New Orleans Saints at Seattle Seahawks: Offense Meets Defense with Playoffs On the Line

It's one of the game's best quarterbacks going up against one of the game's best defenses in one of the most intimidating and electric atmospheres in sports. What's not to love about this one?  Both of these teams are legitimate Super Bowl contenders, but they must also keep winning to fend off surprising challengers within their own divisions. A loss here could mean the difference between a 1-seed and a wild card spot. This is late season NFL at its best.

The Saints have, without a doubt, one of the best offenses in the league. Led by future Hall-of-Famer Drew Brees, New Orleans' passing attack averages 317 yards per game. The Saints' Achilles heel in the past has been their pass defense, but that unit is playing much better under new coordinator Rob Ryan.  ean Payton was suspended last year for the bounty scandal, but his return this year has been a shot in the arm for one of the most consistent franchises of the past five years.  he Saints have a good lead in the NFC South, but Carolina is catching up quickly.

The Saints have had one of the best home-field advantages this season, but they have faltered on the road, especially evident in tough losses at New England and the New York Jets. Those stadiums will be coffee houses compared to the madhouse that is CenturyLink Field. The acoustics in this taco-shaped monster are incredible, and the crowd is one of the best in the NFL. The 12th Man, as Seahawks fans are known (just go with it A&M), pride themselves on causing false starts and general confusion among visiting teams. The bigger the opponent, the louder they get, so expect Brees and crew to get everything they can handle from these fans.

Of course, if the stadium was empty and silent the Seahawks would still have a good chance of knocking off the Saints.  The defense coach Pete Carroll has brought to Seattle is ferocious and smart, and their secondary hits as hard as linebackers. Richard Sherman and company are the only secondary that can handle the physicality of Jimmy Graham and the Saints' talented receiving corps.  Seattle has struggled some on offense, but second-year quarterback Russell Wilson plays mistake free and is coming into his own as a passer.  Brees and Wilson are two of the smallest NFL QB's in recent history, but they are also fearless competitors and gifted passers.

It's the unstoppable force vs the unmovable object: great offense vs great defense.  n any other field in the world I would give the Saints the edge, but CenturyLink Field is a not just any other field. It might be the best home-field advantage in professional sports, though the Saints are used to noise playing in the Superdome. Nonetheless, Seattle plays too well at home and the Saints struggle outdoors. I'm calling the Seahawks, 27-21.

That would be great news for the Carolina Panthers, who are just behind the Saints for control of the NFC South. That would be bad news for both the Arizona Cardinals and San Francisco 49ers, who would see their slim hopes at catching Seattle slip away. This is the game that could also decide the number 1-seed for the NFC.  So much on the line, such a great lead up to a football game.