Saints vs. Chargers Point Spread: NFL Week 8 Odds, Prediction
Both teams enter Week 8 after tough losses. Missed opportunities cost the Chargers in a 17-15 loss in Arizona last week, while the Saints were blown out 33-10 by Denver at home.
Los Angeles opened as a sizeable seven-point favourite to win on the NFL odds, with the total set at 39.5.
NFL Point Spread and Betting Analysis
After two blowout wins to the start the season, reality has hit New Orleans hard on a five-game losing streak. They haven’t been much better as a cover option, going 3-4 against the spread. Thanks to a high flying offence to start the year and an abysmal defence in the last few weeks, the Saints have hit the Over in five of seven games this season.
The Chargers are an even 3-3 straight up this season, but they’ve struggled at home, dropping six of their last seven games at SoFi Stadium dating to last year. And while they are just 3-3 ATS overall, keep in mind they have covered in five straight games against NFC South opponents. An inability to generate offence has led to the total going Under in five of L.A.’s six games.
New Orleans Saints
Starting in place of the injured Derek Carr for the second straight game, rookie quarterback Spencer Rattler struggled last week. Rattler completed 25 of 35 pass attempts for 172 yards while failing to find the end zone. He was terrorized all game and was sacked six times. New Orleans’ offence as a whole struggled to generate any positive momentum and the defence was equally stifled.
Carr is expected to be out again this week as he recovers from an oblique injury, so it will be the rookie Rattler who gets the start again as he looks to avoid becoming the first Saints quarterback ever to start his career 0-3. New Orleans will also be missing receivers Chris Olave (concussion) and Rashid Shaheed (knee), who are both on the IR.
Los Angeles Chargers
It’s tough to blame quarterback Justin Herbert for last week’s loss in Arizona. Herbert threw for 349 yards, but no scoring passes because multiple receivers were stripped of what looked like sure TDs. The run-game struggled heavily as L.A. generated just 59 rushing yards in the game.
Amid the Chargers’ struggles to generate points, you shouldn’t overlook their elite defensive unit. L.A. ranks in the top-10 in average total yards allowed (295.3), passing yards allowed (184.2) and rushing yards allowed (111.2) per game while also allowing a league-low average of 13.8 points per game. This team should be good enough to beat a rookie fifth-round quarterback in Rattler.
NO
LAC