The Dallas Cowboys will try to overcome the loss of their coach when they take on the New Orleans Saints on Thursday Night Football. Dallas coach Mike McCarthy tested positive for COVID-19 on Monday and will miss the game. The Cowboys (7-4), who have lost two in a row, are coming off a 36-33 overtime defeat to the Las Vegas Raiders on Thanksgiving Day. The Saints (5-6), who have lost four in a row, dropped a 31-6 decision to the Buffalo Bills on Thanksgiving. The Cowboys lead the regular-season series 17-13, but the Saints have won 10 of the last 13 meetings.
Kickoff from the Superdome in New Orleans is set for 8:20 p.m. ET. Dallas is a 4.5-point favorite in the latest Cowboys vs. Saints odds from Caesars Sportsbook, while the over-under for total points scored is 47.5. Before you make any Saints vs. Cowboys picks or TNF predictions, be sure to check out what red-hot SportsLine NFL expert Emory Hunt has to say.
Hunt is the founder and CEO of Football Gameplan, which has been supplying analysis of all levels of football since 2007, and a former running back at Louisiana-Lafayette. He knows the game from a player’s perspective.
Hunt has had a lot of success in games involving the Dallas Cowboys. He went 30-20-1 in his last 51 against-the-spread picks in Dallas games, returning $920 to $100 players. Anyone who has followed him is way up.
Now, Hunt has broken down Cowboys vs. Saints from every angle and just locked in his expert NFL picks and predictions. You can head to SportsLine now to see his TNF picks. Now, here are the NFL odds and betting lines for Cowboys vs. Saints:
- Cowboys vs. Saints spread: Dallas -4.5
- Cowboys vs. Saints over-under: 47.5 points
- Cowboys vs. Saints money line: Dallas -210, New Orleans +175
- DAL: Under has hit in four of the last five Cowboys games
- NO: Saints are 4-1 against the spread as home underdogs
Featured Game | New Orleans Saints vs. Dallas Cowboys
Why the Cowboys can cover
Despite the loss of McCarthy, Dallas will have defensive coordinator Dan Quinn at the helm. Quinn served as the head coach of the Atlanta Falcons for most of six seasons. Quinn has the luxury of having quarterback Dak Prescott guiding the offense. Prescott passed for 375 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions for a 106.3 rating in the Week 12 loss to the Raiders. Prescott has 12 games with 375 or more yards since 2016, tied for the most in the NFL.
Also powering the offense is running back Ezekiel Elliott. Despite being banged up, Elliott registered his eighth rushing touchdown of the season last week and has eight touchdowns, seven rushing and one receiving, in nine career Thursday Night Football games. He will be looking for his third game in a row against New Orleans with a touchdown.
Why the Saints can cover
Despite that, Dallas is not a lock to cover the Cowboys vs. Saints spread. That’s because New Orleans has had success against Dallas, winning two of the last three matchups. The Saints could turn to quarterback Taysom Hill, who rushed for eight touchdowns on 87 carries a season ago and is a unique dual-threat.
The Saints could also get back running back Alvin Kamara, who leads the team in rushing with 530 yards on 146 carries (3.6 average) and three touchdowns. Kamara has 14 touchdowns, including 11 rushing, in his past eight games at home. He is looking for his third home game in a row with a rushing touchdown and seventh in a row at home with 75 or more yards from scrimmage.
How to make Cowboys vs. Saints picks
We can tell you that Hunt is leaning under the total in this matchup, but he has discovered a critical X-factor that has him jumping all over one side of the spread. He’s sharing what it is, and which side of the Cowboys vs. Saints spread to back, only at SportsLine.
Who wins Saints vs. Cowboys on Thursday Night Football? And what critical x-factor makes one side of the spread a must-back? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the Saints vs. Cowboys spread you need to jump on, all from the expert who’s 30-20 on Dallas picks, and find out.
