New Orleans Saints vs. New York Giants: 5 Bold Predictions For Week 2 Of 2016 NFL Season

In what should be the fastest paced, most enthralling game of Week 2 of the 2016 NFL season, Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints travel northeast to take on Eli Manning and the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ, on Sunday.

According to the swell folks in Las Vegas, it will be the highest-scoring game of the week (O/U 52.5). This is understandable considering these two teams scored a combined 101 points when facing off last season in a game the Saints were ultimately victorious by a score of 52-49 at home.

The Saints lost a heartbreaker to the Oakland Raiders in Week 1 (35-34), so avoiding an 0-2 start is imperative considering they play in a tough NFC South. The Giants, having won their first game in Dallas 20-19 on Sunday, have a little more room for error at 1-0.

But you can bet your bottom dollar they want to put the NFC on notice, letting all teams know they are back after missing the playoffs in four-straight seasons.

Can Sean Payton’s bunch recover after a tough home loss, or will Ben McAdoo and Co. play sound football and cement their second victory?

Find out with these five bold predictions.

Rashad Jennings Runs Roughshod Over New Orleans

Despite a number of adequate additions over the offseason, the New Orleans Saints defense looked equally abysmal on Sunday as it did all last season, which isn’t a good sign for the Saints. The Giants, on the other hand, played well offensively on the road, and established the run early with Rashad Jennings, who averaged an adequate 4.2 yards per carry and finished with 78 total yards.

Due to New Orleans’ inability to stop the run, especially on the goal line, it’s fair to assume we’re going to see a lot of Jennings in this one. Expect Rashad to run roughshod over the Saints, ultimately finishing with over 100 total yards and one TD.

The Saints came up short, but Drew Brees had a monster Week 1. pic.twitter.com/d6TjyJ6rj3

— ESPN (@espn) September 11, 2016

Drew Brees Throws For Three TDs, Two INTs

New York knows it will have to take some chances on defense in this one, as Drew Brees and Co. will likely move the ball up and down the field at will. Thus, we should expect cornerback Janoris Jenkins and the rest of the Giants secondary to play aggressively and take some shots at picking off the future Hall of Famer.

Brees is nearly flawless at home indoors on the fast track of the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, but tends to pull brief vanishing acts on the road. Expect Brees to put up solid statistics and keep New Orleans in the game, but the mistakes the rebuilt Giants defensive line forces him into with overwhelming pocket pressure will prove too tough to overcome as he throws two costly INTs.

Eli Manning Electrifies

According to Pro Football Reference, Eli Manning, a New Orleans native going back to the days his father, Archie, was a quarterback for the Saints, has gone 2-4 against his hometown team. However, his individual performance has been solid, as he’s tallied a respectable 1,432 yards and 15 TDs to just five INTs.

Manning looked a little rusty at times in Week 1 against the Dallas Cowboys, but ultimately recovered and posted 207 passing yards and three TDs on the road in a tough environment. This leads me to believe he’s primed to electrify on Sunday against perhaps the NFL’s worst defense.

Expect Eli to electrify, finishing with over 300 yards and three TDs.

Giants’ Revamped Defensive Line Wins Battle In The Trenches

Over the offseason, New York finally got DE Jason Pierre-Paul some help, spending a boatload of money on DE Olivier Vernon and DT Damon Harrison. In Week 1 against Dallas, the unit played well, but failed to record a single sack of Dak Prescott.

Don’t expect the same to happen against New Orleans on Sunday. Put simply, the Saints offensive line doesn’t belong being mentioned in the same sentence as the Cowboys, which is widely considered as the NFL’s premier unit. This will be evident throughout the entire game on Sunday as Brees faces overwhelming pocket pressure, and RB Mark Ingram and Co. fail to establish the run on New York.

Giants Win By Seven Points

Unfortunately for folks in the bayou, the Saints are in for a long season in 2016. Put simply, as evidenced in Week 1 against the Raiders, you can’t fix a defense that struggled as badly as New Orleans did in 2015 over just a single offseason no matter how many new players you bring in.

The Saints have no answer in their secondary for Odell Beckham, Jr., and consequently won’t be able to stack the box against Rashad Jennings, as they will need as many bodies as possible in coverage. Thus, even if they do manage to keep Beckham, Jr. somewhat in check, it will likely come at the price of letting New York’s running back flourish, and/or someone like tight end Larry Donnell exposing them over the middle all game.

When all is said and done, Brees will give New Orleans a chance, but on the road you simply can’t expect an aging quarterback to do it all by himself. Expect the Giants to finish the Saints off after a turnover in the fourth quarter to cement a seven-point victory.

[Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images]