The New Orleans Saints are 2-5 and last in the NFC South as they head into their bye week. They'll need the rest, because after it, they'll face a gauntlet of teams that could keep them at rock bottom.
Four of the first five teams the Saints are set to face after this week currently have winning records, with two of them also leading their respective divisions. Starting out with a short stint at home with a game against the Browns and then the Panthers, it's the following three games that could do the team in. Going up against the Bears, Bengals, and Packers in back-to-back-to-back weeks would be tough for any team in the NFL, let alone one with a coach on the hot seat.
The Saints' last five games are among the easiest schedules in the league, so there is hope ahead. However, they'll never be able to take advantage of it if they can't make it past the first set of games alive. Surviving the gauntlet after the bye week is really the only way to reach the soft ending with a season worth saving.
The Saints are set to have four divisional games in their last five
New Orleans is set to have four division games in that final stretch as well, making it uber important in terms of the playoff picture. However, there is a real risk that the Saints could end up with a 2-10 record and be out of the said picture before they even reach those divisional games. If the team wants to be part of that conversation, they can't risk many errors; if they do, the season will be over by early December.
The only advantage for the Saints, if you want to describe it that way, is that the toughest part of the five-game gauntlet comes in the last three games. Not to call the Browns' and Panthers' warm-ups, because that would be a mistake; they just don't have an All-Pro D-lineman like those last three teams.
The New Orleans offensive line that has been struggling heavily (ranked 24th by Pro Football Focus) will find it difficult to go up against the Bears in Chicago after the team traded for All-Pro defensive tackle Jefferey Simmons. If that wasn't enough for them, the O-line will be facing another All-Pro DT in Dexter Lawrence. Then, as the grand finale to the whole thing, the Saints O-line will likely have to battle All-Pro edge rusher Micah Parsons in one of his first games back from injury.
That stretch from week 11 to week 13 is also three straight games against teams with a combined 14-7 record, all with playoff aspirations. How Kellen Moore and Co. handle that stretch will determine if the easy schedule at the end, where they face teams with a combined 12-23 record, even matters.
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