New Orleans (2-2) at Kansas City (4-0)
Monday, 8:15 p.m. EDT, ESPN.
BetMGM NFL Odds: Chiefs by 5 1/2.
Against the spread: Saints 3-1, Chiefs 3-1.
Series record: Chiefs lead 7-5.
Last meeting: Chiefs beat Saints 32-29 on Dec. 20, 2020, in New Orleans.
Last week: Saints lost to Falcons 26-24; Chiefs beat Chargers 17-10.
Saints offense: overall (9), rush (7), pass (19), scoring (1)
Saints defense: overall (17), rush (7), pass (25), scoring (6)
Chiefs offense: overall (14), rush (15), pass (11), scoring (14)
Chiefs defense: overall (15), rush (8), pass (23), scoring (7)
Turnover differential: Saints plus-3, Chiefs minus-4.
Saints player to watch
QB Derek Carr is familiar with Kansas City from his days playing for the AFC West-rival Raiders. He has struggled the past two weeks, throwing for just 142 yards in a loss to Philadelphia and 239 in a loss in Atlanta. Carr also has been picked off in each of the past three games.
Chiefs player to watch
TE Travis Kelce finally had a big game last week against the Chargers, catching seven passes for 89 yards. He still has not scored this season, but the sudden uptick in production for the four-time All-Pro was important after the Chiefs lost WR Rashee Rice to a knee injury.
Key matchup
Saints RB Alvin Kamara against the Kansas City run defense, which has shut down some of the league’s best through the first four weeks. The Ravens’ Derrick Henry managed 46 yards in the opener, the Bengals’ Zack Moss just 34 the next week, Falcons star Bijan Robinson had 16 carries for 31 yards, and JK Dobbins was held to 32 yards for the Chargers last week. Kamara has had at least 15 carries and 77 yards rushing in every game this season.
Key injuries
Saints TE Taysom Hill (ribs), LB Demario Davis (hamstring), OLs Erik McCoy (groin) and Cesar Ruiz (knee) and FS Tyrann Mathieu (calf) have been dealing with injuries. … Chiefs WR Rashee Rice could miss the rest of the season with a knee injury.
Series notes
The Saints and Chiefs have only played 12 times since their first meeting at Tulane Stadium on Sept. 25, 1972. The Chiefs have won the past three, including a 32-29 victory on Dec. 20, 2020. The Saints have not won in Kansas City since a 30-20 victory on Nov. 16, 2008.
Stats and stuff
The Saints lost to the Falcons last week despite not allowing an offensive TD. … Kamara scored his 84th career TD last week, tying Hall of Fame WR Calvin Johnson, Andre Rison and Herschel Walker for 59th on the career list. … Saints WR Chris Olave had a season-high eight catches for 87 yards last week against Atlanta. … WR Rashid Shaheed had a career-best eight catches for 83 yards against the Falcons. … Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes made his 100th start last week against the Chargers. He has an NFL-record 78 wins during that stretch. … Mahomes needs 672 yards passing to reach 30,000 for his career. … Mahomes broke the Chiefs record for pass attempts last week previous held by Hall of Fame QB Len Dawson. Mahomes has thrown 3,711. … Kelce passed Tony Gonzalez for the Chiefs receptions record last week. He has 922. … Chiefs DT Chris Jones had two sacks last week, giving him 78 1/2 for his career. That is tied with Justin Houston for No. 4 on the franchise list.
Fantasy tip
WR Xavier Worthy showed why the Chiefs made him a first-round pick with his 54-yard touchdown catch just before halftime against the Chargers. The speedster already brought big-play potential to the table, but now Worthy figures to get more targets with Rice out with a knee injury. And he’ll be face a Saints pass defense that is ranked 26th in the league.
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