After an impressive season that resulted in home-field advantage throughout the NFL Playoffs, the New Orleans Saints will begin their postseason on Sunday in the Divisional Round. Drew Brees and company should be fresh, too, after many starters rested in Week 17 and then had a first-round bye. They'll need to shake off the rust quickly, however, because they'll be taking on one of the hottest teams in the NFL, the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles. These two teams met back in Week 11, with the hosting Saints winning 48-7. But that loss was a wakeup call for the Eagles, who are peaking at the right time. New Orleans is an eight-point favorite this time around, with the total at 51.5 in the latest Eagles vs. Saints odds. Before you make any Eagles vs. Saints picks and NFL Playoff predictions, check out what SportsLine's Projection Model has to say.
SportsLine's proprietary computer model went 176-80 straight up last season and beat more than 95 percent of CBS Sports Office Pool players in 2016 and '17. It also performed better than 98 percent of experts tracked by NFLPickWatch.com during that span. Additionally, it went 48-34 on A-rated picks against the spread last season, and $100 bettors who have followed it the past two seasons are up nearly $4,000.
The model has continued to nail its top-rated picks in 2018-19, entering the divisional round on a blistering 16-6 run. For the season, it is now 30-15 on all top-rated picks, extending its two-year run to a strong 78-49. It also went 170-84 on straight-up NFL picks during the regular season, ranking inside the top 10 on NFLPickWatch.com. Additionally, it hit all four NFL spread picks on Wild Card Weekend. Anyone who has followed it is way up.
Now, it has crunched the numbers for Eagles vs. Saints (stream live on fuboTV) from every angle. We can tell you it's leaning over, but it has also generated a strong point-spread selection that hits more than 50 percent of the time. The pick is only available at SportsLine.
For Sunday's matchup, the model knows that the 2018 season has been all about balance for the Saints offensively. After years where it felt like Brees had to throw the ball 50 times per game for New Orleans to compete, a backfield featuring Alvin Kamara and Mark Ingram has given the veteran quarterback room to breathe. The Saints threw the ball 519 times during the regular season and ran it 471 times, making them one of the most balanced teams in the league.
Defenses respecting the run opened up the field and gave Brees plenty of winnable one-on-one matchups. The end result was an NFL record for completion percentage (74.4) and an impressive 8.2 yards per pass attempt. Philadelphia had just the 30th-ranked pass defense this season and Brees diced up the Eagles last time out, throwing for 363 yards and four touchdowns.
But just because New Orleans can run the ball and play defense doesn't mean it will cover the Eagles vs. Saints spread in the Divisional Round.
With starting quarterback Carson Wentz again sidelined by injury and Nick Foles under center, the Eagles resembled the team that could do no wrong in last season's playoffs. Foles led a late 60-yard drive against the Bears that resulted in the go-ahead touchdown to Golden Tate on a fourth-and-goal pass. Philadelphia prevailed when Chicago's Cody Parkey hit the upright and crossbar with a tipped field-goal attempt as time expired.
Philly has been red-hot, winning its past four and covering three times during that span. The Eagles pitched a 24-0 shutout against the divisional-rival Redskins and held the Monsters of the Midway to just 15 points.
Who wins Eagles vs. Saints? And which side of the spread hits in more than 50 percent of simulations? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the spread you need to jump on Sunday, all from the computer model that has returned nearly $4,000 to $100 bettors over the past two seasons.