• WR Xavier Worthy, Kansas City Chiefs — over 48.5 receiving and rushing yards: The injury to Rashee Rice has left the Chiefs' receiving corps in a difficult position. Before going down, Rice was the only Chiefs pass-catcher with a PFF receiving grade above 76.0. With him sidelined, the spotlight shifts to the remaining receivers, especially first-round pick Xavier Worthy, who now faces increased expectations.
• Record Through Week 4: 11-10 (52.4%) — 0.86 units won.
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Estimated Reading Time: 3 minutes
New Orleans Saints vs Kansas City Chiefs (-5.5)
[Total: 43.5]
Game Overview
Week 5 concludes with this interconference matchup between Derek Carr’s Saints and the undefeated Chiefs.
New Orleans started the year on a high note, winning its first two games while posting impressive numbers on offense. However, they have since cooled off, dropping each of their last two matchups to close out September. They have scraped together a solid record against the spread, holding a 3-1 mark, including a 2-0 record as an underdog.
Kansas City is no slouch against the spread, either, entering four consecutive games as favorites. They finished September with a 1-0-1 record against the spread in road games.
Despite some turnover troubles last week, the Chiefs managed to push on a 7-point spread against a divisional rival. When favored by 6.5 points or fewer, Kansas City holds a perfect 2-0 record against the spread this season.
However, Kansas City will be left to navigate offensively without Rashee Rice, the team's top receiving threat, who landed on IR after suffering a knee injury. Andy Reid will have to dig into his playbook to replace such a key player in his offense.
The Saints aren’t without their questions on the injury front, particularly along the offensive line. After losing center Erik McCoy to IR, this offensive line may also have to navigate without standout guard/center Lucas Patrick, who missed practice this week due to a groin injury. That may leave this unit down three starters on the interior, with Chiefs elite DI Chris Jones on the schedule.
The question will be: Which offense can find success despite crucial injuries?
WR Xavier Worthy, Kansas City Chiefs: Over 48.5 receiving and rushing yards (-119) — 3.3% PFF Greenline Edge
The injury to Rashee Rice has left the Chiefs' receiving corps in a difficult position. Before going down, Rice was the only Chiefs pass-catcher with a PFF receiving grade above 76.0. With him sidelined, the spotlight shifts to the remaining receivers, especially first-round pick Xavier Worthy, who now faces increased expectations.
The talented rookie receiver hasn’t been the centerpiece of the offense, but he’s still seeing opportunities to make impactful plays. Andy Reid designs plays to utilize his speed, setting him up with crossers, ghost screens and end-arounds that create favorable matchups.
Worthy is expected to take on a larger role to compensate for Rice's absence and his 31.3% target share. Though he’s had just 14 targets and five carries so far, the first-rounder has already exceeded this yardage mark in two games, including his most recent appearance.
The Chiefs will need to lean on Worthy's playmaking ability if they hope to challenge a Saints coverage unit that ranked sixth in EPA allowed per play on passing downs through Week 4.
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