers quarterback is too banged up to start on Sunday so Pittsburgh will start the season with Dennis Dixon under center.

Dixon was respectable in his only previous start, going 12 of 26 for 145 yards with 1 touchdown and 1 interception against Baltimore last season. That level of production is unlikely to be enough to get past the playoff hungry Falcons. I like the Falcons as a +2.5 point favorite at -110 with Sports Interaction.