Saints vs. Panthers

The Saints look to chip away at the NFC South Division this weekend as they travel to Carolina to take on the Panthers and former Saints Jake Delhomme. The Saints, who travel to London next week, would like to do so above .500 with a win over the Panthers.

On offense, Drew Brees has been playing the quarterback position better than anyone in the NFL the past few weeks and it looks like he'll be getting some of his weapons back on Sunday. Marques Colston and Jeremy Shockey are both expected to be back in the lineup, which didn't miss a beat with them injured. Shockey should open up the middle of the field, and Colston is always a red zone threat. Reggie Bush will be looking to continue to silence his critics (don't even think about punting the ball to him), and RB Deuce McAllister is playing more and more like the Deuce of old.

The Saints defense has been steadily improving each week, and the past two weeks, they have been excellent against the run. The secondary is showing great strides, even with the batch of injuries they've face. Even Jason David has made some plays. They will all need to be at the top of their game against the Panthers' weapons like Steve Smith, Jonathan Stewart and DeAngelo Williams.

These teams always play each other tight. These games are rarely decided until the 4th quarter and turnovers and special teams will be a key. With the Panthers losing 27-3 last week to Tampa Bay, they'll have extra motivation to stay atop the division by beating the Saints.

Prediction:
Saints 21
Panthers 20