New Orleans at Carolina

The Thanksgiving Day loss by the Lions has opened the door of hope for some of the NFC mediocre teams. Suddenly the seven teams sitting at 5-5 or 4-6 are within striking distance of the wildcard. The winner here at 5-6 moves to within one game. Carolina has not won a home game all season, putting them in the company of the Rams and the Dolphins. But certainly they don't belong in that company. Just when you think the Saints have gotten it back after rattling off four straight wins, they give St. Louis their first win of the season. Then they face an injured and depleted Houston team and lay another egg. This demise began long before this year however. The early pointspread darlings of 2006 that were 9-4 ATS, have now been a bettor's nightmare, going 4-11 ATS last 15. The defense is ranked 26th and this team just seems to find ways to lose games. Carolina has now dropped four straight and can't score. But wasn't that St. Louis' story two weeks ago? Yes, and they hung 37 on these Saints. The Panthers needed just 241 yards of offense to beat them earlier in the year, so we aren't getting too caught up on the Carolina offense. This is a Saints defense that is suffering from multiple injuries, and we expect Carolina to move the ball well enough to cover and win here. The Panters are 16-5-3 ATS in their last 24 as a dog, so this is a role in which they are more comfortable. We look for Carolina to break through at home and get the win.