The Saints have been a mess all season long as they are 0-3 having been outscored 103-38!  The Panthers have been like two different teams this season as they are awful at home going 0-2.  But, on the road the Panthers are 2-0 having outscored their opponents 54-33!

The Saints have been lost this season on offense and things have gotten a lot tougher with Deuce McAllister going down for the season.  The Saints are planning on using Reggie Bush (80 yards rushing, 2.8 ypc) as the main man in the running game.  At least, that’s what they are saying in public but I have a feeling that undrafted rookie Pierre Thomas will get a big chance to show what he can do soon as Bush can’t handle running between the tackles.  Teams have rushed for 118.0 yards per game against the Panthers so look for the Saints to try to run a balanced offense this week.  Drew Brees (677 yards passing, 1 TD pass, 7 interceptions) needs to be more careful with the football and this week he could have some success as the Panthers don’t have any pickoffs yet this season.  Look for Marques Colston and TE Eric Johnson to have big games this week.

It looks as if David Carr is going to start again this weekend so look for the Panthers to attempt to run the football often.  The Saints are allowing 116.3 yards rushing per game but only 3.7 ypc so DeShaun Foster (302 yards rushing, 5.0 ypc) and DeAngelo Williams (145 yards rushing, 4.0 ypc) will likely have to fight for every yard they get.  The Saints pass defense has been awful this season as they are allowing 239.0 yards passing per game and they have also allowed 7 TD passes and only have 1 interception.  The Saints also don’t have a sack yet this season so David Carr will likely have a lot more time to throw the football this week.  Look for Steve Smith to have a monster game this week (21 rec, 313 yards, 4 TDs).

PREDICTION:  The Saints are lost right now and I don’t see how a bye week will cure all of their ills.  The Panthers will win this game in the Super Dome as the Saints look forward to next April’s Draft.