8-2 Saints given a 99 percent chance to make playoffs
The New Orleans Saints have won seven in a row after their 24-9 victory over the Atlanta Falcons and sit as the sole leader of the NFC.
There’s no denying fans were sweating just a tad when the Saints went into a 1-2 hole to start the season. They had a bad loss to the Raiders in Week 2 then followed that up with a disappointing performance against the Packers in Week 3.
Since then, they’ve turned up the heat and started finding a way to win.
Although their first four games of this seven-game winning streak weren’t the prettiest as they both trailed and won by just one score, the Saints are sitting in prime territory to secure the top overall seed and that coveted first-round bye.
The Saints, who had a mere three losses last season, were the No. 3 seed. They lost in the Wild Card round to Minnesota, and it will continue to haunt them that they didn’t manage to solidify a top-two seed.
In a great position with a somewhat easy remaining schedule despite a matchup with the league’s defending champions, Kansas City, the Saints have a 99 percent chance to make the playoffs according to FiveThirtyEight’s data.
They have a 72 percent chance to win their division, a 60 percent chance at a first-round bye and an 18 percent chance to win the Super Bowl. A team used to regular season success, this time around, the Saints season will be completely defined by what happens in the postseason.
After three straight postseason shortcomings, the Saints need to find a way to success as they’ll more than likely be taking on a lower-seeded team if they take on anyone at all during the Wild Card round.
With success behind 30-year-old Taysom Hill this past Sunday, the Saints should be able to win without Drew Brees. He will be back before the postseason which is a positive as the Saints are a better team with him behind center.
Next. Top 30 players in New Orleans Saints’ history. dark
In a good position moving forward, New Orleans should finally be ready to break through and find postseason success. Let’s hope that’s the case at least.