There was no letdown as the New Orleans Saints continued their onslaught of the NFL. Coming off a win over the previously unbeaten Rams and faced with a home contest against the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 11, the Saints were in a perfect letdown spot for their matchup with Cincinnati last week. No problem for what many consider the best team in football. The Saints made quick work of the Bengals and cruised to their eighth straight victory while covering the spread for the seventh consecutive game.
Watch this Week 11 regular season matchup live on Sunday, November 18, 2018, at 4:25 p.m. ET from the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.
Opening NFL Odds at BookMaker.eu
Philadelphia Eagles +9
New Orleans Saints -9
Over/Under 54.5
We expected more from the Eagles in their Sunday night encounter with Dallas. Coming off a win two weeks ago in London with a week off to prepare for the Cowboys, who were embarrassed at home by the Titans last Monday, everything favored Philly, including the oddsmakers. Dallas didn’t get the memo and now the Eagles are the hungry team in dire need of a victory after losing outright as a 7-point favorite.
The Super Bowl hangover has extended through the first half of the season, or maybe the Eagles just aren’t as good as most thought they would be. The offense should be better, despite all the injuries. They scored one field goal in the first half, continuing a disturbing trend of slow starts, and their points per game average has dipped by nearly two touchdowns from last season.
The loss of LeGarrette Blount and Jay Ajayi has affected the run game. Wendell Smallwood leads the Eagles with 261 yards – for the season. Josh Adams was their leading ground gainer on Monday with 47 yards and the Eagles totaled just 71. Playing catch up put the ball in Carson Wentz’s hands more, but running the ball effectively has been a season-long issue.
That may actually be a good thing this week. The Saints have the best run defense in the NFL, however, they are next to last against the pass. Wentz threw 44 passes on Monday night and has at least 30 in every game he’s played. Look for the ball to be in the air plenty on Sunday with Wentz topping his total for attempts and yards on a prop bet at BookMaker.eu.
Wentz is comfortable throwing the ball to Zach Ertz, and the tight end is comfortable catching it. Just like he’s been all season, Ertz was the main weapon last week catching 14 of 16 targets for 145 yards and a pair of touchdowns against the Cowboys. Don’t expect the Eagles to deviate from what’s worked. Ertz leads the team by a wide margin in targets, receptions and receiving yards, and he’s taken over the lead in touchdown grabs. Having Golden Tate on the field didn’t take away from Ertz’s chances rather it helped create room for more opportunities.
This game sets up well for Ertz to have big numbers. I expect him to be targeted heavily again by Wentz and Ertz will do some damage. It’s also important for the Eagles to have a stronger start as they wiggle into desperation mode. They may not win the game, but look for Philly to emphasize scoring points in the first half, which puts them in a good spot on the adjusted live betting lines.
Scoring hasn’t been a problem for the Saints, who have racked up 96 points in the last two games and now lead the NFL with an average of just under 37 per game. They did a number on a decent Rams defense two weeks ago and shredded the Bengals for over 500 yards and 51 points on Sunday. They may not hit those lofty numbers, but expect the Saints to keep rolling. The Eagles allowed 151 rushing yards to Ezekiel Elliott last week and will have a tough time containing Mark Ingram and Alvin Kamara, who each scored a first half touchdown in Cincinnati. The Saints do most of their damage in the second and fourth quarters with a combined 222 points in those frames, so it’s worth hitting them hard on the live betting lines when that stage of the game is reached.
Saints at Bengals Live Betting
The Eagles will try and run the football to keep the ball away from the Saints offense. But they won’t be able to. Having to throw the ball instead gives us the chance to wager on the adjusted scoring lines. Brees will try to exploit a depleted Eagles secondary that just lost Ronald Darby to a knee injury and he’ll have success, especially early in the contest. Lean on the Saints to score a bunch in the first half and Philly will try to keep pace, giving plenty of value to the over on the first half scoring totals on the live betting feature at BookMaker.eu.
NFL Betting Odds
BookMaker offers play-by-play betting odds for live sporting events every day! The user-friendly wagering interface on your smartphone provides an easy way to place bets on the go. Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute, so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker Sportsbook!
