The Saints are looking for a jump to 5-0 today, but it won't come easy against the Bears in Chicago. The Saints are 0-3 in Sean Payton's years as coach of the Saints when playing in Chicago, but this will be by far the warmest it's been in any of those games. The forecast shows a high of 60 with a 20% chance of rain, so the Saints' offense should have decent weather to operate in. Here are the five things I'll be looking for:
1. Does the Saints' offensive line improve at all?
Going on the road is hardest for the offensive line. They can't hear audibles as well, they can't hear snaps counts, and it causes a lot more pre snap penalties and mental mistakes on average. Case in point, the Tampa game was by far the Saints' o line's worst performance of the season. That said, the games at home haven't been much better. The Bears are 16th against the run, currently, giving up 4.0 yards per carry. Not all world by any means, and losing Melton hurts, but they are decent and against the Saints' porous line they should be able to get some stops. But will the Saints surprise us and get something going on the ground? I'm still hopeful the offensive line can do better.
2. Does Brees stay hot and torch the Bears?
The Bears are 23rd in the NFL against the pass, so Brees should have numerous opportunities to expose them significantly. The Bears only have 6 sacks, 30th in the NFL, so they are really struggling to get pressure as well. If the weather holds up this is a good matchup for Brees to expose the back end and make them pay in coverage. If the offensive line can give him time and neutralize the pass rush, he should feast on the Bears. Matt Stafford played them in a dome, granted, but really embarrassed them last week and passes to the running back was effective. Turns out the Saints have the best receiving back in the league, by the way.
3. Does the Saints defense hold the Bears under 20 points?
I think the streak may come to an end this week, but man, if they can hold the Bears under 20 in Chicago for five streak weeks of holding opposing offenses under 20, that is incredibly impressive. I'd obviously love to see this going as long as possible, but it's almost assuredly not happening next week in New England. I have a hard time seeing anyone beat the Saints if they can't score 20.
4. Forgetting Brandon Marshall?
Marshall is Cutler's main target, and he has a tendency to stare him down and force the ball his way at times. Problem is, Marshall is hurt and hasn't practiced all week. Even though he's questionable, I believe he will play. But he'll be banged up, and it could force Cutler to spread the ball around more. If Marshall can't go, the Bears' passing game is severely compromised.
Cutler is a very hot and cold QB. When he's off, he is beyond awful. He throws off his back foot, he forces passes downfield into double coverage and he goes on massive turnover binges. When he's hot, he looks as good as any passer in the league. So will we get the Cutler of last week with the Lions, or the Cutler of the first three weeks? If you get pressure on him, and the Saints' D has been doing a good job of that, it definitely helps him force passes. This could turn into an easy win if Cutler goes off the rails like he's been known to do at times. If he's hot, though, it will be incredibly tough to win.
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