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Week 2 of NFL Monday Night Football Predictions: Saints at 49ers

While the Saints kicked off the season with a messy win vs. Minnesota, the 49ers gave Pete Carroll a surprisingly warm welcome back into the league. Will Mike Singletary pull his squad together under the Monday Night lights of Candlestick Park?

Saints on Offense
Although it was just Week 1, the champs looked slightly disheveled compared to what we’re used to seeing from them offensively. Their ability to drive the field at will was not totally there, and it had a lot to do with the lack of running. Brees was Brees, throwing 27-36 while distributing to 9 different receivers. But when it came time to extend a drive, the running game dropped the ball (not literally though). New Orleans needs to build on the success they have with Pierre Thomas (71 yds off 19 rushes) and force the Niners to get physical defensively. Sean Payton will look to stretch the field with Reggie Bush, who should be playing with a chip on his shoulder now that there’s a big void in his trophy room. If Bush is a presence in the short passing game, he can test a San Fran D that was caught sleeping in Seattle last Sunday. This can open up the field for big-time plays from Brees to Marques Colston, Devery Henderson, Robert Meachem (I call him Big Meach), and the list goes on… The Niners can hopefully get inspired by their home crowd, but ultimately the initiative should come from their linebacking corps, namely Takeo Spikes and tackling machine Patrick Willis.

49ers on Offense
There have been talks of Alex Smith getting thrown into the ‘QB Controversy Pit’ if he doesn’t seriously step it up. Regardless of how legitimate these talks are, Smith should be best buddies with Vernon Davis on Monday Night. Davis’s knack for getting open and get extra yards after the catch will put pressure on a secondary that will be without playmaker Darren Sharper. Michael Crabtree can also be an asset, but it’ll be up to Alex Smith to find out where the pressure is coming from and make the right reads. Another guy Smith will have to lean on will be Frank Gore, who had a mediocre first game running the ball (17 for 38 yds rushing). Look for Gore to redeem himself in the ground game. And if he can bail out Smith by catching the ball from time to time, it could save the Niners from getting pummeled by Gregg Williams’s blitz-happy D. Of course, it goes without saying that the San Francisco O-line has to dig deep and protect their guy. Ultimately though, the mix of New Orleans’s blitz packages and front 7 pressure will get the best of the Niners’s protection.

Drew Brees will look to get his offense rolling by putting together big plays against San Francisco. The 49ers need to take care of the ball and force turnovers- if they lose the turnover battle, they’ll have no chance.

SuperPrediction
New Orleans        28
San Francisco      17

About the Author

Asaf Winer is a sports journalist who freelances for sports predictions websites.  He is considered a sports expert in football predictions and posts his http://superpredictors.com”>free nfl predictions in many online forums.  You can see his weekly nfl picks at Superpredictors.com, where last year he was ranked the top predictor for the 2009-2010 NFL season.

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