Saints vs. Washington NFL Week 5 Picks and Predictions

For a second straight week, the New Orleans Saints face an NFC East opponent. The Saints suffered a disappointing loss to the New York Giants in their belated season home-opener at the Superdome in Week 4. This week, they face the Washington Football Team, who are coming off a stunning come-from-behind win over the Atlanta Falcons.

At the face of it, this NFC tilt is a battle of 2-2- teams. Across sports betting sites, the Saints opened as the -1.5 point road chalk, and since markets went to press, the Saints have been attracting the bulk of the betting. This has prompted the NFL lines and odds to move in their favor. As things currently stand, the Saints are laying 2 points with most top-rated sportsbooks. A few have gone as high as Saints -2.5.

So, will the Saints bounce back at the expense of the WFT? Or will the host defy the NFL odds and serve up a second-straight win? Find out as we preview this matchup.

New Orleans Saints vs. Washington Football Team

Sunday, October 10, 2021 - 01:00 PM EDT at FedEx Field

Saints Drop Home Opener

The Saints fell to the Giants in their season home-opener 27-21 in overtime, giving Daniel Jones and company their first win of the season. It was supposed to be a joyous homecoming for the Saints, who’ve been kept out of the Superdome and the city for over a month due to Hurricane Ida.

They were favored to win the Week 3 contest and closed on the NFL odds board as the whopping 7.5-point home chalk. Tale told it wasn’t even that close.

https://youtu.be/yTUB7uKFYLI

It was a painful defeat, to say the least. Not to mention being outcoached and outplayed by Jason Garrett and Daniel Jones doesn’t provide great optics. For the first three games of the season, the Giants looked clueless on offense, lacking imagination, creativity, or initiative. And yet, they seemed to have all those qualities in abundance against the Saints last Sunday.

The Saints shot themselves in the foot. Perhaps, they underestimated the Giants and took the fact that they were winless on the season for granted. They didn’t play to win. Rather they played not to lose and paid the price.

On the heels of the loss, the Saints slipped to a 2-2 record on the season and a 2-2-0 ATS mark with a 6.2-point winning margin on average and +5.2 differential versus the spread.

Alvin Kamara #41 of the New Orleans Saints is tackled by Leonard Williams #99 of the New York Giants. Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images/AFP.

WFT Stuns Atlanta

The Washington Football Team trailed by eight points in the last four minutes of their contest with the Atlanta Falcons at the Mercedes Superdome last weekend. But a last-gasp rally saw them score 12 unanswered points to clinch the stunning 34-30 win on the road.

The WFT closed as the 2-point road chalk in NFL betting markets and came through in the end for their backers in heroic fashion at the tail end of the game. It wasn’t pretty. It wasn’t perfect. But don’t expect Ron Rivera or the Football Team to apologize. On the heels of the victory, the WFT improved to a 2-2 SU record and the 1-3-0 ATS record.

https://twitter.com/WashingtonNFL/status/1445425313345835014?s=20

A lot is being made of the Falcons’ late-game collapse. The fact that they blew the lead and gifted the win to Washington. Not enough credit is being given to WFT for valiantly fighting to the bitter end, and to Taylor Heinicke for his ingenuity and improvisation that led to the 50-yard winning touchdown pass to J.D. McKissic in the final seconds of the game.

Taylor Heinicke was making his third start this season went 23-of-33 passes for 290 yards and three touchdowns – two of them in the final four minutes of the game to give Washington (2-2) the victory.

Predictions and Picks

The Washington Football Team isn’t getting enough respect from the oddsmakers as they enter this game as the home underdogs. Ron Rivera’s side has struggled since losing starting quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick in week 1, and it was always going to take some time before backup Taylor Heinicke would get up to speed with the offense. The defense isn’t up to snuff, but that could change in time.

What’s important is that they’re coming together slowly. After two wins in four games, the WFT is starting to show signs of overcoming adversity. Things aren’t perfect, and the team isn’t without issues, but they just might be finding their identity.

The same can’t be said of the New Orleans Saints who have been inconsistent since Week 1. Beating the Green Bay Packers might have set the bar too high for Jameis Winston and the Saints because they’ve been up and down since. That inconsistency is frustrating and makes betting on the Saints a risky bet.

Neither team has looked impressive and that could make this a tossup for betting. However, with WFT at home for this Week 5 contest, they have the advantage despite the odds saying otherwise. As such, back the hosts to come through for NFL picks.

NFL Pick: (visit our Sportsbook Review)

*The pick reflects the line at the moment the writer made the play, the odds at the beginning of this article show the live line movement. Since the lines might vary, don’t forget to refer back to our live odds.