Saints @ Falcons

Who will WIN this matchup?

New Orleans Saints (8-8)

@ Atlanta Falcons (7-9)

Current odds:

New Orleans Saints: (-210)

Atlanta Falcons: (+180)

• The line for this game is Saints by 4.5 points.

• The New Orleans Saints have dealt with a lot of complications this season. They were displaced to the Dallas-Fort Worth area for a month at the start of the season and had to move their opener from the Caesars Superdome to Jacksonville because of damage Hurricane Ida did to New Orleans.

• Star wide receiver Michael Thomas has missed the entire season because of foot surgery, starting quarterback Jameis Winston was lost for the season in October because of a knee injury and more than a half dozen other key players have missed significant time due to injury. Head coach Sean Payton, several assistants and about two dozen players have missed games because of multiple COVID-19 surges.

• Yet despite all that, the Saints (8-8) head into the regular-season finale at Atlanta (7-9) on Sunday with an opportunity to earn a wild-card playoff berth. If they beat the Falcons and the Rams beat the 49ers on Sunday, the Saints are in.

• The Saints stayed alive in the playoff race with an 18-10 home victory against Carolina last Sunday.

• Right tackle Ryan Ramczyk, who has missed the last seven games because of a knee injury, returned to practice on a limited basis Wednesday after being removed from the reserve/COVID list. Right tackle Terron Armstead (knee) and defensive end Marcus Davenport (ankle) missed practice.

• The five-game losing streak began with a 27-25 loss to the Falcons on Nov. 7 in the Superdome. Atlanta stayed alive in the playoff race until a 29-15 loss at Buffalo last Sunday.

• The Saints and the Falcons are each other’s most frequent opponents, having met 104 times.

• Matt Ryan passed for a season-high 343 yards and two touchdowns in the first meeting. He also ran for a touchdown and the Falcons prevailed on Younghoe Koo’s 29-yard field goal as time expired.

• The Falcons have dealt with COVID issues of late as well. At one point they had 13 players on the reserve/COVID-19 list, but they’re down to three after activating six this week.

• Kyle Pitts is the second rookie tight end in NFL history to have 1,000 receiving yards. He needs 59 more against the Saints to break Mike Ditka’s NFL record of 1,076, but he missed practice Wednesday because of a hamstring injury that sidelined him during the game in Buffalo.