Saints-49ers is an NFC playoff test run

Home field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs could be on the line in the Superdome on Sunday, with the New Orleans Saints hosting the San Francisco 49ers in a playoff preview.

For the second year in a row, the Superdome will host what could be a look ahead to the NFC Championship game. In Week 9 of last year, the New Orleans Saints hosted the Los Angeles Rams and walked away with a 45-35 win, setting up the playoff rematch.

The script could be repeating itself again on Sunday, when the Saints play host to another NFC West foe with Super Bowl aspirations in the San Francisco 49ers. While the Saints-Rams game was an offensive shootout, this game could have a much different feel with both teams featuring very stout defenses.

The 49ers have a devastating defensive front headlined by first-round pick Nick Bosa, who has eight sacks, but he doesn’t even lead the team in that category. That honor belongs to fellow defensive end Arik Armstead, who paces the 49ers’ front with 10 sacks.

San Francisco also has a lethal secondary, with veteran corner Richard Sherman having a strong season and safety Jimmie Ward making impact plays all over the field. That defense did something that was nearly impossible last Sunday, holding the high octane offense of the Baltimore Ravens to just 20 points.

The Saints will be able to push the 49ers defense and their speed in unique ways since they are capable of both running and passing with extreme efficiency. Alvin Kamara and the rushing attack will be key for New Orleans since establishing the run will make it harder for the 49ers’ pass rushers to simply pin their ears back and go after Drew Brees.

Speaking of the future Hall of Famer, Brees has been a bit uneven in his return from a thumb injury, but he has still demonstrated there is plenty of life left in his right arm. Michael Thomas, who leads the Saints with an absurd 110 catches for 1,290 yards and six touchdowns in just 12 games, is a matchup nightmare while Jared Cook has come on of late, catching 20 passes for 328 yards and three touchdowns over his past five games.

The more intriguing matchup may come on the other side of the ball, with the 49ers’ offense taking on the Saints’ underrated defense. Those respective units are the less-heralded ones for their teams, but they may end up being the key for this game.

Like their defense, the 49ers’ offense is loaded with options that have one thing in common: speed. San Francisco opted against allotting big bucks towards a run at Le’Veon Bell in free agency, instead signing Tevin Coleman to join a backfield that already included Matt Breida, Raheem Mostert, and Jeff Wilson Jr.

That four-headed monster averages 148 yards per game on the ground, which is the second most in the league behind the Ravens. That is even more impressive since the 49ers don’t have a rushing quarterback like Lamar Jackson contributing to those totals.

With the run as a primary focus of the offense, San Francisco is able to work off of play action, which creates plenty of easy throws for 49ers’ quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo. George Kittle is a game-breaker at the tight end position, while Deebo Samuel and Emmanuel Sanders can run a variety of routes on the outside.

New Orleans’ defense is a sneaky efficient group, surrendering just 20.7 points per game and only 88.6 yards per game on the ground, the third best mark in the league in that category. That sets up a true strength against strength matchup, and whoever wins that battle in the trenches could have a huge edge in the game.

It will also be interesting to see how the Saints deploy star corner Marshon Lattimore, who has been their most effective coverage player this season. Lattimore usually patrols the outside, which would see him line up opposite either Sanders or Samuel, but if Dennis Allen wants to get creative the Saints could use Lattimore to try and neutralize Kittle in certain situations.

With all due respect to other elite teams in the NFC, like Green Bay and Seattle, these two squads have demonstrated throughout the season they are the best teams in the conference. This matchup could well set the stage for the entire NFC playoff picture, with home field potentially swinging on the result of this game.

There is also no doubt that other potential NFC playoff contenders will be watching this game very closely to try and gain some kind of insight into how to neutralize those squads. It should also be a tremendous football game between two quality teams that could easily raise the Lombardi Trophy in Miami in February.